The campaign aims to encourage shoppers to collect and check receipts issued by cash registers. This year, the Ministry of Finance is drawing consumers’ particular attention to the fact that not every receipt issued is a fiscal confirmation of a completed transaction. Some sellers issue non-fiscal receipts, thereby avoiding paying taxes and contributing to the growth of the shadow economy. They also create unfair competition for sellers who operate in accordance with the law.

– This phenomenon is not widely known, but it has a negative impact not only on the condition of society as a whole, as the recipient of services financed by the state, such as education and security, but also on fair competition in individual sectors. Hence the decision to expand the scope of the receipt campaign – says the Deputy Minister of Finance and Government Plenipotentiary for Financial Information and Education Izabela Leszczyna. – I believe that our campaign will attract considerable public interest because it promotes values such as honesty and shared responsibility for the state – she adds.

On 1 January 2015, a regulation entered into force stipulating that cash registers must be used when providing services such as hairdressing, beauty, cosmetology and legal services, medical care services provided by doctors and dentists, and catering services provided by stationary food-service establishments. Nevertheless, when introducing the requirement for mandatory recording, a transitional period was established for installing a cash register (2–3 months from the start of providing such services). This means that a taxpayer newly starting a business, for example in hairdressing services, who has not previously conducted any business, has 2–3 months (depending on when the first service is provided during the month) to install a cash register.

Catering is an example of a sector in which the phenomenon of non-fiscal receipts is particularly noticeable. A so-called bill or waiter’s receipt often serves as a receipt there. This phenomenon is documented by a report prepared using a hidden camera for the Great Tax Test, produced by Telewizja Polska.

That is why the Ministry of Finance is asking consumers not only to insist on receiving a receipt, but also to check it. Every fiscal receipt contains characteristic elements, such as:

  • the centrally placed words “fiscal receipt”
  • the issuer’s tax identification number, name and address
  • the name of the product or service provided
  • the price
  • the logo and unique number of the cash register.

The campaign is aimed primarily at consumers, because they receive receipts and have the opportunity to check them. The Ministry of Finance wants to point out that both when a receipt is not issued and when a non-fiscal receipt is issued, the tax amount is generally still collected from the consumer. It is the consumer who pays the tax in the price of the product or service; a tax that does not always reach the state budget and sometimes ends up in the pocket of a dishonest seller.

Let us remember: a fiscal receipt is proof that a seller is conducting business honestly. By joining our campaign, you support yourself – you fight fraud and support the development of our country.

Komenda Główna Policji/ic/ii