The Polish Investment Zone (PIZ) is a tool introduced in 2018 to support new investments made in the Republic of Poland.

The main idea of the PSI is to extend to the entire territory of Poland the tax breaks previously available only in special economic zones (SEZs).

Thanks to changes in the functioning of SEZs, more companies, including micro, small and medium-sized ones, can benefit from tax incentives for investors. The rules of SEZ operation in Poland were changed by the Act on supporting new investments.

Yes, if they meet the conditions set out in the Act and the regulations (< hyperlink or top of page legal basis Act + regulations). To check whether you meet the conditions, go to the qualifier (<hyperlink).

Investments in tangible or intangible assets related to:

• setting up a new establishment,
• increasing the production capacity of an existing establishment,
• diversification of a plant's production by introducing products not manufactured at the plant before
• a fundamental change in the production process of an existing establishment, or the acquisition of the assets of an establishment, where the establishment has closed or would have closed had it not been purchased, and the assets are bought by an entrepreneur not linked to the seller. The mere acquisition of shares in an establishment is excluded.

Costs eligible for support for new investments include costs that are:

• the costs of acquiring land or the right to perpetual usufruct,
• the purchase price or costs of own production of fixed assets, provided that they were included, in accordance with separate regulations, in the taxpayer's assets and in the register of fixed assets, as well as intangible and legal assets, subject to § 8 subparagraphs. 2 and 3 of the Ordinance,
• costs of expansion or modernisation of existing fixed assets,
• the purchase price of intangible assets related to the transfer of technology through the acquisition of patent rights, licenses, know-how and unpatented technical knowledge, subject to paragraphs 2 and 3,
• costs connected with rental or lease of land, buildings and structures - provided that the rental or lease period lasts at least 5 years, and in the case of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises - at least 3 years, counting from the expected date of completion of a new investment,
• the purchase price of assets other than land, buildings and structures covered by the rent or lease, if the rent or lease takes the form of financial leasing and includes the obligation to purchase the assets on the expiry of the term of the rent or lease - less the accrued value added tax and excise duty, if the possibility of their deduction results from separate provisions, incurred during the validity of the decision on support issued for a given location.

The maximum amount of eligible costs of a new investment, which are taken into account when determining the maximum amount of state aid, can not exceed 130% of eligible costs of a new investment, which the entrepreneur undertook within a specified period.

Yes. Within the framework of a single investment project an Entrepreneur can benefit from various sources of public aid, not only the exemption from income and property taxes, but also from EU subsidies, government grants, co-financing of the creation of new jobs etc.

The aid can be freely combined, however, it must be remembered that the accumulation of such measures should not lead to exceeding the maximum intensity of regional public aid determined for a given area.

Support is granted in the form of exemption from income tax, pursuant to the rules set forth respectively in the Corporate Income Tax (CIT) regulations or the Personal Income Tax (PIT) regulations.

The areas of SEZs managed operationally by ARP S.A. feature the highest state aid intensity ceiling allowed in the EU - up to 70% of eligible costs of an investment project. The amount of aid depends on the location and size of the enterprise.

The period for which a decision on support is issued depends on the intensity of public aid for a given area and is 10, 12 or 15 years. In the Lubelskie and Podkarpackie voivodeships, which are assigned to the SEZ managers in Mielec and Tarnobrzeg, the public aid intensity is 50% and the tax exemption is granted for the maximum period, i.e. 15 years. If the area where the new investment is to be located is, on the date of issuing the decision on support, located at least 51% within the boundaries of the SEZ (as defined in Article 2 of the Act of 20 October 1994 on Special Economic Zones), the decision to support the new investment is also issued for a maximum period of 15 years (e.g. the Radom subzone of the Tarnobrzeg SEZ EURO-PARK WISŁOSAN).

After submitting a complete application by the Investor, issuance of the decision on support follows within the framework of the KPA and takes no longer than 30 days, in justified cases, this period may be extended to 60 days.

The process of issuing a decision on support is as follows:

• preparation of an application (<link to application) for a decision together with attachments,
• Submission of the application to the relevant SEZ in Mielec or Tarnobrzeg (<link to SEZ contact),
• issuance of the decision on support by the ARP S.A. Board on behalf of the competent minister for economy, i.e. Minister of Development, Labour and Technology (procedure in accordance with KPA),
• implementation of the investment by the Entrepreneur,
• control of compliance with the terms and conditions of the decision by the relevant SEZ.

In the operating lease, the initial rent (first payment) and all lease instalments are tax deductible. VAT is added and paid proportionally, along with each of these payments. The lessee cannot depreciate the fixed asset that is the subject of the contract.

In finance leasing, it is the lessee who has the right to depreciate. In addition to depreciation, only the interest portion of the instalment may be charged as an expense. It is also important to note that in finance leasing (as opposed to operating leasing), VAT on the entire transaction must be paid at the outset. Therefore, it will not be VAT charged only on the initial rent, but on all payments throughout the leasing period in advance.

An entrepreneur should choose the right type of lease that is beneficial to him, bearing in mind that in the financial lease, he will be able to depreciate the object of lease, but at the beginning he will have to bear an increased cost in the form of VAT on the entire transaction. In the case of the operating lease, however, he will be able to deduct all lease instalments as costs.

• The lease is granted in PLN.
• The maximum lease term is 5 years (60 months).
• The minimum initial payment is 10% of the value of the leased asset.
• The minimum redemption value after 5 years is 1% of the value of the leased asset.
• Financial conditions WIBOR 1M + agreed margin.
• Administration fee/commission for granting, according to the TFC.
• Standard securities of the leasing receivables or additional ones from the catalogue of securities in justified cases (e.g. sureties, mortgage on real estate).
• Insurance of a leased asset and appraisal (revaluation) of fixed assets proposed for leasing and potential collaterals on the part of the Client.

An entrepreneur may benefit from leasing if

• he keeps full accounts,
• he runs a current, profitable business and confirms his ability to repay lease instalments, taking into account potential new debts,
• has been running a business for at least 2 years,
• has a positive EBITDA,
• as an entity applying for financing, has its registered office and conducts business activity in the territory of the Republic of Poland, and the investments themselves are located in the territory of the Republic of Poland,
• the supplier of the leased item (owner of the leased item/buyer) conducts business activity in Poland,
• confirms the absence of any arrears with regard to privileged payments (US, ZUS) and has a positive bank opinion with regard to commercial debt service.

A lessee sells its assets to a lessor and then uses them under a lease agreement. Leaseback may take the form of:

• operating lease - then the object of the contract becomes an asset of the lessor, who makes depreciation write-offs,
• finance lease - then the asset covered by the agreement becomes an asset of the lessee, who may recognise the depreciation of the asset as a deductible expense.

To determine the initial terms of the lease, you will need the equipment/machine bid specification, a pro-forma invoice, a valuation (if made), other documents precisely identifying the capital and simplified financial data, included in the table below.

Please send your enquiries to: kontakt@arpleasing.pl.

Our consultant will contact you with any information.

ARP S.A. is a State Treasury company which deals with widely understood activities supporting the development of small, medium-sized and large enterprises. It is also involved in activities related to the Anti-Crisis Shield, as part of which it provides financing, inter alia, in the form of working capital loans, and supports companies in a difficult situation due to the spread of SARS-CoV-2.

ARP S.A. finances almost all industries - with the exception of individual agriculture and the development sector. The Company offers an above-standard repayment period for working capital loans and an extended grace period for capital repayment. Moreover, the only cost to be borne by the client is the loan granting commission and interest. ARP S.A. does not charge early repayment of capital or other administrative fees.

ARP S.A. is part of the PFR Group, which has redeemable instruments at its disposal. The financing offered by ARP S.A. is commercial in nature, which means that it is fully repayable.

The call for applications is conducted on a continuous basis.

An entrepreneur applying for a loan in ARP S.A. is obliged to submit an application together with enclosures, prepared in accordance with the applicable form published on ARP S.A. website https://www.arp.pl/uslugi-finansowe/pozyczki.

In case of loans offered within the framework of Anti-Crisis Shield, the application should be submitted on-line, through the Customer Portal on the website www.arp-tarcza.pl.

According to the provisions of the regulations, the programme covers those agreements concluded between the leasing company and the lessee, on the basis of which the leasing company undertakes to provide the Entrepreneur with the object of lease for use. In return, the lessee undertakes to pay to the leasing company appropriate fees or remuneration together with a possibility/obligation (according to an adopted formula) to purchase the object of the lease agreement after the contractual period. If the agreement concluded by the Entrepreneur meets the conditions presented here, it may be covered by the support programme.

A template of the application can be downloaded from the website www.arp-tarcza.pl under the tab Document templates. It can also be obtained from your leasing company, if it expressed a desire to participate in the programme (signed an appropriate agreement).

Applications should be submitted to your leasing company, which participates in the programme. After checking formal conditions of the application and making a decision by the leasing company on qualification for support, it will send the application to ARP S.A. or ARP Leasing sp. z o.o.

The availability of the programme results from the Act on specific support instruments in connection with the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. According to the Act, it will last until the negative economic effects on entrepreneurs cease or the available funds are exhausted.

The interest rate consists of WIBOR 1M and a margin in accordance with the price grid for the product. The interest rate on the loan is variable and depends on the WIBOR in a given month. The margin, on the other hand, is fixed throughout the term of the loan agreement and its amount depends on, among other things, the amount of the loan granted and the condition of the leased asset. The amount of the margin is determined by the leasing company after submitting the application.

The loan is granted for the period of 24 months. For a period of maximum 12 months ARP S.A./ARP Leasing disburses tranches of the loan for the purpose of repayment of leasing instalments. The repayment period commences upon completion of the disbursement of the loan tranches. In justified cases the repayment period, and thus the duration of the loan agreement, may be extended and in such situations the duration is agreed individually with the Entrepreneur.

The assumptions of the programme are based on the provisions indicated in the Act on special support instruments in connection with the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which came into force on 16 April 2020. The provisions of the Act set out, among others, the principles, conditions and mode of offering entrepreneurs the support necessary to maintain and continue their business activity, threatened as a result of economic consequences for the entrepreneur, resulting from prohibitions and restrictions introduced on the basis of separate regulations in order to prevent, counteract and combat SARS-CoV-2 virus infection. Taking into account the above provisions of the Act, one of the requirements of the programme is therefore that the company achieve positive results at the end of 2019.

All information and forms regarding the New Opportunity Policy programme can be found on our ARP website.

https://www.arp.pl/uslugi-finansowe/polityka-nowej-szansy

According to the Act, aid may be granted if it prevents and leads to the reduction of social difficulties or overcomes market imperfections where without the aid this objective would not be achieved or would be achieved to a lesser extent.

Social difficulties or market failures shall be understood in particular

(a) in the case of a micro-, small or medium entrepreneur in a difficult economic situation, in the situation referred to in Article 11 (2) of the Act:

• the risk of the micro-,small or medium entrepreneur performing innovative activity, having a high growth potential or strong connections with other local or regional entrepreneurs leaving the market, resulting in negative consequences for a given region or sector,

• the occurrence of restrictions on the financial market, resulting in an increase in the number of bankruptcies of entrepreneurs;

b) in case of an entrepreneur being in a difficult economic situation other than a micro-, small or medium entrepreneur or a micro-, small or medium entrepreneur being in a difficult economic situation, if there is no situation referred to in Art. 11 item 2 of the Act:

• a higher than EU average or national average unemployment rate in a region defined at the level of a province, which is of a permanent nature and which is accompanied by difficulties related to the creation of new jobs in that region,
• risk of discontinuation of a service of general economic interest or another important service that is difficult to replace and for which it would be difficult for competitors to start providing,

• the negative consequences of the exit of a regionally or sectorally important undertaking from the market,
• the occurrence of restrictions on the financial market, leading to an increase in the number of entrepreneurs going bankrupt,
• the risk of leaving the market by the entrepreneur resulting in the loss of important technical or expert knowledge.

BUSINESS AID

It assumes support for the entrepreneur and provides liquidity for the time necessary to develop a further business strategy. The aid is granted in the form of a loan for a maximum period of 6 months (interest rate: base rate published by the European Commission (https://www.uokik.gov.pl/stopa_referencyjna_i_archiwum.php) in force on the day the loan is granted + min. 4%); Chapter 2 of the Act.

Temporary restructuring support

It should enable the entrepreneur to pursue its economic activity for the time needed to implement the restructuring measures aimed at restoring its long-term viability on the market and to prepare the restructuring plan. It is conditional on the implementation of a simplified restructuring plan. The aid is granted in the form of a loan for a maximum period of 18 months (interest rate: base rate published by the European Commission (https://www.uokik.gov.pl/stopa_referencyjna_i_archiwum.php) in force on the day the loan is granted + min. 4%); Chapter 3 of the Act. A large entrepreneur cannot benefit from aid for temporary restructuring support.

Aid for restructuring

It should enable the entrepreneur to pursue its economic activity for the time needed to implement the restructuring measures aimed at restoring its long-term viability on the market and to prepare the restructuring plan. It is conditional on the implementation of a simplified restructuring plan.

Public aid for restructuring may be granted if the entrepreneur, in accordance with Article 145, of the Act on Restructuring Law, applies measures compensating for distortions of competition on the market and may only constitute a supplement to the entrepreneur's own contribution to financing restructuring costs.

The maximum funding period for this form of aid is 10 years; Chapter 4 of the Act.

Aid under the New Opportunity Policy may be granted to micro, small, medium and, in certain cases, large entrepreneurs in a difficult economic situation, including those undergoing court restructuring proceedings or threatened with liquidation.

Obligatory criteria for each entrepreneur

Aid under the New Opportunity Policy programme may be granted to an entrepreneur in a difficult economic situation who, in accordance with Article 141(1) of the Act of 15 May 2015. Dz.U.2015 poz.978:

a) operated in a given sector for a period of at least 3 years prior to the date of submission of an application for public aid;

b) does not operate in the iron and steel, coal mining or financial sectors;

c) it is not active in a market that is, or could be, affected by long-term structural overcapacity

d) does not belong, in principle, to a capital group.

Additional criteria:

Each entrepreneur must additionally meet 1) or 2) of the following conditions, i.e.:

1) An entrepreneur at risk of insolvency, public aid for restructuring may be granted in the case specified in detail in Article 141 (2) of this Act:

(a) where the entrepreneur, as a result of the losses incurred, has lost more than half of its capital, in particular where the sum of the profit (loss) from previous years, net profit (loss) in a given financial year, supplementary capital, revaluation capital and other reserve capital (funds) is negative and its absolute value is greater than 50% of the basic capital (fund); (b) an entrepreneur other than a small or medium-sized one, where in the last two years the ratio of: ·

• debts to equity was greater than 7.5,
• operating profit plus depreciation to interest was lower than 1;

or

2) insolvent in the meaning of Article 11 of the Act of 28 February 2003. - Bankruptcy Law (Dz. U. of 2020, item 1228):

(a) the debtor is insolvent if he has lost the ability to perform his due monetary obligations - it shall be presumed that the debtor has lost the ability to perform his due monetary obligations if the delay in the performance of monetary obligations exceeds three months with respect to at least two entities,

b) the debtor being a legal person or an organisational unit without legal personality and to which legal capacity is granted by a separate act, is insolvent also when its pecuniary obligations exceed the value of its assets and this state of affairs has persisted for a period exceeding twenty-four months.

Exception!

Pursuant to Article 15 (2) Rescue aid and pursuant to Article 26 (2) Temporary restructuring support may also be granted to a micro-, small or medium-sized entrepreneur fulfilling the conditions specified in Article 141 (1) of the Act of 15 May 2015. - Restructuring Law, which is not in a difficult economic situation, but due to the occurrence of exceptional and unforeseen circumstances requires urgent liquidity support.

The amount of financing is limited to the amount necessary to maintain operational activity. The final amount of the loan is set by the granting authority, but it is the entrepreneur who should already indicate his financial needs in the application for aid. In the framework of rescue aid and temporary restructuring support, the formula from Appendix No. 1 to the Guidelines should be used to calculate the amount of the loan. i.e. the value of negative cash flows from the entrepreneur's operating activity based on data for the last financial year

[〖EBIT〗t +〖amortization〗t - (〖current capital〗t -〖current capital〗(t-1))] *0.5

* 6 months loan period assumed

Important!

The entrepreneur may make it probable that a loan of a higher amount will be necessary, based on a financial projection defining the entrepreneur's liquidity needs. In case the application concerns aid for restructuring, the amount of financing must result from the restructuring plan submitted by the entrepreneur, the implementation of which will enable the entrepreneur to restore its long-term ability to compete on the market.

Temporary restructuring aid is aid for entrepreneurs who, with financial support, are themselves able to carry out restructuring on the basis of a simplified restructuring plan.

Aid for restructuring, on the other hand, is intended for entrepreneurs who are not able to bear the costs of restructuring themselves, but have a restructuring plan which enables them to return to long-term competitiveness on the market.

In accordance with art. 39. item. 2 of the Act in a situation where an administrative fine has been imposed on an entrepreneur, restructuring aid may be granted in the form of relief in execution of the administrative fine by:

(a) postponement of the deadline for execution of the administrative fine or spreading it out in instalments ;

(b) deferment of the date of implementation of the outstanding administrative penalty payment or payment in instalments;

(c) total or partial remission of the administrative fine;

(d) write-off of interest for late payment in full or in part - on condition that the equivalent amount of the aid granted is used to implement the restructuring plan.

An administrative fine is a monetary penalty specified in the law, imposed by a public administration body by way of a decision as a result of a breach of law involving failure to comply with an obligation or a breach of a ban imposed on a natural person, legal person or organisational unit without legal personality (art.189 b of the Act of 14 June 1960, Dz.

U. 1960, No. 30, item 98 Code of Administrative Procedure).

Important!

In the event that an entrepreneur in a difficult business situation intends to apply for relief in the execution of an administrative fine referred to in art. 39 item 2, of the Act, the entrepreneur also attaches a motion for granting this relief to the application for restructuring aid containing information on the allocation of the equivalent of the aid granted for the implementation of the restructuring plan.

The provisions of the Act do not contain restrictions in this regard. Each of the aids may be granted to the same entrepreneur, but at a different stage of restructuring. Thus, it is possible to apply for only one form of aid at a time.

Pursuant to Article 16, paragraphs 3 and 4, of the Act, financing may be made conditional on the establishment of collateral. Indication of the collateral required and the assessment of whether a given type of collateral is sufficient depend on the circumstances of a given case.

Yes, in accordance with art. 11 item 1 of the Act, a large entrepreneur that wants to use aid is always obliged to make an individual notification to the European Commission. At the same time, for micro, small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, aid can be granted without individual notification to the European Commission if the total amount of aid granted and applied for, granted as part of the same restructuring process, does not exceed the equivalent of EUR 10 000 000 according to the average exchange rate for foreign currencies announced by the National Bank of Poland on the day preceding the day on which the application for aid is submitted (art. 11 item 2, of the Act). Pursuant to Article 13 item 1 of the Act of 26 March 2020 on proceedings in the matter of granting public aid, in the case of rescue aid an application for notification is submitted by the body granting the aid, in other cases by the applicant after receiving a positive decision on granting aid.

Own contribution is required pursuant to art. 37 of the Act, in the case of aid for restructuring, and as a rule, should constitute at least 50% of the share in restructuring costs in the case of a large entrepreneur.

In other cases, the entrepreneur's own contribution to the restructuring costs should be:

a) 25% in the case of a micro or small entrepreneur

b) 40% in the case of a medium-sized entrepreneur

In the case of exceptional circumstances or particular difficulties, the own contribution may be lower but must be significant. However, it is up to the Entrepreneur to demonstrate such circumstances or particular difficulties.

Examples of types of own contribution:

• The entrepreneur's own resources (excluding depreciation and projected profits),
• Funds coming from the owners or entrepreneurs from the same capital group,
• Funds coming from the entrepreneur's creditors,
• other funds, obtained on market conditions.

Own contribution must:

• be realistically contributed and must not constitute state aid;
• be comparable to the form of aid for restructuring, referred to in Article 39 item of the Act, in terms of its impact on the solvency or liquidity level of the entrepreneur.

Pursuant to the Act, the following ways of submitting applications for aid are permitted:

a) directly at the registered office of the ARP S.A.

b) through a postal operator

c) by means of electronic communication to the subaddress box of the ePUAP system at the address: /ARPSACentrala/SkrytkaESP

ARP S.A. has 30 days to examine the application and in particularly complicated cases 45 days, starting from the day on which the trader submits a complete and properly supplemented application. Applications are examined on a first-come, first-served basis. The first stage is a formal assessment of the application, followed by a substantive analysis. In case of any deficiencies, the applicant will be called upon to supplement them.

Instructions for using the ePUAP sub-box

https://epuap.gov.pl/wps/wcm/connect/b0ad3633-257d-4c20-a2b9-f03cb4cffd6e/Instrukcja+użytkownika+-+Załatwianie+sprawy_v.2.pdf?MOD=AJPERES

Search for the Industrial Development Agency in the search bar and submit the application as a "general letter" attaching the application form with attachments.

Important!

If the number of attachments exceeds the acceptable number , you can divide them and send them in several separate letters.

In order to be read correctly, all attached documents sent via the ePUAP electronic submission box must be in .pdf or .doc format.