Reliefs, depending on the region, may be lower. The European Union is setting the new map of regional help and we will have to change intensity of the help in particular regions. This is going to apply to the EU funds as well as any help from the state budget. It means that beginning from July next year in some regions the public help may be lower than previously, consequently, which means that to 2026 a lower tax may be written of – says Ilona Antoniszyn-Klik, the under-secretary of economy.
At present, companies operating in 14 SEZs in Poland are exempt from the 19 per cent of the income tax CIT. The current relief rules will cease to be valid in 2026. We want to level conditions for all investors who were here before 2008. They helped us to develop in the times of lower prosperity. We want to equalise their conditions in terms of possible change of the permit with those who begun their activity after 2008. We want to help in adapting the staff to needs of a company, which makes room for use of the EU funds – explains the under-secretary.
A company operating within a SEZ, as well as those outside of the zones, will be able to apply for funding within “Program Operacyjny Inteligentny Rozwój 2014-2020” (Operational Programme of the Intelligent Development 2014-2020). The program is going to be supported with 8.6 bn Euro, of which a significant portion of the money is going to assigned for support of companies’ innovativeness and conducting research and development works. These are going to be companies with the research and development potential, implementing the most innovative products. The “traditional” industry will not “fall out” from SEZ but it will not be so intensely backed as today. We are going to induce companies which so far were dealing with “simple” production to invest in the more advanced one – describes Ilona Anoniszyn-Klik.
According to Eurostat’s data the percentage of industrial enterprises which between 2008 and 2010 introduced innovative solutions associated with products or operation methods in Poland amounts to 7.9 per cent. It places us in the 5th position from the end. Service firms (5.1 per cent) are on the 4th position from the end.
Entrepreneur operating in a SEZ can expect the tax relief (CIT or PIT), a competitively priced and prospered for an investment plot, help in completing formalities related to the investment as well as in some municipalities relief from the property tax.
The income tax reliefs that are in force in the special economic zones are so called public assistance, which is aimed at acceleration of the development of the least economically developed EU regions.