Where a property passes through several consecutive inheritances, can Poland’s five-year PIT period be counted from its acquisition by the original owner? According to numerous favourable judgments of the Provincial Administrative Courts – yes. Successive property inheritance does not necessarily restart the period each time the property is inherited. The Polish tax authority continues to take the opposite position, however, and the issue has not yet been resolved by the Supreme Administrative Court.
Legal position as at 1 September 2026.
Successive property inheritance and the five-year period
Under Article 10(1)(8) and Article 10(5) of the Polish PIT Act, the private sale of inherited property does not constitute a source of taxable income if it takes place after five years, calculated from the end of the year in which the property was acquired or constructed by the deceased owner.
The interpretation becomes more difficult when that person had also inherited the property.
For example, a father purchased an apartment in 2010. Following his death in 2020, the property was inherited by the mother. After her death in 2023, it passed to their daughter, who sold it in 2025.
Under the favourable interpretation, the five-year period runs from the end of 2010. The 2025 sale would therefore fall outside the scope of PIT, with no tax, PIT-39 return or housing-relief claim required.
Under the restrictive interpretation, only the acquisition by the taxpayer’s immediate decedent is relevant. The period would therefore run from the mother’s acquisition in 2020 and expire on 31 December 2025. A sale completed earlier in 2025 would consequently be subject to PIT.
Successive property inheritance – tax authority versus courts
In its individual tax ruling of 10 August 2026, reference 0115-KDIT3.4011.546.2026.2.PS, the Director of the National Tax Information held that Article 10(5) of the PIT Act applies only to the person from whom the taxpayer directly inherited the property.
A different approach has been adopted in numerous judgments, including:
- the Warsaw Provincial Administrative Court judgment of 9 March 2023, III SA/Wa 42/23,
- the Łódź Provincial Administrative Court judgment of 19 November 2024, I SA/Łd 607/24,
- the Gdańsk Provincial Administrative Court judgment of 25 February 2026, I SA/Gd 963/25,
- the Rzeszów Provincial Administrative Court judgment of 21 May 2026, I SA/Rz 53/26,
- the Kraków Provincial Administrative Court judgment of 26 June 2026, I SA/Kr 304/26.
These courts generally conclude that the provision does not expressly limit the term “decedent” to the taxpayer’s immediate predecessor. It may therefore be possible to consider the entire chain of inheritance. An example of a favourable judgment is available in the official CBOSA database.
The Szczecin Provincial Administrative Court reached the opposite conclusion in its judgment of 4 September 2024, I SA/Sz 289/24. It held that only the ownership period of the immediate decedent should be considered.
Can inherited property be sold safely without PIT?
There is not yet a definitive answer. As at 1 September 2026, the Supreme Administrative Court has not issued a judgment dealing directly with successive property inheritance. Its judgment of 16 April 2026, II FSK 1506/25, concerned a lifetime gift rather than a chain of inheritances and therefore does not resolve this issue.
The favourable court judgments provide taxpayers with strong arguments. However, some of them are not final, while the tax authority continues to apply its restrictive interpretation. We shall wait for a final Supreme Administrative Court judgment.
Before selling inherited property, the entire ownership history, inheritance dates and supporting documents should therefore be reviewed. Identifying the correct starting date may determine whether PIT and a PIT-39 return arise and whether housing relief needs to be considered.
