Cryptocurrency tax return in Poland is an obligation many investors notice only after receiving a tax office request. In an article published by “Rzeczpospolita”, Piotr Sekulski, PhD, tax advisor at Outsourced.pl, explains why the lack of PIT-8C from a crypto exchange does not release investors from reporting cryptocurrency transactions in Poland.
In recent years, more and more people have invested in cryptocurrencies through Polish and foreign exchanges. The problem arises when the taxpayer does not receive any tax information and assumes that the transactions do not need to be reported in the annual tax return.
Tax offices are already sending notices to taxpayers who generated revenue from the sale of virtual currencies but did not file PIT-38. The article can be read here.
Cryptocurrency tax return in Poland also without PIT-8C
One of the most important practical problems is the lack of PIT-8C information from the exchange or platform on which the investor traded cryptocurrencies. This does not mean, however, that the taxpayer may omit such transactions from the annual tax return.
Piotr Sekulski, PhD, tax advisor:
“This does not release them from the obligation to settle with the tax office. They must calculate their annual revenue and costs themselves. A transaction statement is needed for this purpose. Sometimes it is provided by the operator, and sometimes it can be generated independently. Of course, the amounts entered in the tax return must be converted into Polish zloty.”
In practice, this means that the taxpayer should independently determine their revenue and costs from cryptocurrency transactions. A transaction statement from the exchange, or the taxpayer’s own records, will be needed, covering in particular transaction dates, purchase and sale values, fees and the currencies in which the transactions were settled. Proper conversion of the values into Polish zloty is also important.
This is particularly important when using foreign exchanges, where the transaction history may be kept in euro or US dollars. The mere fact that the platform did not prepare Polish tax information does not release the investor from the obligation to correctly settle PIT.
Cryptocurrency tax return in Poland and a notice from the tax office
Cryptocurrency tax return in Poland may become an issue not only for the most recent tax year. If the taxpayer sold cryptocurrencies in previous years, exchanged them for traditional currency or used them for payments, the tax office may also ask about earlier periods.
The “Rzeczpospolita” article also draws attention to the sources of information that may be available to the tax authorities. In the context of transaction reporting by cryptocurrency platforms, Piotr Sekulski, PhD, tax advisor, pointed out that: “Some of them are already sending such reports”.
This is an important signal for people who assumed that transactions on cryptocurrency exchanges remain outside the interest of the tax administration. In practice, the tax office may obtain information from various sources, and the lack of previous contact from the authorities does not mean that the issue is closed.
Particular caution is required where the taxpayer does not have a complete transaction history, used several exchanges, transferred funds between wallets or has a problem accessing an account on a platform. In such cases, cryptocurrency tax return in Poland requires not only calculating the tax result, but also preparing documentation that will help explain how revenue and costs were calculated.
What should be checked?
Before filing the tax return or responding to a notice from the tax office, it is worth verifying, in particular, whether there was a taxable disposal of virtual currencies in a given year, whether the taxpayer has a complete transaction history, which costs may be reported and whether the amounts were correctly converted into Polish zloty.
In practice, it is a mistake to assume that if the exchange did not issue PIT-8C, the taxpayer has no obligations towards the Polish tax office. In the case of cryptocurrencies, the investor is responsible for determining the data needed for PIT-38.
If you have invested in cryptocurrencies and are unsure whether your transactions have been correctly reported, it is worth reviewing the transaction history. We support taxpayers in verifying cryptocurrency settlements, preparing PIT-38 calculations and analysing tax risks related to previous years.
