New proceedings concerning payment gridlock
The President of UOKiK Tomasz Chróstny has initiated 21 further proceedings against large companies that are likely to fail to timely pay their contractors. A total of 72 proceedings in cases of payment gridlock are already underway.
Payment gridlock is one of the major problems of the Polish economy and one of the biggest obstacles in running a business. They are particularly damaging to smaller companies: they increase the cost of running a business and significantly hamper their growth and expansion.
“The fight against payment gridlock is particularly important during the coronavirus pandemic. Receiving timely payments for delivered products or services is in many cases a prerequisite for the survival of smaller entrepreneurs. Overdue delays or lack of payments are unacceptable practices on the part of large companies. I have instigated proceedings against 21 other entrepreneurs who might have engaged in such practices. We have already been conducting a total of 72 proceedings initiated under the anti-gridlock law,” stresses President of UOKiK Tomasz Chróstny.
The selection of entrepreneurs who may be in default of their payments was preceded by an analysis that identified the areas with the highest risk of delays in payments. The Office also accounted for the results of the previous analysis, reports sent by entrepreneurs and data provided to the President of UOKiK by the Head of the National Revenue Administration. Following thorough analyses, entities were selected which are likely to be unreasonably delayed in payment of cash benefits.
What’s next?
A thorough verification of business transactions with regard to those that in the period June-August 2020 were due and not completed or completed after the deadline shall be carried out in the course of currently initiated proceedings. In the course of the proceedings, the entities are under an obligation to provide information and documents at the request of the President of UOKiK. This includes electronic tax records and accounting documents. This means that in order to determine invoice payment due dates UOKiK may examine data contained in Standard Audit Files for Tax (JPK), such as JPK_WB or JPK_KR, and assess data from different sources, including information and explanations provided by the parties to the proceedings or documents obtained in the course of the audit.
When does the President of UOKiK step in?
The President of UOKiK may intervene, if the sum of outstanding payments due owed by an enterprise within 3 consecutive months is at least PLN 5 million (as of 2022 this amount will change to PLN 2 million). This applies to arrears under the invoices issued after 1 January 2020 or earlier, if their payment has become due after 1 January 2020.
