| In Principle

A comprehensive overhaul of Polish tax law is expected. The proposed changes would implement the Law & Justice government’s programme known as the “Polish Deal.” Some of these changes are intended to make the tax system more attractive to new taxpayers. Others are designed to encourage taxpayers who have used optimisation schemes in the past to put their tax affairs in order.

The new regime is intended to incentivise holding companies to locate in Poland and create a competitive tax environment encouraging Polish businesses to return from foreign jurisdictions. These themes resound from the explanatory memorandum to the bill introducing the “Polish Deal.” But do the proposed provisions actually reflect these ideals? Will the new regime be attractive to any group of taxpayers?

The bill to implement the “Polish Deal” programme would introduce the separate institution of a VAT group, previously unknown in the Polish tax system, enabling consolidation of the tax result within a capital group.

The bill to amend the Personal Income Tax Act, the Corporate Income Tax Act and other acts published on 26 July 2021, known as the “Polish Deal,” includes new rules for tax depreciation of real estate held by real estate companies. The proposed changes could significantly limit the value of tax costs from depreciation.

The Residential Special Act was supposed to generate huge growth in residential development, mainly by cutting through red tape. Now the hubbub surrounding its introduction seems to have exceeded the real impact of the act. Should it now be plainly admitted that the special act has not lived up to the hope placed in it?

With the growing popularity of video games, the game development industry is booming on a global scale. The outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic only accelerated this process. The unwavering demand for video games is generating an increase in interest in investing in entities involved in production and distribution of games.

We have reported here on the 30 March 2021 amendment to the law on environmental impact assessments from the perspective of investors and ecological organisations. In practical application, these provisions are generating more and more doubts.

Compliance with export control regulations poses a growing challenge for participants in international trade in goods and providers of cross-border services. The size of the enterprise is irrelevant. Multinational corporations are subject to the same restrictions and consequences for infringement as small businesses or individuals. Every participant in trade must determine whether a planned export of goods, technologies or services requires a permit or completion of other formalities to avoid exposure to financial losses or criminal liability.

1 July 2021 marks an important day for all entities subject to entry in the commercial register in Poland. On that day, the long-announced and repeatedly postponed revolution in registration proceedings came into force, and now businesses can submit applications to the National Court Register (KRS) only electronically.

Work on the amendment of the Investment Funds Act is coming to an end. The changes include extending the range of fees in connection with distribution of participation units in Poland and introducing uniform rules for advertising information provided by funds and detailed rules for protection of investors in the event of cessation of marketing of participation units in foreign funds in Poland.

The Ministry of Finance has proposed regulations allowing for conclusion of an investment agreement (also called a “590 interpretation”) between an investor and a tax authority—an agreement on the tax consequences of a planned or commenced new investment in Poland. It is supposed to constitute a binding opinion for the tax authorities on all tax consequences of the planned investment. Thus the investment agreement should be an effective tool for removing investment barriers in Poland and thus encouraging more investments, including foreign investments. In particular, it will be addressed to foreign entities planning to commence business in Poland, but current taxpayers in Poland will also be able to take advantage of it.

We have already written about the conditions under which the likeness of real-life people can be used in a game. But what if a game developer wants to use the likeness of a deceased person, or make an avatar look like a deceased person, e.g. a dead celebrity (aka “deleb”) or historical figure? After all, obtaining the person’s consent is impossible. So can the likeness of a dead person be used freely? In this article, we point out what rules a game developer should follow to ensure they are legally on safe ground.