Anyone who has bought a used passenger car knows that they have to pay tax on civil law transactions, i.e. PCC. However, many people are still not aware that tax must also be paid on purchases of other used items, such as telephones, furniture, bicycles, and electronics.
Today, up to the limit of PLN 1,000, you do not have to pay PCC or even submit a declaration (form PCC-3). However, after exceeding the limit, you must submit a declaration and pay tax. The Ministry of Finance wants to increase this limit to PLN 3,000. zloty.
Read also: Selling, buying, leasing a car? Here are the current tax rules
Why does the ministry want to increase the exemption limit?
The resort explains that collecting tax on such small amounts is simply unprofitable. The tax rate is 2%. From PLN 1,000 you have to pay just over PLN 20. Because many people don't aware that they have to pay tax, the tax office should enforce it. And here comes the problem.
The Ministry of Finance explains that “the costs of tax proceedings in the event of non-payment of tax, shipping costs and personnel costs, approach or exceed the amount of tax due.” The costs of enforcing the tax on low-value contracts also exceed the tax amount.
Hence the proposal to raise the limit from 1,000. PLN up to PLN 3,000 PLN (project no. from the list – UD 372).
Where does the limit of 3,000 come from? zloty? As we read in the justification for the project, the increase is threefold because the purchasing power of citizens has increased since 2001. The increase in the average monthly salary in the national economy since that year amounted to 297%.
The Ministry also reminds that the changes only apply to used items, which are generally not subject to VAT. If we buy a new item with VAT (even if the seller applied the VAT exemption), there is no PCC.
The Ministry indicates that “a sales contract is not subject to PCC if at least one of the parties is exempt from VAT for this activity (with certain exceptions specified in Article 2 point 4 letter b of the PCC Act)”.
How does the office know that the taxpayer bought a used item?
In response to Business Insider's questions, the Ministry of Finance explained in July 2025 who must pay tax and how the tax office knows what taxpayers have purchased.
“The basis for selecting entities for verification risk analysis constitutes the correct fulfillment of tax obligations. During risk analysis different types and sources of information are taken into accountboth internal, i.e. information and databases held by the National Tax Administration (KAS), and external, including, among others: information from advertising portals and reports submitted to the National Revenue Administration” – explains the Ministry of Finance.
In other words, the tax administration may have information both from portals and, for example, from reports. Offices can also verify information from portals. Experts point to yet another source.
Read more: Tax on items over PLN 1,000 zloty? We explain how the tax office knows that you bought them
Author: Łukasz Zalewski, journalist of Business Insider Polska
