On 24 September 2026, Poland’s finance minister issued a general ruling (no. DTS6.8022.6.2026) stating that same-sex marriages legally concluded in another EU country and transcribed into the Polish civil registry can be treated for tax purposes like marriages of opposite-sex spouses. In practice this opens the door to joint PIT filing and other tax preferences available to married couples. Experts stress this is a ministerial ruling, not a change in the law itself, so disputes with tax offices cannot be ruled out.

Who the finance minister’s ruling covers

The ruling only covers same-sex spouses who obtained a Polish transcription of a foreign marriage certificate issued in another EU country. It does not cover registered partnerships formed abroad unless they were converted into a transcribed marriage certificate. The minister explained that a transcribed certificate serves as official confirmation for the tax authority that the relationship carries the same tax consequences as a marriage between opposite-sex spouses, within the meaning of an official document under Article 194 of the Tax Code. For couples planning to settle in Poland, this is useful background alongside the practical steps in our article on filing PIT-37 online.

What conditions must be met to file jointly

Under Article 6 of the PIT Act, the conditions are the same as for opposite-sex spouses and must all be met together. The couple must be married for the whole tax year, or from the date of marriage to year end, hold marital joint property, be taxed under the general progressive scale rather than the flat or lump-sum regimes, and file a joint taxation request on form PIT-37. Justyna Kandziora of KPMG in Poland explains that spousal status arising from a transcribed certificate should be recognised from the date the marriage was concluded, which can support joint filing even for years before the transcription itself, as long as the other conditions are met. Joint filing can bring a PIT refund of up to PLN 27,600, though in practice only when one spouse earns a high income and the other earns nothing at all, an effect well illustrated in our article on the second tax threshold.

Why experts warn of disputes with the tax office

Paweł Majewski of KPMG points out that a general ruling is not a source of law and does not bind administrative courts, so a dispute between a taxpayer and a tax office is still possible. Wojciech Śliż of Kochański & Partners goes further, noting that the underlying CJEU judgment only required Poland to recognise a marriage legally concluded in another EU state, while the finance minister went much further by treating such couples as spouses for tax obligations and liability too, not only rights. In his view this raises questions under Articles 7, 84, and 217 of the Constitution, since a general ruling is meant to interpret the law, not create it. Couples who want to work out the real impact of joint filing on their budget may find our gross to net salary calculator useful.

Legal status as of 1 October 2026. The finance minister’s general ruling of 24 September 2026, no. DTS6.8022.6.2026, has been in force since the date it was issued. A general ruling is not a source of law in the constitutional sense and does not bind administrative courts, meaning a tax office could still take a different position in an individual case.

Author: Walery Kusznirski, in-house legal practitioner at MojaFirma.