Poland Expands the Tacit Approval Mechanism: What Will Change for Businesses from 1 January 2027

31.07.2026

• What changes in substance
• Waste management permits
• Regulated financial activities
• Tax procedures
• Other permitting and consultation procedures
• Does your company have an application to which the authority has not responded?
• How the “milcząca zgoda” mechanism works
• What businesses should pay attention to
• Who should review the new rules
• How should businesses prepare for the new rules?
• Review Your Company’s Permitting Procedures

The Act amending certain acts in order to simplify administrative procedures in matters resolved by way of an administrative decision or tacitly was signed and published on 30 June 2026 (Journal of Laws of 2026, item 875). The Act will enter into force on 1 January 2027, being the first day of the month following the expiry of six months from the date of its publication.

The tacit resolution of a matter is not a new concept under Polish law: Chapter 8a of the Code of Administrative Procedure has allowed matters to be resolved tacitly for several years, but only where this is expressly provided for by a specific statute, and there have previously been few such statutes. The new Act extends this mechanism to 17 statutes and dozens of types of proceedings. If an authority fails to issue a decision within the statutory time limit, the application will be deemed to have been granted in full on the terms set out in the application itself.

What changes in substance

Several of the amended procedures are commercially significant for companies operating in Poland.

Waste management permits

Under the amended Waste Act, if the competent authority fails to decide on an application to extend the validity of a waste collection permit or a waste processing permit within 60 days of receiving the application, the permit will be deemed to have been extended for the period applied for, provided that its validity may not extend beyond ten years from the date on which the original permit was issued.

The authority will be required, on its own initiative, to issue a certificate confirming the tacit resolution of the matter. Two exceptions are provided for: infectious medical and veterinary waste, and cases where the waste holder simultaneously applies for other amendments to the permit.

For permit holders, the date on which the authority receives the application and the completeness of the application will be crucial. If, together with the extension, the company requests other amendments to the permit, the tacit approval mechanism will not apply.

Regulated financial activities

Under the Act on Counteracting Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing, registration in the register of trust or company service providers will be deemed to have been completed by operation of law if the authority takes no action within 45 days of receiving a complete application. The undertaking will be entitled to commence its activities on the following day.

Similar rules will apply to the KNF registers under the Payment Services Act, with a four-month period for account information service providers and small payment institutions, as well as to the register of pawn business activities under the Act on Consumer Pawn Loans.

When planning the commencement of activities, companies must take into account that the relevant period will begin to run only once a complete application has been received. The formal filing date and the date on which the four-month or 45-day period begins may therefore differ.

Tax procedures

An application for the remission of tax arrears, late-payment interest or a prolongation fee will be deemed to have been granted in full if the tax authority fails to issue a decision within 60 days, provided that the total amount of remission requested by the same taxpayer from the same authority in respect of the relevant tax during the tax year does not exceed the statutory minimum wage.

The same 60-day period will apply to agricultural tax reliefs and exemptions.

Before filing an application, the taxpayer should check the aggregate amount of remission requested from the same authority in respect of the relevant tax during the tax year. If the statutory threshold is exceeded, the tacit approval mechanism will not apply.

Other permitting and consultation procedures

Organisers will obtain authorisation automatically if the authority fails to act within the applicable time limit. Compliance of the event with the applicable requirements will be assessed on the basis of the application rather than the authorisation itself.

Consultations between authorities in connection with the issue of permits for regular passenger transport services will be deemed to have been completed after 30 days. The same will apply to opinions issued by gminas in relation to alcohol sales outlets and to opinions issued in land reclamation proceedings.

The Stamp Duty Act will now provide that, in matters resolved tacitly, the official action will be deemed to have been performed on the date on which the matter is tacitly resolved.

In these proceedings, the authority’s silence may have different legal consequences: the issue of a permit, the obtaining of an approval or the issuance of a favourable opinion. A company must establish the precise result applicable to the particular procedure rather than assume that an authority’s inaction will always replace a final permit.

Does your company have an application to which the authority has not responded?

Before calculating the applicable time limit, it is necessary to determine whether the tacit approval mechanism applies to the relevant procedure and whether the documents submitted constitute a complete application.

How the “milcząca zgoda” mechanism works

Below, we explain when an authority’s silence genuinely constitutes approval.

An application must be filed together with a complete set of documents. The relevant period will run from the filing date or, in certain procedures, from the date on which the application is delivered to the authority. An incomplete set of documents will either prevent the mechanism from applying or cause the period to begin running afresh.

Evidence of the filing date is as important as the filing itself. Companies should therefore retain confirmation of electronic filing, the receipt for sending the application by registered post or a copy of the application bearing the authority’s receipt stamp.

The company will be responsible for monitoring the statutory time limit. The mechanism takes effect by virtue of the expiry of time rather than upon the issue of a notification: the authority is not required to notify the applicant separately that the application is deemed to have been granted.

Any request to supplement the application or to attend in person must be addressed within the specified time limit. Failure to respond will prevent the applicant from obtaining either a decision or a tacit resolution of the matter.

Once the relevant period has expired, the applicant should request a certificate confirming the tacit resolution of the matter unless the authority is required to issue it on its own initiative, as is the case with extensions of waste permits and permits for mass events.

Counterparties, financing banks and auditors will require a document confirming the relevant right rather than the company’s own calculation of the expired time limit.

Proceedings initiated but not completed before 1 January 2027 will continue under the previous rules. The tax provisions will apply only to applications filed in a tax year beginning no earlier than the date on which the Act enters into force.

What businesses should pay attention to

The tacit approval mechanism will not apply in every case.

It will not be available where the authority has issued a request to supplement the application or to attend in person, where the proceedings have been suspended, or where the relevant time limit expires during a state of natural disaster, a state of emergency or an epidemic.

In tax matters, the mechanism will also not apply where another authority whose consent is required refuses to provide that consent.

In practice, the burden will rest with the applicant: the statutory period will begin to run only once a complete and properly prepared application has been filed. An incomplete filing will not trigger the period.

The transitional provisions are also important. Proceedings initiated but not completed before 1 January 2027 will continue under the existing rules. The tax provisions will apply only to applications filed in a tax year beginning no earlier than the date on which the Act enters into force. For most taxpayers whose tax year corresponds to the calendar year, the rules will therefore apply in practice from the 2027 tax year.

Who should review the new rules

The changes will primarily affect:

• companies holding waste collection or waste processing permits;
• payment service providers, small payment institutions and organisations required to be entered in specialised financial registers;
• taxpayers applying for the remission of tax arrears or interest, or for certain tax reliefs;
• organisers of mass events, carriers and companies whose activities require opinions or approvals from local government authorities.

Companies in these categories should determine in advance which applications they intend to file after 1 January 2027 and which internal processes will need to be amended in order to monitor the relevant time limits.

Procedure	Period of authority inaction	Result
Extension of a waste collection or waste processing permit	60 days	The permit is deemed to have been extended
Register of trust or company service providers	45 days	The registration is deemed to have been completed
Certain KNF registers	4 months	The right to commence activities arises
Remission of tax arrears and related payments	60 days	The application is deemed to have been granted
Consultations concerning regular passenger transport services	30 days	The approval is deemed to have been obtained

Two practical recommendations for businesses follow from these changes:

1. Companies should record and retain evidence of the exact filing date of each application falling within the new rules and of the completeness of the accompanying documents. They should also enter the applicable statutory time limit in their calendars rather than wait for correspondence from the authority.
2. Where a matter is resolved tacitly, it is advisable to obtain a certificate confirming the tacit resolution even where such a certificate is not issued automatically. Counterparties, banks and auditors will generally require documentary confirmation rather than a calculation showing that the relevant time limit has expired.

How should businesses prepare for the new rules?

If your company is involved in ongoing or planned permitting, registration or tax procedures in Poland, REVERA can help determine:

• whether a particular application is covered by the tacit approval mechanism;
• the date from which the statutory time limit begins to run;
• which documents are required for the application to be treated as complete;
• which actions by the authority may suspend or prevent the mechanism from applying;
• whether a separate certificate will be required once the relevant time limit has expired.

For an initial assessment, it is sufficient to provide us with a list of the relevant procedures, the dates on which the applications were filed and the available correspondence with the authorities. Following the review, the company will receive a schedule of the applicable time limits and practical recommendations regarding the next steps.

It is advisable to carry out this assessment before 1 January 2027, particularly where the company intends to extend permits, apply for registration in regulated registers or file applications for tax reliefs at the beginning of 2027.

 

Author: Kamal Tserakhau, Inna Semenova