Part of the Polish Government is lobbying for the introduction of the Digital Services Tax(DST), a corporate tax based on the income sources from customers based in Poland. The main protagonist and the leading institution in introducing this levy is the Ministry of Digital Affairs.
The Ministry of Digital Affairs published a draft bill for the introduction of the Digital Services Tax, fixed at the rate of 3%, that will mainly tax the revenue from large global companies and digital service providers with significant global turnover.
One of the crucial drivers behind this agenda is the necessity to equalize the level playing field between digital providers of these services, which mainly don’t have a physical presence in the country, and this condition permits them to be legally outside the scope of different income-based tax frameworks.
Timeline
The draft Bill states that the Act should enter into force on January 1, 2027.
Poland Digital Services Tax
The Ministry of Digital Affairs explains that the current regulatory framework highly benefits digital platforms without physical presence in the country. It clearly states that the digital business model on which these companies operate, such as cross-border provision of digital services, monetization of user data, and the intermediation model, leaves part of the revenue of these businesses outside the scope of the domestic tax regulations.
This legally permits platform operators to have significantly higher net income and profits, compared with the local competitors that have offices and employees in the country.
The Ministry of Digital Affairs shares through its economic analysis that the average effective tax rate for these entities is at least two times less than the rate applicable to domestic businesses operating in the traditional sense.
Digital Services Tax for Level Playing Field
The bill was proposed on July 31, 2026, by the respective Ministry of Digital Affairs. It proposes the introduction of the DST at 3% on revenue from certain services provided by digital platforms. The principal categories of digital platforms that are within the scope of the proposed bill are digital operators that make their revenue through:
- Monetization of the User Data
- Profiled digital advertising
- Providing intermediation/facilitation/brokerage online services(connecting third parties)
The tax shall be borne by the companies or groups whose annual worldwide revenue exceeds EUR 1 billion and PLN 25 million. The Bill exempts digital platforms that make streaming services, and operators whose main activity is the publication of editorial content.