While regulations regarding e-invoicing in Poland have been liberalized, many business owners face problems with e-invoicing, reports the Gazeta Prawna.
Half a year ago Poland liberalized the rules that apply to e-invoices. However taxpayers have problems with ensuring authenticity and integrity. They are in need of explanations and examples of fiscal compliant methods which ensure the integrity of the content of e-invoices.
Basically they want to know what are acceptable methods to provide authenticity and integrity for the settlement of the tax authorities, apart from using EDI and electronic signatures.
Tax authorities avoiding answers
Polish taxpayers have great difficulty in obtaining the position of tax authorities, which could explain the emerging doubts. The tax authorities show their talent in avoiding answers to questions asked of taxpayers in requests for interpretations, arguing that verification to ensure the authenticity of the origin and integrity of the content of e-invoices can only be done in the framework of a tax audit or tax proceeding.
Commonplace
This situation is commonplace around the EU. When full scale European e-invoicing liberalisation takes place as from 1 January 2013, the need for clear examples of compliant methods will sky-rocket. Despite the CEN E-invoicing Compliance Guidelines, tax authorities are reluctant that provide clear examples of what is allowed and what is not. So no upfront certainty
Solutions
So what are the solutions:
- use a service provider that can prove that is compliant (trustmark, certification, letter of comfort)
- perform an audit on your e-invoicing implementation
- just go ahead and wait and see
- a European list of accepted practices (anyone?)
Cláudia Wada on 
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