The Regional Prosecutor’s Office in Białystok has filed an indictment with the court against Maciej G., a former Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Finance. The former deputy minister, who served during the PO–PSL coalition, is to answer charges of failing to perform his duties—conduct that may have contributed to losses to the State Treasury in value-added tax (VAT).
The investigation conducted by the Białystok regional prosecutor concerns events from 2013, when work was underway at the Ministry of Finance on a draft amendment to the VAT Act. According to the indictment, decisions taken on 26 February 2013 are central to the case.
Provisions on electronics and real estate removed
Investigators determined that, at the stage of work in the VAT Department, key provisions disappeared from the draft law. These concerned regulations introducing a one-month VAT settlement period for trade in real estate and electronics (phones, computers, consoles, televisions), as well as joint and several liability for tax obligations in the trade of electronic goods.
The same provisions had appeared in all earlier versions of the draft from February 2013. They were intended to respond to the growing problem of VAT fraud, particularly in the electronics sector.
Electronics as “sensitive goods”
The justification for the original draft explicitly identified electronics and real estate as goods at high risk of fraud. “Findings resulting from tax authorities’ inspection activities lead to the conclusion that abuses in value-added tax have intensified on the territory of Poland, particularly in trade in certain so-called ‘sensitive goods’ such as steel products, fuels, or electronics,” the documents state.
The proposed changes were meant to counter fraud and limit losses to the state budget. The scale of the problem was serious—one coordinated inspection concerning mobile phone trading, carried out by 13 tax inspection offices, revealed tax arrears exceeding PLN 227 million.
The prosecution alleges that on 26 February 2013, despite being aware of the escalating problem of VAT fraud in the electronics trade, Maciej G. decided—without consultations or analyses—to remove these provisions from the draft bill.
As an undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Finance, he was responsible for overseeing the preparation of draft amendments to tax law and the implementation of tasks related to VAT. According to prosecutors, he failed to fulfil his duties in ensuring the proper execution of the state’s tax policy, thereby acting to the detriment of the public interest.
What penalty does the former deputy minister face?
Maciej G. has been charged under Article 231 §1 of the Criminal Code, i.e., failure by a public official to perform his duties. This offence carries a penalty of up to three years’ imprisonment. A preventive measure in the form of a financial surety has currently been applied. The case will now be heard by the District Court for Warsaw-Śródmieście.