By the end of March, all members of capital groups doing business in Poland, which are mandatorily required to file CbCR (‘country-by-country report’), and whose financial year 2020 ended on December 31, 2020, must file a notice (‘CbC-P’) to the Head of the National Revenue Administration (KAS – Krajowa Administracja Skarbowa) naming their designated ‘reporting entity’ for the purpose of filing the 2020 CbCR.

What corporate groups are required to file CbCRs?

This duty falls on ‘corporate groups’, as defined by applicable accounting regulations, which fulfil the following conditions:

• A consolidated financial statement is prepared for the group or such a statement would be prepared if the equity shares in at least one entity of the group were subject to trade on a regulated market;
• The group consists of at least two enterprises having their registered office or management in different countries or territories, or an entity having its registered office or management in one country but conducting business operations through a foreign permanent establishment domiciled in a different country or territory;
• The consolidated revenues of the group exceeded PLN 3 250 million if the statement has been prepared in PLN, or equivalent of €750 million if the statement has been prepared in a different currency.

The CbC report is submitted by only one group member – usually the ultimate parent company or a ‘reporting entity’ designated by the parent.

Who must file a notice re: CbC reporting?

While only one group member is required to file a CbCR, the obligation to file a notice informing the tax authorities which group member will prepare and file the CbCR applies to a larger number of entities. Namely, each member of a corporate group mandatorily required to file a CbCR (because it meets the criteria listed above), which has its registered office or management in Poland or does business in Poland via a foreign permanent establishment, must file a report to the Head of KAS stating that:

• It is a parent company, a designated entity or another type of entity filing a report on behalf of a group of companies, or
• A reporting entity has been designated, and clarifying in which country or territory the report on the corporate group will be filed.

Therefore, each enterprise doing business in Poland, which is part of an international corporate group meeting the criteria for submitting a CbCR, must notify the Head of KAS of the entity that will file the report and in which country.

Deadline and form of notice

A CbC notice must be filed within 3 months following the end of the fiscal accounting year of the corporate group. This means that, for 2020, March 31, 2021 is the deadline for submitting the CbC-P notification for entities that prepare consolidated financial statements for a fiscal year corresponding to the calendar year.

The Head of KAS may impose a fine of up to PLN 1 million on any taxpayer failing to fulfil the reporting obligation.

How to file a notice re: CbC reporting?

The notice shall be prepared and filed electronically in the form of an XML file (in the ‘e-Deklaracje’ system).