Excise exemptions and guarantees

Excise duty law indicates exemptions of excise duty based on the agreements on international cooperation (exemptions for EU institutions, diplomats, consular international organizations, armed forces of North Atlantic Treaty) and other exemptions for economic operators which in the most cases depend on the final use of the excise product and several conditions (fuel for navigation, fuel for aircrafts, gaseous hydrocarbons falling within CN codes 2711 12 11 and 2711 19 00 used for heating purposes).

Excise duty law also concerns guarantee matters e.g. submission, usage and calculation of the guarantee. There are two sorts of guarantee – for one movement and for many movements. In case of guarantee covering many movements there is general guarantee (which covers full amount of excise duty on the excise goods) and lump sum guarantee (30% or 15% of the excise duty on the excise goods). Excise duty law describes possibility of exemption on submission a guarantee after meeting some conditions. In most cases mentioned exemptions are not used during excise duty suspension procedure. Excise guarantee are mainly submitted in cash, banking guarantee, insurance guarantee or bill of exchange.

Declaration and payment

The taxpayer should declare excise duty each month no later than the 25th day of the month following the month during which the tax liability arose. In the same time excise duty should be also transferred to the bank account of the customs chamber. Moreover, e.g. tax warehouse keeper and registered consignee are obliged to pay so called "daily payment" for excise due.

Excise duty stamps

In Poland the duty to provide goods with excise duty stamps shall cover excise goods mentioned in the Act on Excise Duty.

According to the Act, following excisable products are marked with excise duty stamps:

Alcoholic beverages excluding beer such as:

• wine of fresh grapes, including strengthened wines,
• vermouth and other wine of fresh grapes flavoured with plants or aromatic substances,
• other fermented beverages (i.e. cider, wine made of pears (perry), mead); mixtures of fermented drinks and mixtures of fermented drinks and non-alcoholic beverages,
• undenatured ethyl alcohol, vodkas, liqueurs and other alcoholic beverages.

Tobacco products such as cigarettes and smoking tobacco.

The Excise Duty Act provides two types of excise stamps i.e.: tax excise duty stamps and legalization excise duty stamps.

A decision on giving out tax excise duty stamps or on the sale of legalisation excise duty stamps shall be issued by a competent head of a customs office upon a written motion of the entity obliged to provide excise goods with excise duty stamps.

Excise duty stamps shall be placed on unit packages of excise product or on excise products in such a manner that removing of the stamp or opening the package in the place aimed for opening or using the product, shall cause permanent and evident damage to the stamp, in a manner which disables its second use.

From 1 January to 31 December of each calendar year tobacco products shall be marked only with excise duty stamps imprinted with the year corresponding to the current calendar year. Excise duty stamps affixed to tobacco products are valid until the last day of February of the next calendar year.