On 1 October 2018 the amendments to the Accounting Act concerning the form in which financial statements and management reports are to be drawn up, signed and published come into force.

Until the end of September financial statements together with ancillary documents (including management reports on the operations, auditor’s reports and resolutions approving the financial statements), drawn up and signed in the traditional form, can be filed for publication in the form of scans.

The amendment introduces an obligation to draw up and publish financial statements in the form of ‘single control file’ available in the Public Information Bulletin of the Minister of Finance (https://www.mf.gov.pl/krajowa-administracja-skarbowa/dzialalnosc/struktury-e-sprawozdan).

There will be different forms of financial statements for different types of business (i.e. small, micro and large businesses). They take into account possible simplifications, while at the same time enabling businesses to include detailed information as required by the specific nature or needs of a given entity. What is interesting is that no logical structure formulas have been published for the entities drawing up their financial statements in accordance with IFRS. Consequently, such entities will draw up financial statements in an electronic form (PDF), yet still in hitherto developed formats.

The other documents subject to publication along with the financial statement must be drawn up in an electronic form and signed with a qualified electronic signature or a signature confirmed by an ePUAP trusted profile.

Please note that as regards entities whose financial statements require auditing, an auditor’s report containing an opinion can only be made in an electronic form and signed with a qualified electronic signature of a certified auditor.

These changes entail that it will be no longer necessary for separate copies of financial statements along with attachments in printed form (scan) to be sent to the KRS (National Court Register) and the US (Tax Office).

According to its announcement, the Ministry of Finance hopes that a uniform structure of financial statements will, among other things, make doing business in Poland easier, particularly in the SMBs sector, by simplifying the financial statement filing procedure, and hence reducing the costs to be incurred by businesses.

Anna Zielińska, Consultant, ATA Audit Sp. z o.o.

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