2026-02-26
Invoice Issued Outside KSeF and Tax-Deductible Costs. Key Position of the Polish tax administration.
Individual tax ruling of 9 January 2026, ref. 0111-KDIB1-3.4010.714.2025.2.JG In an individual tax ruling dated 9 January 2026, the Director of the Polish National Revenue Information (KIS) addressed an issue that has raised significant practical concerns in the context of the implementation of the National e-Invoicing System (KSeF). The key question was whether an expense documented by an invoice issued outside the KSeF-system may be treated as a tax-deductible cost for the purposes of Polish corporate income tax (CIT).
The authority indicated that the mere fact that an invoice was issued outside KSeF does not automatically deprive tax-deductible costs, provided that the substantive requirements under the Polish CIT Act are met in the specific factual circumstances.
- Conditions for recognizing an expense as tax-deductible – Article 15 of the Polish CIT Act
Under Article 15(1) of the Polish CIT Act, tax-deductible costs are expenses incurred in order to generate revenue or to preserve or secure a source of revenue – except for those expressly listed in Article 16(1).
In practice, for an expense to be recognized as tax-deductible, the following substantive and evidentiary conditions must be met jointly:
- there must be a genuine cause-and-effect link between the expense incurred and the revenue (or its source),
- the expense must not fall within the statutory catalogue of exclusions,
- the transaction must be properly documented.
The authority emphasized that the actual nature of the transaction and its connection with revenue-generating activities are of primary importance. A purely formal aspect — such as the technical method of issuing the invoice — does not automatically determine whether the expense is deductible.
- Documentation of costs and the form of the invoice
As a rule, the Polish CIT Act does not contain detailed provisions specifying the exact form in which expenses must be documented. However, pursuant to Article 9(1), taxpayers are required to maintain accounting records in a manner that allows to properly determine:
- taxable income (or loss),
- tax base,
- tax due.
In practice, this means that taxpayers must hold reliable and credible accounting evidence confirming that a specific business transaction has taken place.
The individual tax ruling confirmed that:
- a paper invoice,
- an electronic invoice (e.g. in PDF format),
- a structured invoice,
— may constitute a valid basis for recognizing a tax-deductible expense, even if it was issued outside KSeF. However, provided that it meets formal requirements and reflects a genuine transaction between identifiable parties.
Accordingly, in the context of this ruling, greater weight was attached to the substance and reliability of the document than to the technical channel through which it was issued.
- Practical implications of the ruling
The ruling of 9 January 2026 neither abolishes nor limits the obligations arising from the regulations governing the operation of KSeF. Any failure to comply with e-invoicing requirements may give rise to separate formal consequences.
At the same time, the authority made it clear that the failure to issue an invoice through KSeF does not automatically result in the loss of the right to recognize the related expense as tax-deductible for CIT purposes.
From a practical standpoint, this confirms a fundamental principle applicable in income taxation: the right to deduct a cost is determined by substantive criteria and the genuine nature of the transaction, not solely by technical requirements relating to the form of the document.
In the context of the full rollout of KSeF, this ruling may serve as a relevant interpretative reference for taxpayers and advisors assessing CIT risks related to invoicing compliance.
See other articles
Reform of Poland’s tax ruling system: five-year validity and centralisation of municipal tax rulings
Businesses engaged in distance selling often issue an invoice as soon as goods leave the warehouse. Where delivery is handled by a third-party carrier, however, the actual date on which the supply takes place may not yet be known. This raises the question of whether the seller may issue an invoice without specifying the date of supply and whether, once delivery has been confirmed, the missing date must be added by means of a corrective invoice. These issues were addressed by the Director of Poland’s National Revenue Information Service (KIS) in an individual tax ruling dated 14 July 2026, reference no. 0114-KDIP1-2.4012.236.2026.2.RM. The ruling may be particularly relevant to businesses operating in the e-commerce, manufacturing and logistics sectors, especially where deliveries take place around the end of a VAT reporting period.
Reform of Poland’s tax ruling system: five-year validity and centralisation of municipal tax rulings
Poland’s Ministry of Finance is preparing a comprehensive reform of the rules governing the issuance and operation of tax rulings. Draft Bill UD445 provides, among other things, for a five-year validity period for individual tax rulings, a procedure for extending their protective effect, broader protection covering tax consequences arising before a ruling is served, and new grounds on which existing rulings may cease to apply. Draft Bill UD450, in turn, would transfer responsibility for issuing rulings on taxes and charges administered by municipal tax authorities to the Director of the National Tax Information Service. Not all elements of the reform are at the same stage of the legislative process. Draft Bills UD445 and UD450 have not yet been enacted. However, legislation requiring municipal tax rulings to be published in the central EUREKA tax rulings database has already been adopted. When assessing the implications of the reform, it is therefore important to distinguish between enacted measures and legislative proposals whose final wording may still change.
Poland’s draft bill UD116 could significantly change the tax treatment of certain entrepreneurs operating under B2B arrangements. The proposed rules would not abolish self-employment or Poland’s lump-sum tax regime on recorded revenue. However, they are intended to reduce the tax attractiveness of certain structures, particularly transactions with related parties, service businesses operating without employees, and the use of the Polish IP Box regime.
The Act of 29 May 2026 amending the Polish Tax Ordinance and certain other acts, signed by the President of Poland, introduces significant changes to the Polish rules on reporting tax schemes, commonly referred to as MDR, or Mandatory Disclosure Rules. The new MDR provisions are expected to enter into force on 1 October 2026 and will substantially narrow the scope of obligations which, since 2019, have been one of the more demanding elements of tax compliance in Poland.
Tax proceedings in Poland should not be a process in which only the tax authority decides which facts will be examined and which evidence will be taken into account. Under the Polish Tax Ordinance Act, taxpayers have the right to actively participate in proceedings, including the right to submit their own requests for evidence. In practice, however, not every piece of evidence proposed by a taxpayer will be admitted. When can the tax authority refuse an evidentiary request, and what options are available to taxpayers in such situations?
Determining when a VAT liability arises in relation to services remains one of the more challenging issues in practice under Polish VAT law. Although Article 19a(1) of the Polish VAT Act clearly states that VAT becomes due when a service is performed, establishing when a service is actually “performed” sometimes requires a case-by-case assessment of the contractual model and the underlying commercial reality. Recent Polish judgment by the Supreme Administrative Court of 31 March 2026 (I FSK 1353/23) provides important clarification in the context of IT services.
As the Polish National e-Invoicing System (KSeF) becomes more widely used, businesses are increasingly encountering a practical issue known as the “double document circulation.” This occurs when the structured invoice stored in KSeF (XML) differs from the PDF visualization sent to the customer, for example by email or through a customer portal.
On 11 February, the EU General Court (Case T-689/24) delivered an important judgment in a “Polish case” on the moment of input VAT deduction. The ruling may have far-reaching consequences for Polish businesses and the way VAT is settled in Poland.
Invoice Issued Outside KSeF and Tax-Deductible Costs. Key Position of the Polish tax administration.
Individual tax ruling of 9 January 2026, ref. 0111-KDIB1-3.4010.714.2025.2.JG In an individual tax ruling dated 9 January 2026, the Director of the Polish National Revenue Information (KIS) addressed an issue that has raised significant practical concerns in the context of the implementation of the National e-Invoicing System (KSeF). The key question was whether an expense documented by an invoice issued outside the KSeF-system may be treated as a tax-deductible cost for the purposes of Polish corporate income tax (CIT).
The introduction of the mandatory Polish e-invoicing system (Krajowy System e-Faktur – KSeF) as of 1 February 2026 will significantly change VAT invoicing rules, i.a. transactions involving foreign entities. One of the key factors determining whether mandatory KSeF applies is whether a foreign counterparty has a fixed establishment (FE) in Poland. If it is lacking on the seller’s side, then he may issue and send invoices outside KSeF (e.g. via e-mail, PDF). If the seller is subject to KSeF yet his buyer is not (lacking seat/FE in Poland), then the seller must issue the invoice via KSeF, yet simultaneously send it to his buyer in the old-fashioned way.