Unrecorded activities and business acivities. Analysis of the legal regulation

Abstract

Background: The article concerns a new solution that gives the opportunity to conduct low-profit non-recorded activities (non-registered activities), which was introduced by the Act of March 6, 2018, Entrepreneurs’ Law.

Research purpose: The purpose of the article is to discuss the principles of undertaking unreg­istered activities, to analyse the functioning of these activities in the context of tax law and social security regulations, and then to evaluate the practical application of the discussed regulation in business transactions.

Methods: The dogmatic and legal method was used to develop the article.

Conclusions: The article indicates that the structure of unregistered activity adopted by the legis­lator is a form of obtaining income similar to economic activity. It allows for the legal possession of an additional source of income, but the conditions authorizing such activity clearly indicate that this activity cannot replace the main source of income. The social insurance system assumes that, under the Act on Entrepreneurs, unrecorded activities do not constitute an economic activity, and thus the person performing it is not subject to social insurance in this respect. However, the Social Insurance Institution issued an individual interpretation in which it considered that since persons engaged in unregistered activities are not entrepreneurs, they cannot also provide services to entrepreneurs under this activity. The tax law, in turn, contains definitions of economic activity and does not provide for any tax exemptions for unregistered activities. The legislator’s intention should be positively assessed, as they sought to develop and improve business transactions. Doubts arising from the interpretation of regulations issued by the Social Insurance Institution may lead to the conclusion that not every activity of a person performing it as part of unregistered activities will be subject to exemption from compulsory social insurance. Such a position of ZUS may negatively affect the attractiveness of this form of activity. It seems reasonable for the legislator to unambiguously specify that any activity carried out as part of unregistered activities will also be exempt from social security.