Business in Poland
Poland is one of the most popular countries for creating and developing a business, as well as investing. By opening a business in this country, you get access to the entire European market, which includes 28 countries and up to 500 million consumers. Most companies registered outside European jurisdiction choose Poland as a country for further business promotion in Europe.
Poland is also a member of the WTO and the OECD, which confirms its strong international position. A favorable economic, political and social environment is the basis of a stable economy of the country. It is worth noting that during the global crisis of 2007, Poland remained the only EU member state whose economy did not show a recession, and whose banking sector was not affected.
At the moment, Poland demonstrates the leading indicators of bilateral trade in Central and Eastern Europe.
Legal system of Poland
Poland is a republic with a multi-party parliamentary cabinet system. The President is at the head of the state. Power is divided into three branches: legislative power, which belongs to the bicameral Parliament (Lower House - Seimas, Higher House - Senate), judicial power (courts and tribunals) and executive power (Cabinet of Ministers, President).
The system of Poland also presupposes the decentralization of public power: a certain part of it belongs locally to self-governing societies.
Advantages of Poland
Poland has one of the most optimal taxation systems in the EU. The fixed income tax rate is 19%. For comparison, in Germany - 30%, in Estonia - 21%, in Hungary - 20.6%
Poland is the sixth largest market in the EU and 33rd in the world (38.5 million people). The total area of the country is 312,679 km², which is more than the UK (242,900 km²) and Italy (301,336 km²).
To open a company in Poland, a relatively low authorized capital (about €1200) is required, which is not necessary to be deposited into a corporate account during registration, but it is enough to declare it.
Poland is located at the intersection of several major transit routes. Due to the transit position between the countries of Western Europe and the CIS, most of the cargo flows between them pass through Poland. The country has access to the Baltic Sea (connections with the Scandinavian countries) and a long border with the largest economic center of the EU - Germany.
Poland has minimum licensing requirements for business activities and no investment or real estate purchase requirements. • Developed infrastructure allows you to quickly and optimally organize your business. • The Polish authorities encourage foreign investment in the country's economy - tax incentives, special economic zones, grants - both from the state budget and from the EU.
Advantages of Poland
Limited Liability Company (Sp.Zoo.O.)
Joint Stock Company (SA)
Representation
Limited Liability Company (Sp.Zoo.O.)
- The Company is subject to VAT/CIT (Corporate Income Tax).
- The Company is liable for its obligations with all its property without any restrictions. Co-owners are not liable for the obligations of the company, their liability is limited to the amount of contributions made to the company.
- Every foreigner legally residing in Poland can establish and run a limited liability company.
- The minimum authorized capital of an LLC in Poland is PLN 5,000.00.
- The registration period is up to one and a half months.
The advantages of this organizational and legal form are the relatively low cost of establishing a company, the ability to start business activities immediately after the completion of a short registration procedure, limited liability and a low minimum share capital, low costs of maintaining a company and compliance with the requirements of Polish law.
Joint Stock Company (SA)
- The Company is subject to VAT / CIT (income tax from legal entities). In order to ensure the solvency of the company, 8% of the annual income (after taxation) is transferred to the reserve fund until its amount reaches at least a third of the nominal value of all issued shares.
- The Company is liable for its obligations with all its property without any restrictions. Shareholders are not liable with their own property for the obligations of the company, their liability is limited to the amount of capital contributed to the company.
- Every foreigner who resides legally in Poland can establish a Joint Stock Company.
- The minimum authorized capital of a JSC in Poland is PLN 100,000.00.
- The registration period is up to one and a half months. The joint-stock company is intended for conducting large and medium-sized enterprises. It cannot be founded solely by a limited liability company. The mandatory bodies of a joint-stock company are the meeting of shareholders, the board of directors and the supervisory board (audit committee).
Representation
- Coordinating representation: Organized to supervise the implementation of contracts between foreign and Polish contractors (for example, to supervise and coordinate the implementation of a construction project or the installation of capital equipment).
- Technical and information representation: The function of such a representation is informational activity in the field of maintenance and use of the products of its parent company. He is not allowed to engage in advertising and marketing. The technical and information representation does not have the right to sign contracts and is not subject to Polish tax legislation.
An important obligation of the representative office is that it must use the name of the parent company in the language of the country of its registration, as well as indicate its legal entity translated into Polish and with the addition of the words: “representative office in Poland”. Foreign investors can organize representative offices to monitor the execution of contracts between foreign and Polish counterparties, etc. The form of representation is intended mainly for situations where the activities of a foreign entity in Poland should be carried out directly on its behalf and in its favor. The representative office is not an independent unit in terms of property. The subject of activity of the representative office does not fundamentally coincide with the economic activity of the enterprise, as it serves to promote and advertise the activities of the latter.
Taxation in PolandInternational agreements of Poland in the tax field
Double tax treaties have been signed with the following countries:
- Australia
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Albania
- Algeria
- Armenia
- Bangladesh
- Belarus
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Bosnia and Herzegovina (agreement with Yugoslavia)
- Great Britain
- Hungary
- Vietnam
- Germany
- Greece
- Georgia
- Denmark
- Jersey
- Egypt
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
- Israel
- India
- Indonesia
- Jordan
- Iran
- Ireland
- Iceland
- Spain
- Italy
- Kazakhstan
- Canada
- Qatar
- Cyprus
- Kyrgyzstan
- China
- Kuwait
- Latvia
- Lebanon
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Macedonia
- Malaysia
- Malta
- Morocco
- Mexico
- Moldova
- Mongolia
- Nigeria
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Norway (was replaced by the Convention on 09.09.2009)
- UAE
- Maine Island
- Pakistan
- Portugal
- Russia
- Romania
- Saudi Arabia
- Singapore
- Serbia (Agreement with Yugoslavia)
- Syria
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- USA
- Tajikistan
- Thailand
- Tunisia
- Turkey
- Uzbekistan
- Ukraine
- Uruguay
- Philippines
- Finland
- France
- Croatia
- Montenegro (agreement with Yugoslavia)
- Czech Republic
- Chile
- Switzerland
- Sweden
- Sri Lanka
- Estonia
- South Africa
- South Korea
- Japan
