People who run sole proprietorships often wonder whether they need a business account if they already have a private account. Polish law does not fully regulate whether an entrepreneur must have a separate bank account.

Can a private account be a business account?

If a small entrepreneur's bank account is used mainly to pay income tax and social security contributions, entrepreneur does not have to open a separate bank account immediately - it is possible that the costs of maintaining such an account will outweigh the point of having it.
However, if you are a larger entrepreneur who pays most of your invoices by bank transfer or card, it is an easier and better idea to separate your business and private accounts.

Why should you have a business account?

You can easily and quickly see what funds the company has at its disposal, and in the event of an audit, the Tax Office only has access to the bank account provided in CEIDG. Some banks also have better loan agreements or other products for corporate accounts, which are aimed specifically at enterprises.

When is a business account mandatory?

In some cases, business accounts in sole proprietorships are mandatory.

• One of them is making payments for invoices whose value is at least 15,000 PLN. In such a case, the company account must be registered on the “White List” of VAT taxpayers (a private account will not be shown).
• Additionally, during a Split Payment transaction, the gross amount is divided into net and VAT amounts. The bank assigns a VAT subaccount only to the company account, which later contains only VAT amounts; the net amount goes to the basic company account.
• Other cases where a company is obliged to have a business account are an entrepreneur who employs employees on a proprietorship, a civil partnership, a limited liability company, a general partnership, and a foundation.

Corporate account for a foreign company

Foreign companies must also set up a separate business account - this is specified in the VAT Act, which states that the VAT account is to be kept only in PLN. Other transactions within the country are also made through company accounts in Polish currency.

Business vs. Personal Account Summary

Although you do not need to have a separate company account, it is worth considering whether mixing private money transfers with company transfers, which state institutions can have direct access to, is profitable for personal comfort.

Also Read: >> Establishing a business by a foreigner <<