Tuesday, 2 December 2025
From 1 January 2025, employers in Poland can make use of a new tax preference in both PIT and CIT when they employ soldiers serving in the Territorial Defense Forces (WOT) or the Active Reserve. The incentive, introduced under the Act of 1 October 2024 amending several laws to support employers of WOT and Active Reserve soldiers, allows businesses to deduct specific amounts from their tax base depending on the soldier’s length of uninterrupted military service.
The relief applies to employees who are soldiers and who, under their employment contract, receive a monthly salary of at least the statutory minimum wage. The period of military service is determined as of the last day of the tax year or the final day of the soldier’s employment during that year. If the soldier is employed for only part of the tax year, the deductible amount is reduced proportionally. The deduction is claimed in the employer’s annual tax return for the year in which the soldier was employed.
The value of the deduction rises with the duration of continuous service: PLN 12,000 after at least one year, PLN 15,000 after two years, PLN 18,000 after three years, PLN 21,000 after four years and PLN 24,000 after five years of service. Micro-entrepreneurs and small entrepreneurs may increase these amounts by a factor of 1.5, while larger businesses employing at least five full-time workers may increase the deduction by a factor of 1.2. The deduction cannot exceed income from business activity, but unused relief may be carried forward for up to five tax years. The rules are set out in Article 26he of the Personal Income Tax Act of 26 July 1991 and Article 18eg of the Corporate Income Tax Act of 15 February 1992.
Beyond the tax benefit, the amending act provides employers with additional advantages, including preferential treatment in public procurement procedures and exemption from paying a two-week severance benefit to an employee who is a WOT soldier.
