Real estate cadastral system and cadastral tax system – legal and organisational conditions

Abstract

Proposals to introduce a cadastral tax ("municipal tax") into the Polish tax system have a long history. The solutions that are currently proposed in the literature have a political subtext and do not contain any substantive proposals for normative solutions, contrary to the model of the proposed draft laws package in the mid-nineties. Poland is a unitary state and it does not seem that there will be a need for a radical change of the state system. Local government units in Poland have a constitutionally guaranteed and protected wide scope of independence This study presents and critically evaluates these contemporary proposals, at the same time points out the precondition for the change of the real estate tax regime – the need to finish the construction of the real estate cadastre system – the Integrated Real Estate Information System, which allows for the appraising of real estates and basing their value on it, and not only for tax purposes. Indeed, this system is a necessary but difficult prerequisite for the continuation of future real estate taxation reforms and would also serve the needs of many other public authorities by enabling communication between the existing public registers (including the CEIDG and the KRS). The introduction of a cadastral tax alone, the tax basis for which would be an updated and credible real estate value, also requires a number of new economic, sociological, functional as well as social and political studies to be carried out beforehand on the tax matters, in particular when taking into account the increase in the tax burdens and the relevant legal analyses of the proposed models of system solutions.