Hacker News Reader

Comment by Zenst | Hacker News Reader

https://home.kpmg/xx/en/home/insights/2011/12/poland-income-...

"An individual is defined as resident of Poland, if at least one below-mentioned condition is fulfilled:

the individual has closer personal or economic relations with Poland (center of vital interests) or The individual stays on the territory of Poland longer than 183 days in a given fiscal year."

So if you have somebody working abroad, paying tax abroad and sends home money to family, then they are open to being double taxed.

I'm sure there is some better article about all this, but this is what I've been told from Polish nationals a few times and one who was giving up a job in another EU country to move back to Poland, due to this and that opportunities for work had improved greatly from a decade ago when they initially left.

View on HN

The keyword is "center" (though something may have been lost in translation): the same treaty conditions against double taxation exist between other EU countries and what matters is always what is the country you have the tightest relationship with.

Sending home money is definetly secondary compared to pay for bills, rent, groceries, etc in the country you are actually living in.

Croatian tax authority has been trying something similar for people working in countries that don't have a double-taxation-prevention treaties in place. So people working in UAE, USA and other non-EU countries find themselves double-taxed e.g. if they have any property and/or family (spouse and children) back in Croatia, as many do.

Not anymore. For about 10 years.

Yes, which is odd as only a few months ago was talking to a Polish electrician who was complaining about it, and had a friends over the years go on about it. So there are many conversations I wish I could time travel and go, really?

Sorry for my confusions, though all did have families back home, so may of been a factor or some tax aspect perhaps as I didn't delve. Though did recall reading an article upon the bbc (though had no luck finding it), but that may of been over 10 years ago knowing me at times.

Generally, it works like this (IANAL): when the country one is working with has the necessary legislation regarding double taxation, the tax paid in the country one is working in, is deducted from the Polish tax. Most often, when people leave Poland to live and work in an EU country, they will pay full tax in the EU country they live in and have zero taxable income in Poland. This means one does not even have to file a tax return in Poland. When I left Poland in 2006, the legislation was not in place yet.

I think, can't remember exactly, the legislation was introduced in 2007, I never had to pay any taxes in Poland while working in other EU countries, I filed a zero tax return in Poland only once, as the taxes have been paid in the other EU country.

There are edge cases where one still falls under double taxation but they are regulated by respective country's tax treaties. Details in Polish: https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/work/taxes/double-taxa..., list of treaties per country: https://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/individuals/personal-t....

Reply on news.ycombinator.com