Initiation of Proceedings in a Case of Tax Offense as a Premise for Suspending the Limitation Period for a Tax Liability in Polish Law

Abstract

The subject of the article is to discuss the premise for the suspension of the limitation period for a tax liability, concerning the initiation of proceedings in the case of a tax offense, about which the taxpayer has been notified, if the suspicion of committing a crime or offense is related to failure to fulfill this tax liability. The authors analyzed the latest jurisprudence of administrative courts, judgments of the Constitutional Tribunal, and scientific literature devoted to the indicated topic. Attention was drawn to practical problems with applying the provisions of the Tax Ordinance, including those related to providing taxpayers with constitutional guarantees, such as respecting the principle of trust in the state and the law. Doubts related to the instrumental use of the law when instituting penal fiscal proceedings by tax authorities, aimed solely at suspending the limitation period, as well as the issue of implementing the institution of fiscal penal law into tax regulations, were discussed. The article ends with conclusions and an attempt to evaluate the current legal regulations in the light of the resolution of the Supreme Administrative Court of May 24, 2021, file ref. act I FPS 1/21.