The Anti-Crisis Shield 7.0 changes the principles for awarding certain forms of assistance available for entrepreneurs active in specific industries, and extends the time limits for filing applications for financial assets.

Social cooperatives (the majority of which falls under the Polish Classification of Business Activity PKD codes) will be able to use three instruments:

• benefit for job protection
• subsidy for current business operating expenses
• relief from social security contributions.

In each case, documenting a loss of revenue within the meaning of tax regulations by at least 40 percent shall be the prerequisite for accessing support.

More information on the specific support instruments

1. The job protection benefit shall be granted to social cooperatives, which:

• have experienced a loss of income by a minimum of 40 percent during one of the three months preceding the submission of the application in relation to the previous month, or in relation to an analogous month in the year prior,
• do not have outstanding social security and tax contributions – the condition is deemed met when if the cooperative has entered into an agreement with the Social Insurance Institution or have received a decision from the tax office on the repayment of debt and if it pays the instalments on time, or if it uses deferred payment term,
• if they do not meet the conditions for filing for bankruptcy,
• they are not subject to restructuring or liquidation proceedings.

Scope of support

The funding amounts to PLN 2000 per month to a single employee's remuneration calculated to full FTE; proportional support is granted in case of partial FTE.

The funding is granted for up to 3 months.

The funding does not apply for:

• employees employed for less than 3 months, and the employees whose remuneration exceeds 300 percent of the average monthly remuneration in the preceding quarter announced by the President of the Central Statistical Office,
• months during which the entrepreneur has been using other assistance in the form of subsidising employee remunerations granted as part of counteracting the negative effects of COVID-19.

Application procedure

The electronic application must be submitted electronically to the Director of the Voivodeship Labour Office until 31 March 2021.

Useful links:

https://psz.praca.gov.pl/dla-pracodawcow-i-przedsiebiorcow/tarcza

Please note! Applications under a similar instrument functioning pursuant to Article 15gga of the Act on 2 March 2020 on the special solutions related to the prevention, counteracting and combating COVID-19, other infectious diseases and crisis situations caused by them. More details:

https://psz.praca.gov.pl/dla-pracodawcow-i-przedsiebiorcow/tarcza/15gga-branze

2. Subsidy for current business operating expenses

The beneficiaries include social cooperatives classified as SMEs, which:

• have experienced a loss of income by at least 40 during the month preceding the submission of the application in relation to the previous month, or in relation to an analogous month in the year prior,
• have not suspended their business activities as at 30 November 2020.

Scope of support

The total amount of a one-off payment amounts to up to PLN 5 thousand.

The cooperative returns the subsidy, when:

• it has not been carrying out business activity for three months after receiving the subsidy,
• it has misused the subsidy,
• has filed a false at least one of the declarations included in the subsidy application,
• it failed to meet the conditions for the subsidy,
• it has not consented to an inspection regarding making expenditures under the subsidy in accordance or proper documentation of the subsidy.

Application procedure

The electronic application must be submitted electronically to the Director of the Voivodeship Labour Office. Until 31 March 2021.

Useful links:

https://psz.praca.gov.pl/dla-pracodawcow-i-przedsiebiorcow/tarcza

3. Relief from social security contributions

The beneficiaries include social cooperatives paying insurance contributions, regardless of the number of persons registered for insurance, which:

• have experienced a loss of income by a minimum of 40 percent during one of the two months preceding the submission of the application in relation to the previous month, or in relation to an analogous month in the year prior,
• have been registered with the Social Insurance Institution as contribution payers before 1 November 2020,
• will file the settlement declarations and personal monthly reports for January 2021 or December 2020 and January 2021 (unless it is exempt from the obligation) until 28 February 2021,
• they have not been at a disadvantage as at 31 December 2019 and as at the day of filing the application (details provided on the websites of the Social Insurance Institution).

Scope of support

The exemption relates to the obligation to pay contributions for social security, health insurance, the Labour Fund, the Solidarity Fund, the Guaranteed Employee Benefits Fund and the Bridge Pension Fund.

If the payer has paid the contributions, but meets the conditions to be exempt from the, it has the right to apply for their reimbursement upon receiving a contribution exemption notice. The excess payment will be reimbursed if the payer does not have outstanding payments on its account.

Application procedure

The electronic application must be submitted to the Social Insurance Institution. Until 31 March 2021.