As of January 1, 2023, provisions of the VAT Law came into force that enable VAT taxpayers to become VAT taxpayers and be jointly accounted for by several entities within a so-called VAT group.

Conditions for the establishment of a VAT group

1. Pursuant to Article.15a(2) of the VAT Act, a VAT group may include only entities that:

• have a registered office in the territory of Poland, or
• do not have a registered office in Poland, but there is a branch in the territory of Poland through which they conduct their business activity - such a branch may be a member of a VAT group.

2. A VAT group is a group of entities with financial, economic and organizational ties, which is registered as a VAT taxpayer.

• Financial links mean that one of the taxpayers owns more than 50% of the shares (stocks) in the share capital, or more than 50% of the voting rights in the controlling, constituting, managing bodies, or more than 50% of the right to share in the profit, of each of the other entities that are members of the group,
• links of an economic nature are situations in which: the subject matter of the main activities of the members of the group is of the same nature, or the types of activities of individual members of the group are complementary and interdependent, or a member of the VAT group carries out activities that benefit other members of the VAT group,
• organizational links exist if the entities are under common management or organize their activities in concert.

3. VAT group members are required to draw up an agreement on its formation for a minimum period of 3 years. Such agreement should indicate:

• the name of the VAT group, together with the designation "VAT group" or "GV",
• the VAT group's representative, i.e. the entity representing the VAT group with respect to its duties (the representative shall register for VAT and VAT-EU purposes - if necessary, and apply to the Head of the Tax Office for the group's Tax Identification Number).

VAT settlement in the VAT group

• as soon as the VAT group becomes a taxpayer, it is obliged to settle VAT jointly and submit one collective JPK file with the declaration, which takes into account settlements with entities other than those in the group. The entity responsible for fulfilling this obligation is the representative of the group,
• invoices are issued by the VAT group and contain identification data (name and TIN of the group),
• acquisitions made by one member of the group are acquisitions of the group, sales by one member of the group are sales of the group,
• intra-group transactions are not taxable (such activities should not be documented by invoices, but by accounting notes, and are not shown in the returns filed by the VAT group),
• intra-group transactions are subject to inclusion in a separate, electronically maintained record.

Advantages and disadvantages of using joint accounting

• no taxation of transactions carried out between group members,
• simplification of documentation and administrative duties by minimizing the number of invoices issued (no invoices for intra-group transactions),
• submission of a single, collective JPK by the VAT group,
• increasing liquidity,
• abolishing the split payment mechanism for intra-group transactions,
• the disadvantage of operating in a VAT group is the risk of liability, which is joint and several. During the period when the VAT group has the status of a taxpayer and after losing this status, the members of the group are jointly and severally liable for the VAT group's VAT obligations,
• the disadvantage is the obligation to keep separate electronic intragroup records containing: the type and value of supplies of goods and services provided by a VAT group member to another member of the same VAT group.