Full accounting in Poland vs. simplified accounting – obligations, differences and practical implications for businesses

Under Polish accounting rules, full accounting is mandatory for certain entities regardless of revenue. For sole traders and certain partnerships of natural persons, the statutory threshold is EUR 2.5 million in net revenue from sales of goods and products in the previous financial year. For determining the obligation to keep accounting books in 2026, this corresponds to PLN 10,646,500. Simplified accounting covers less extensive forms of record-keeping, primarily the Tax Revenue and Expense Ledger (PKPiR) and revenue records used under the lump-sum tax regime.

The rules governing Polish accounting are strictly defined by law, primarily by the Polish Accounting Act of 29 September 1994 and the relevant income tax regulations. Full accounting and simplified accounting differ in the scope of records maintained, reporting obligations and the conditions a business must meet to use a particular form of accounting.

Depending on the scale of operations, legal form and revenue generated, businesses may be permitted to use simplified accounting or may be legally required to maintain full accounting in Poland. One point is particularly important for foreign entrepreneurs: in many cases, full accounting is not a matter of choice but a statutory obligation under Polish law.

The term “full accounting” is widely used in Polish business practice. The Polish Accounting Act itself refers to accounting books. “Simplified accounting”, in turn, is an umbrella term for less extensive forms of record-keeping available to entrepreneurs who meet the relevant statutory requirements.

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When is full accounting mandatory in Poland?

The obligation to maintain full accounting in Poland depends primarily on the legal form of the business. Some entities must keep accounting books regardless of their revenue, while for sole traders and certain partnerships of natural persons, the statutory threshold of EUR 2.5 million is relevant.

Under Article 2 of the Polish Accounting Act, the obligation to maintain accounting books applies, among others, to:

• limited liability companies, joint-stock companies and simple joint-stock companies – regardless of revenue;
• limited partnerships and limited joint-stock partnerships – regardless of revenue;
• natural persons conducting business activity where their net revenue from sales of goods and products in the previous financial year amounted to at least the equivalent of EUR 2,500,000;
• civil law partnerships of natural persons, registered partnerships of natural persons and professional partnerships where the above threshold has been reached;
• other legal persons, subject to the exceptions provided for by law;
• branches and representative offices of foreign entrepreneurs;
• certain financial sector entities, including entities operating under the Banking Law and regulations governing investment funds, insurance activities and pension funds – regardless of their revenue.

This means that the revenue threshold does not apply to every business in Poland. A Polish limited liability company, for example, must maintain accounting books even if its revenue is significantly below the statutory threshold.

What is the revenue threshold for full accounting in Poland?

For entities whose obligation to maintain accounting books depends on revenue, the statutory threshold is EUR 2,500,000. The calculation is based on net revenue from sales of goods and products generated in the previous financial year.

The euro amount is converted into Polish złoty using the average EUR exchange rate announced by the National Bank of Poland (NBP) on the first working day of October in the year preceding the relevant financial year.

As a result, the PLN value of the threshold changes from year to year. For the obligation to maintain accounting books in 2026, the threshold is PLN 10,646,500, based on an exchange rate of PLN 4.2586 per EUR announced on 1 October 2025.

The EUR 2.5 million threshold has applied since 2025.

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What does full accounting in Poland involve?

Full accounting is a comprehensive financial record-keeping system that provides detailed information on an entity’s assets, liabilities and financial performance. It requires compliance with core accounting principles, including:

• the double-entry principle;
• the accrual principle;
• the matching principle.

The main obligations associated with full accounting include:

1. Maintaining accounting books – including the journal, general ledger accounts, subsidiary ledger accounts and trial balances.
2. Conducting an inventory of assets and liabilities – in accordance with the methods, deadlines and frequency specified in the Polish Accounting Act.
3. Preparing annual financial statements – generally including a balance sheet, profit and loss account and notes to the financial statements.
4. Determining the financial result – in accordance with the principles established by accounting regulations.
5. Applying and updating the adopted accounting principles – including accounting policy documentation and the company’s chart of accounts.

For certain entities, the financial statements must also include a statement of changes in equity and a cash flow statement. These elements are not, however, mandatory components of the financial statements of every entity maintaining accounting books in Poland.

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When is it worth adopting full accounting voluntarily?

Although full accounting is a statutory requirement for many businesses, natural persons and certain partnerships of natural persons may also choose to apply the accounting rules voluntarily when their revenue remains below the statutory threshold.

The main benefits of more comprehensive financial records include:

• better visibility of the company’s financial position;
• the ability to monitor receivables, liabilities, assets and sources of financing;
• more detailed profitability analysis;
• easier preparation of information required by banks or investors;
• preparation for a change in the legal form of the business;
• the ability to produce more advanced management reports;
• more effective financial and investment planning.

Full accounting does not in itself result in lower taxation. From a management perspective, its key advantage is the broader range of information it provides about the company’s actual financial position.

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What are the consequences of failing to comply with full accounting requirements in Poland?

A business that is subject to the Polish Accounting Act must maintain its accounting books in accordance with the requirements arising from that legislation.

Irregularities may result in:

• the need to reconstruct or correct accounting books;
• the need to amend tax settlements where accounting irregularities affected the amount of tax due;
• problems during tax inspections, statutory audits or due diligence processes;
• difficulties in providing reliable financial information to banks, investors or business partners.

The Polish Accounting Act also provides for criminal liability. Under Article 77, a person who, contrary to the Act, permits accounting books not to be maintained, maintained in breach of statutory requirements or to contain unreliable information may be subject to a fine, imprisonment for up to two years, or both penalties jointly.

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What does simplified accounting in Poland cover, and what are its limits?

Simplified accounting in Poland is available primarily to natural persons and certain partnerships of natural persons that are not required to maintain accounting books. The specific form of record-keeping also depends on the taxation method applied by the business.

There is currently no single EUR 2 million threshold determining eligibility for all simplified forms of accounting.

The threshold under the Polish Accounting Act is EUR 2.5 million. A separate threshold applies to the lump-sum tax on recorded revenue, which is EUR 2 million. For 2026, the revenue limit based on 2025 revenue that determines eligibility for the lump-sum regime is PLN 8,517,200.

The main simplified accounting methods used in Poland include:

• Tax Revenue and Expense Ledger (Podatkowa Księga Przychodów i Rozchodów, PKPiR) – used by eligible entrepreneurs settling personal income tax, including under the progressive tax scale or the 19% linear PIT regime.
• Revenue records for the lump-sum tax on recorded revenue – under this taxation method, tax-deductible costs do not reduce the taxable base.
• Tax card – a taxation method now available only to taxpayers who continued using it after 31 December 2021 and have neither opted out nor lost their entitlement. Since 1 January 2022, new businesses have not been able to elect the tax card.

An entrepreneur using simplified accounting does not maintain the system of accounts characteristic of accounting books and, as a rule, does not prepare financial statements under the Polish Accounting Act.

This does not mean that no other record-keeping obligations apply. For example, taxpayers maintaining a PKPiR must prepare a physical inventory in the circumstances specified by the regulations, including at the end of the tax year.

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What are the key differences between full and simplified accounting in Poland?

Scope	Full accounting in Poland	Simplified accounting in Poland
Form of record-keeping	Accounting books maintained in accordance with the Polish Accounting Act	Including PKPiR or revenue records
Mandatory application	Required for specified entities regardless of revenue or after reaching the applicable statutory threshold	Available only where the conditions applicable to the entrepreneur and taxation method are met
Revenue threshold	EUR 2.5 million for entities subject to the statutory revenue threshold	No single common threshold; for example, a separate EUR 2 million threshold applies to the lump-sum tax regime
Financial reporting	Annual financial statements must be prepared	As a rule, no financial statements under the Polish Accounting Act
Scope of financial information	Information on assets, liabilities, revenue, expenses, receivables, payables and financial result	Records focused primarily on determining tax liabilities
Inventory requirements	Obligations arise under the Polish Accounting Act	No inventory under the Accounting Act rules, although other requirements may apply, such as a physical inventory for PKPiR purposes
Management information	Enables detailed analysis of the company’s financial position and profitability	Provides a more limited range of management information
Complexity	Broader record-keeping and financial reporting obligations	Generally involves a narrower range of obligations

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Which form of Polish accounting applies to your business?

For many businesses, there is no choice between full and simplified accounting because the obligation to maintain accounting books follows directly from the company’s legal form or the level of revenue generated.

For smaller businesses and sole traders that meet the applicable requirements, simplified accounting may mean a more limited range of record-keeping obligations.

Full accounting, however, provides substantially more information about a company’s assets and financial position. It allows management to analyse areas such as cost structure, receivables, liabilities, profitability and sources of financing.

This can be particularly important for companies that are expanding, using external financing, operating within corporate groups or requiring regular management reporting.

Regardless of whether full accounting in Poland results from a statutory requirement or a deliberate business decision, accounting books must be maintained correctly and accounting processes should reflect the nature and scale of the company’s operations.

getsix® supports businesses with full accounting, ongoing bookkeeping and the preparation of financial statements in accordance with Polish regulations. If your company requires assistance in organising its accounting processes or determining the scope of its Polish accounting obligations, please contact getsix®.

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Legal basis:

• Accounting Act of 29 September 1994 (consolidated text: Journal of Laws of 2026, item 522, as amended).

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