Poland technical inspection of cash register

POLAND: Technical inspection of cash register

After the cash register is set up and fiscalized by the service technician, the most important duty of every taxpayer is to submit the cash register for technical inspection in a timely manner. Failure to comply with this obligation may result in different consequences.

In addition, controlling the operation of the device is important too, as its uninterrupted operation should always be ensured

The obligation to review the cash register, but also other specifics concerning fiscal cash registers in Poland is regulated in both VAT Act and in the Regulation of the Minister of Finance of April 29, 2019 on cash registers.

As stated in the VAT Act, taxpayers keeping records using cash registers are obliged to subject cash registers to mandatory technical inspection by the competent entity operating the cash register service. And according to the Regulation of the Minister of Finance on cash registers, the mandatory technical inspection of the cash register is carried out at least every 2 years.

In the case of the first technical inspection, the two-year period starts from the date of fiscalization of the cash register. When it comes to all the following inspections, this two-year period should be counted from the day of the last technical inspection.

Practically, this means that the inspection can be carried out more often (e.g. when the taxpayer knows that he will be away on a given date), but this deadline cannot be exceeded.

The entire review process is carried out by a specialized service technician assigned to a specific cash register. After receiving the notification by the taxpayer, he has 3 days to review the cash register.

According to the Regulation, if the date of the mandatory technical inspection falls during the suspension of business activity, the entrepreneur is not obliged to review the cash register, provided that he does not sell. 

However, in that situation, he must submit the device for inspection before resuming business – before he starts sales again using the cash register.

An untimely review of the cash register has several potential consequences. First of all, according to Polish VAT Act, the head of the tax office can impose a fine of PLN 300 on the taxpayer. This amount must be settled by the entrepreneur to the account of the tax office within 14 days of receipt of the decision in this case. It is important to note that users of online fiscal devices are regularly monitored by the tax administration in terms of compliance with their obligations because online cash registers send relevant information to the tax office not only about sales and issued receipts, but also about events, such as technical inspection of the cash register.

Also, if the inspection of the cash register does not take place within the applicable time limit, the entrepreneur is obliged to return the tax relief for the purchase of the cash register. This will happen if the cash register is not technically inspected within 3 years from the start of recording, but also if they fail to submit the cash register for mandatory technical inspection within the applicable deadline, and also in case if there is violation of the conditions related to the deduction of these amounts.

When it comes to returning the relief, active VAT payers have until the 25th day of the month following the month in which they were late with the review and those exempt from VAT have until the end of the month following that month. In both cases, the refund should be made to the account of the relevant tax office for the taxpayer.

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