30.11.2020 Remote work

[Poland] Increased tax deductible expenses and remote working


The Ministry of Finance confirmed that the right to increased tax deductible expenses is granted to employees living in a different place than the company’s registered office, regardless of the actual place of work under the request of the employer.

The lump-sum tax deductible expenses, taken into account when calculating the PIT advance, are determined on the basis of Article 22 Section 2 of the PIT Act, and their amount depends on the distance an employee commutes from the place of permanent or temporary residence to the place of work. In the case of a person commuting from another city, even PLN 300 can be deducted each month.

Tax deductible expenses in 2020

Tax deductible expenses Maximum deduction
Basic rate – for persons living in the same town in which the employer is based 3 000
Tax deductible expenses for commuters 3 600
Tax deductible expenses for an employee with more than one job 4 500
Tax deductible expenses for commuters with more than one job 5 400

Tax deductible expenses during pandemic

The application of increased tax-deductible expenses is only possible if the employee submits the declaration that he or she has fulfilled the conditions for the deduction of expenses in a given amount. However, in a situation in which remote work becomes more common because of the pandemic, doubts have arisen as to whether employers should continue to apply increased expenses in relation to people living far away from the workplace, but providing work remotely.

A declaration submitted by an employee shall be valid until the employee notifies the employer of the change. This means that the declaration submitted in a given month (tax year) is also applicable to the advance payments in subsequent months (years), if the actual state of facts resulting from the declaration submitted in the previous months (years) has not changed (Article 32 Section 5 of the PIT Act) – explains the Ministry of Finance in response to the question of Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.

The Ministry of Finance emphasised that in the period of the state of an epidemic hazard or epidemic declared due to COVID-19, and if the place of permanent or temporary residence of an employee is located away from the place where the company is based, the employee is entitled to higher tax deductible expenses regardless of the actual place of work under the employer’s instruction. An exception to this is if an employee receives separation allowance or reimbursement of travel expenses not included in taxable revenue.

Moreover, in accordance with the explanations provided by the tax authorities so far, the right to tax deductible expenses is granted if an employee has worked for at least one day in the company’s registered office in a given month. What is more, the above-mentioned position of MF is consistent with the provisions of the PIT Act, in which the application of increased expenses has not been clearly linked to the condition of performing duties in the company seat.

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