[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"advice-en-errors-in-accounting":3},{"slug":4,"title":5,"excerpt":6,"body":7,"datePublished":8,"dateModified":8},"errors-in-accounting","Accounting errors in a firm: 9 mistakes that cost the most","Transfer to an off-list account, cash above PLN 15,000, late JPK_V7, no KSeF. Typical accounting errors in a firm and ways to correct them.","\u003Cp>The most expensive accounting errors rarely stem from arithmetic. They usually come from formal lapses: paying into the wrong account, missing a return deadline, issuing an invoice outside KSeF or not having a document to support an expense. Each may mean loss of a cost, interest on arrears or a fiscal-penal sanction — and most can be eliminated through simple procedures in the firm.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>Payments: the white list, cash and the split payment\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Ch3>1. Transfer to an account outside the white list\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>If a transaction with another entrepreneur exceeds PLN 15,000 and the seller is an active VAT payer, the payment must go to an account visible in the white list of VAT payers on the day the transfer is ordered. Otherwise, under \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fisap.sejm.gov.pl\u002Fisap.nsf\u002FDocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20260000592\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Article 22p of the PIT Act\u003C\u002Fa>, the expense in that part cannot be included in costs (an analogous rule applies in CIT). A single screenshot or a record from the list search attached to the document is enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3>2. Cash on larger transactions\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>\u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fisap.sejm.gov.pl\u002Fisap.nsf\u002FDocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20250001480\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Article 19 of the Entrepreneurs' Law\u003C\u002Fa> requires payment through a payment account where the counterparty is an entrepreneur and the one-off transaction value exceeds PLN 15,000 — regardless of how many instalments it is split into. Breaking a single contract into several cash payments does not bypass the rule, and the tax cost is lost.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3>3. Skipping the split payment mechanism\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>Invoices above PLN 15,000 gross for goods and services listed in Annex no. 15 to the VAT Act are paid using an MPP transfer message. An ordinary transfer in such a case also blocks including the expense in costs.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>Deadlines the system does not watch for the entrepreneur\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Ch3>4. Late returns and contributions\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>The JPK_V7 file is filed by the 25th day of the month following the settlement period. ZUS contributions are paid by most entrepreneurs by the 20th day of the following month, and by companies that are legal persons — by the 15th day. No calendar reminders and a contribution not paid on time are the most common cause of interest that could easily have been avoided.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3>5. Costs booked in the wrong period\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>An invoice for a service covering several months (e.g. an annual subscription, insurance) or revenue booked by the date of receipt of money instead of the date of service — these are classic mistakes on flat tax and the scale. At year-end they lead to overstated or understated advances and the need for corrections.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>Documents and invoices\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Ch3>6. Invoices outside KSeF\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>From 1 February 2026, the National e-Invoice System is mandatory for the largest firms, from 1 April 2026 for other taxpayers, and from 1 January 2027 for the smallest firms issuing invoices of up to PLN 10,000 per month. An invoice sent only by email as a file for printing, when it should go to KSeF, is a mistake that no later booking will fix. More on the rules for issuing can be found on the \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Finvoices\u002Ffaktura-vat\">page devoted to VAT invoices\u003C\u002Fa>.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3>7. No evidence that the expense serves the firm\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>The invoice alone is not always enough. For training, travel, equipment used also privately or services from related entities, it is worth keeping the training agenda, business trip order, acceptance protocol or correspondence. These documents decide whether the cost is recognised during an inspection.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3>8. Keeping documents too briefly\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>Under the \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fisap.sejm.gov.pl\u002Fisap.nsf\u002FDocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20260000622\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Tax Ordinance\u003C\u002Fa>, a tax liability lapses after 5 years; the period runs from the end of the calendar year in which the tax was due, and the books and evidence must be kept at least until then. Documents from 2026 relating to annual PIT paid in 2027 must therefore be kept until the end of 2032.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch3>9. Mixing private and business finances\u003C\u002Fh3>\u003Cp>A single account for everything makes it harder to reconcile balances, lengthens the month-end close and increases the risk that a private expense ends up as a cost. A separate business account is the simplest form of internal control on JDG.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>How to correct a mistake once it has happened\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Col>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Determining the effects\u003C\u002Fstrong> — which period, which return and by how much the tax or contribution changes.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Correcting the return\u003C\u002Fstrong> — \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fisap.sejm.gov.pl\u002Fisap.nsf\u002FDocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20260000622\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Article 81 of the Tax Ordinance\u003C\u002Fa> allows filing a correcting return; the right is suspended for the duration of an inspection or tax proceedings in the scope they cover.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Payment of the shortfall with interest\u003C\u002Fstrong> — the arrear must be paid together with interest for delay.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Protection from a sanction\u003C\u002Fstrong> — under \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fisap.sejm.gov.pl\u002Fisap.nsf\u002FDocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20250000633\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Article 16a of the Fiscal Penal Code\u003C\u002Fa>, an effective correction of the return excludes a penalty for the related act, provided the depleted amount is paid. In other situations, active repentance under Article 16 of that code can be considered.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Fol>\u003Cp>Example: an entrepreneur on flat tax notices in March that in the November advance he included an invoice for the purchase of equipment paid in cash for PLN 18,000 from another firm. The expense must be removed from costs, the advance recalculated, the shortfall paid with interest and the book corrected. Done immediately — it ends with relatively small interest; detected during an inspection — also with fiscal-penal proceedings.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>Simple habits that eliminate most errors\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cul>\u003Cli>Checking the counterparty in the white list of VAT payers before every larger transfer.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>One deadline calendar: 15th\u002F20th — ZUS, 20th — PIT and CIT advances, 25th — JPK_V7 and VAT.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>Passing documents to the office on an ongoing basis, not once a quarter.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>Monthly reconciliation of the bank statement with the records.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>Reviewing the books before year-end, when corrections are still cheap.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Ful>\u003Cp>If errors recur, the cause can also be the flow of documents between the firm and the office. Guidance on how to change the service provider without gaps in the records is in our article on \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fadvice\u002Fchanging-accountant\">changing accounting office\u003C\u002Fa>.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>How Good Balance can help\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cp>We review the books and returns for recent periods, flag risks and prepare corrections before the office does. As part of \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Faccounting\u002Faccounting-advisory\">accounting advisory\u003C\u002Fa> we also tidy up payment and document-flow procedures, and we provide ongoing service to companies as part of \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Faccounting\u002Ffull-accounting\">full accounting\u003C\u002Fa>.\u003C\u002Fp>","2026-10-09"]