Polish companies may face greater responsibility for unpaid VAT owed by their contractors under a proposed amendment scheduled to take effect from 1 January 2027. The legislation would extend joint and several VAT liability beyond selected goods to a range of intangible business services.
The proposed rules cover areas including IT and hosting, accounting, consulting, advertising and research services. They could affect a broad group of companies, particularly where transactions exceed statutory value thresholds.
Contractor verification becomes more important
Under the planned framework, a buyer could be held responsible for VAT not paid by a supplier if the buyer knew, or had reasonable grounds to suspect, that the tax would not be settled. Similar mechanisms have previously been used for goods considered particularly vulnerable to VAT fraud.
The change would increase the importance of checking counterparties before contracts are signed. Businesses may need to look more closely at ownership structures, debt registers, tax status and other warning signs when choosing suppliers.
Compliance risk moves earlier in the relationship
The proposal reflects a wider trend in which companies are expected to take more responsibility for assessing the reliability of their business partners. Poland’s KSeF electronic invoicing system has already changed the timing of some compliance checks because invoices enter the central system immediately.
The amendment has passed the lower house of parliament and remains subject to the rest of the legislative process. If adopted in its planned form, the new rules would apply from the beginning of 2027.
