In order to reduce the tax base, corporations may
make donations to specific entities. However,
achieving an effective reduction in the tax base
depends on the conditions laid down in the said
legislative act being met.
In accordance with Article 18.1.1 of the Corporate
Income Tax Act of 15 February 1992, the tax base is
income determined after the following donations
made for the purposes described in Article 4 of the
Public Benefit and Voluntary Activities Act of 24
April 2003 to organisations referred to Article 3.2
and 3.3 of this Act, or to equivalent organisations
specified in the regulations governing public benefit
activities, applicable in Member States of the
European Union, other than the Republic of Poland,
or in a member state of the European Economic
Area, conducting public benefit activities in the
area of public tasks or having similar purposes. The
purposes referred to in the cited provision include,
without limitation, social assistance, including
assistance for disadvantaged families and people
and promotion of equal opportunities for such
families and people; provision of free legal
assistance and raising of public legal awareness;
activities oriented to integration and reintegration
into employment and social reintegration of persons
at risk of being socially excluded; charitable
activities; activities benefitting national and ethnic
minorities and regional languages; activities
benefitting the disabled and other activities
mentioned in the said provision. It is stipulated that
the donations deducted, taken together, may not
exceed 10% of the income received.
Therefore, it should be kept in mind that not all
donations are tax deductible. There are three
conditions, namely of material, entity and
quantitative
nature,
that
must
be
met
cumulatively. The material condition is that for a
donation to be tax deductible, it must be made for
the purposes mentioned in the cited act; the entity condition is that a donation may be made to
specified entities only; and the third, quantitative
condition specifies the upper limit above which no
donations, even if made to appropriate entities for
the purposes specified in the act, can be deducted
from the tax base.
It is also important to note that no donation can be
deducted if it is made to an entity operating for
profit. Donations made to physical persons, legal
persons or organisational units having no legal
personality engaged in an economic activity that
involves the production of articles in the electronic,
fuel, tobacco, spirits, wine and beer industries, and
also of any other alcohol products containing more
than 1.5% alcohol, as well as articles made of
precious metals or including embedding such
metals, or trade in these articles are non-
deductible.
MILLER, CANFIELD,
W. BABICKI, A. CHEŁCHOWSKI I WSPÓLNICY SP.K.
ul. Batorego 28-32
81-366 Gdynia
Tel. +48 58 782-0050
Fax +48 58 782-0060
gdynia@pl.millercanfield.com
ul. Nowogrodzka 11
00-513 Warszawa
Tel. +48 22 447-4300
Fax +48 22 447-4301
warszawa@pl.millercanfield.com
ul. Skarbowców 23a
53-125 Wrocław
Tel. +48 71 780-3100
Fax +48 71 780-3101
wroclaw@pl.millercanfield.com
Disclaimer: This publication has been prepared for clients and professional associates of Miller Canfield. It is intended to provide only a summary of
certain recent legal developments of selected areas of law. For this reason the information contained in this publication should not form the basis of
any decision as to a particular course of action; nor should it be relied on as legal advice or regarded as a substitute for detailed advice in individual
cases. The services of a competent professional adviser should be obtained in each instance so that the applicability of the relevant legislation or other
legal development to the particular facts can be verified.