Executive summary

On 31 July 2026, the Polish Ministry of Digital Affairs officially published draft legislation introducing a Polish digital services tax (DST). This represents a significant development, moving the proposal from policy assumptions and public announcements into the formal legislative process. (For background, see EY Global Tax Alert, Poland | Digital Services Tax — latest developments and policy direction, dated 29 July 2026).

Under the draft, a 3% DST would be imposed on revenue from certain taxable digital services attributable to Poland. The tax would apply to taxpayers or consolidated groups with global revenue exceeding €1b and Polish in-scope revenue exceed 25 million Polish zloty (PLN 25m).

Notably, the Polish proposal includes a broad credit mechanism applicable to Polish corporate income tax (CIT) and certain local R&D and investment expenditures, which may reduce effective DST totals for some taxpayers.

The draft has now entered a 60-day public consultation period, creating an opportunity for groups to submit comments on the practical impact of the rules before the proposal is finalized.

Scope of the proposed tax

Under the published draft, the Polish DST would apply to revenue from taxable digital services attributable to Poland.

The taxable services covered by the draft include:

• Targeted advertising
• Multi-sided digital interfaces enabling user interaction
• Transmission of data collected about users

The draft also provides specific exclusions from the scope of taxable services. Affected entities should review these exclusions carefully, as they could be relevant for certain regulated activities, digital content or communication services, as well as for business models in which the digital interface is used primarily to supply the taxpayer's own goods or services.

Unlike many DST regimes adopted in other jurisdictions, the Polish proposal incorporates an unusually broad relief mechanism designed to take into account a taxpayer's economic footprint and investment activity in Poland. DST liability may be reduced not only by the amount of Polish CIT paid, but also by certain qualifying R&D costs and expenditures related to tangible investments and business expansion in Poland.

The proposed tax rate is 3%. The tax would apply to taxpayers or consolidated groups with global revenue exceeding €1b and Polish in-scope revenue exceeding PLN 25m.

The taxable base would generally be linked to revenue from taxable digital services attributable to users located in Poland. The draft legislation sets out specific rules for determining the Polish portion of this revenue.

Expected timeline

The first milestone following publication of the draft legislation is the 60-day public consultation process. Once the consultations conclude, the draft may be revised and advanced through the governmental and parliamentary process. The potential entry-into-force date, depending on the outcome and pace of the legislative process, is 1 January 2027 (indicative).

What this means for businesses

The publication of the draft means that businesses now have legislative text to review. Groups operating in the digital sector — in particular, those generating revenue from advertising, platform intermediation or user data — should, depending on their particular circumstances:

• Review the published draft legislation and monitor changes during the consultation process
• Assess whether global and Polish revenue thresholds may be met
• Evaluate the potential impact of the proposed credit mechanism, including interaction with Polish CIT and local R&D or investment expenditures
• Consider whether to participate in the public consultations