Public CbC-R in Poland. How to Protect Sensitive Information from Disclosure?

In 2026, tax transparency in Poland will enter a new phase. The obligation to publicly disclose country-by-country income tax information (Public CbC-R) will require large multinational enterprises to make their financial and tax data publicly available. 

This article summarises the key assumptions of this regulation and indicates what protection may be applied in respect of the disclosed data. 

Public CbC-R – what is it and what is its legal basis? 

The obligation to publicly disclose country-by-country income tax information arises from EU legislation – Directive (EU) 2021/2101 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 November 2021 – and has been implemented into the Polish legal system through an amendment to the Accounting Act. 

For the purposes of country-by-country reporting, the Accounting Act introduced an additional, separate report entitled the “Report on Income Tax” (“Sprawozdanie o podatku dochodowym”). This report presents data on a country-by-country basis and must be made publicly available for a specified period. 

Public CbC-R – key deadlines 

The deadline for publication and making available of the “Report on Income Tax” is 12 months from the balance sheet date. For the first time, it will apply to a financial year beginning after 21 June 2024. 

In practice, this means that for entities whose financial year corresponds to the calendar year, the first report will relate to 2025 and should be published by 31 December 2026. 

Public CbC-R – who is affected? 

The obligation to prepare the Report on Income Tax has been imposed on large multinational enterprises in Poland, i.e.: 

• • ultimate parent undertakings of a group; or 

• • standalone undertakings, 

whose revenues, as reflected respectively in the annual consolidated or individual financial statements, exceed PLN 3.5 billion for each of the last two financial years. 

Note: 
If such a large multinational enterprise is not governed by the law of an EEA Member State and generates revenues exceeding EUR 750 million, the obligation rests with entities or branches established in Poland. 

Public CbC-R – purpose and scope of the regulation 

The information included in the “Report on Income Tax” must be presented separately for: 

• • each EEA Member State (including Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway); 

• • so-called tax havens listed in the EU list; 

with respect to other jurisdictions, the information may be presented in aggregated form. 

The report must be: 

• • filed with the National Court Register; and 

• • published on the entity’s website for a period of at least five years. 

This constitutes a significant difference compared with the traditional CbC report, which was confidential in nature and intended solely for use by tax administrations. The new report is to be a publicly accessible source of information for a wide range of stakeholders, including competitors, investors, employees, suppliers and the media. 

The public disclosure of income tax information on a country-by-country basis is intended to enhance tax transparency and build public trust. Reporting broken down by jurisdiction is designed to improve corporate accountability and support public debate on shortcomings in tax systems. It enables society to gain insight into taxes paid by multinational corporations. 

The question remains whether all enterprises are prepared for this level of transparency. Have companies carefully analysed what suppliers seeking to negotiate discounts may infer from these data? What conclusions may be drawn by employees? By competitors? What if disclosure of certain information materially weakens the market position of the company or the group? 

Public CbC-R – protection of sensitive information 

The scope of information disclosed in the “Report on Income Tax” is similar to that required under CbC reporting. The key difference, however, is that the data will be publicly disclosed. Moreover, the harmonisation of the scope and presentation of the data increases their comparability. 

Therefore, in the case of information whose disclosure could be seriously prejudicial to the position of the undertaking, certain protection has been provided. The Accounting Act allows for the temporary omission of such information in the report, provided that: 

• • the omission is indicated in the report together with a justification; 

• • the omitted information is disclosed in a subsequent report no later than five years from the date of omission. 

Before preparing the report, it is therefore advisable to carefully analyse the information to be disclosed and consider which data may be omitted, ensuring that the decision is supported by a well-reasoned and convincing justification. A conscious and structured approach to data analysis is essential in order to strike a balance between the obligation to publicly disclose country-by-country income tax information and the protection of strategic business information. 

Finally, it should be noted that the analysis of the report should not be limited to a “competitor’s perspective”. The final and most important element should be an assessment from the perspective of tax authorities, as this is the underlying rationale for introducing the obligation. 

What conclusions will be drawn by Polish tax authorities, and what by foreign authorities that will have faster and easier access to these data? Are the tax data consistent? What about transfer pricing – could authorities conclude that profit shifting between jurisdictions has taken place? Will the risk of tax audits increase? 

Summary and recommendations 

Public CbC-R is an obligation requiring large multinational groups to make publicly available income tax information in the jurisdictions where they conduct business. The obligation primarily rests with ultimate parent undertakings; however, where the head office is located abroad, it may, in certain circumstances, fall on medium-sized and large subsidiaries or branches established in Poland. 

Before publication, it is advisable to verify the quality and consistency of the reported data. Information that was previously available solely to tax authorities becomes accessible to a wide range of stakeholders for at least five years. 

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If support is required in preparing a CbC report or the “Report on Income Tax”, or in verifying whether the reported data may generate tax risks (in particular in relation to transfer pricing or withholding tax), please contact us: 
https://www.mddp.pl/ceny_transferowe/#formularz