Is there anything similar in Poland to a UK stocks and shares ISA (i.e. a tax free way of buying shares/bonds and potentially holding them for a long period of time)?
Or if nothing tax free is available, is it possible for foreigners to invest in the Polish stock/bond markets via a broker? If so, are there any that speak/deal in English that anyone can recommend?
You can trade on the Warsaw Stock Exchange online - the Halifax offer a good service however you'd need a UK address to use them. Any broker should be able to help you.
Tax office in Poland said they want to tax all my world income and that includes my tax free British I.S.A. Savings account. Can they tax me on my UK ISA? how much would an accountant in PL typically cost to sort it before the end April deadline? Thank you.
If you cash in your ISA then you would need to pay Polish tax on the benefits, assuming you meet the Polish residency test.
If you dont cash it in and only have paper gains then you are OK and have no tax to pay.
the ISA follows residency not citizenship and thus I think you are barred from making new contributions to the ISA while you are not tax resident in Britain.
You should check all of the above however - i had the same experience when leaving from a work tour in Britain. Its now very difficult for US citizens to open a new ISA even if they are long term residents of Britain.
all that said for the amounts involved I dont think it would be worth engaging an accountant - just ring up the people managing your ISA and ask them.
To have or open an ISA you must be a GB tax resident.
If you are now being counted as a Polish resident, (i.e. will be taxed in Poland) then the 'whole' amount of interest must be stated for the Polish authorities. They are not interested whether interest earned was at 1%, 2% 10% or anything. To them it was 'interest earned'. You lose your tax-free status of the ISA by not being a GB resident.
vjmehra is asking about ISA investment account and what you say is stock trading, those are two different things.
Wulkan, it's never wise to comment for the sake of it, especially if you don't know what you're talking about as is evident here. You can put various investments into an ISA, two popular types being shares and other tradable instruments...
You will notice if you reread the original post carefully that the OP specifically mentions this, making your comment all the more pointlessly strange.
Terri by the way is right. ISAs, whether containing stocks or other investments are for UK residents. Hard for the Polish tax office to know what someone holds in another jurisdiction and I suspect very few Polish residents would disclose this.
There seems to be very good communication between UK and Polish authorities. I won 25 pounds on the premium bonds a few years back, which is tax free in the UK. However, I recently received a letter from the Polish tax authorities asking for their share. There was no fine or extra payment for not disclosing it at the time but they found out somehow. I'm sure they'll find out about any interest earned in the UK eventually.
I won 25 pounds on the premium bonds a few years back, which is tax free in the UK. However, I recently received a letter from the Polish tax authorities asking for their share
The time, effort and postage involved to collect that share will cost more than it's worth. I suppose I'd better keep quiet about that Euro-millions win. (Just joking, Mr Tax man)
The premium bond thing is strange - how would they know it's the same person? Unless Stg Bilko gave them details to notify a win. Maybe it's changed since I last bought some. The tax liability would only be small change anyway and hardly worth collecting
If you know any Poles who are renting out their home in Poland while working or claiming income-based benefits or tax allowances in the UK it might be worth someone's while calling the tax evasion and/or dole cheats hotlines- I gather they financially reward grasses now.
Wtf, my premium bond prizes get taxed too?? This is a very taxed country is it not - 19% on savings and the same % on prizes and lotto wins at I assume 19% too, even company prizes get taxed I hear. 18% or 19% income tax after earning just 3000 zl...
Remember Terri that people who buy Premium Bonds come from a country where gambling was traditionally taxed either when paying the stake or receiving a win. You could choose.
There is no longer tax on the stake, however if there was, Poland would not be able to tax the winnings since tax had already been paid.
To keep to the thread, can Premium Bonds go in an ISA?
Yes, you are somewhat right. I remember very well the good-old-times where you could pay tax at the time of the stake, but this usually applied only in betting shops.
Premium Bonds however, did not work on that basis. To get a Premium Bond you pay a set amount, this buys you numbers which are then put through ERNIE and, if you're lucky - you win. You could not ever and cannot now pre-pay or pay tax prior to any winnings on the bonds.
You can cash in the value of your Premium Bond (which will be the same amount as you put in originally) and put that amount in a Cash ISA.
You've sort of missed the point a bit however yes, Premium Bonds are not taxed when sold. My point is that someone from the UK would not expect to pay tax on a gambling win including one drawn by Ernie due to cultural preconceptions. I remember him too - a huge machine.
I wonder if the Urzad Skarbowy provided documentary proof to Sgt. Bilko to show the state had notified them or whether they just did some sort of speculative trawl through lists of winners. I would certainly expect them to provide proof.
Interesting to know what they can find out and from whence.
I don't understand your point about 'cultural preconceptions' - ......for a Polish resident, any income earned from Premium Bonds, ISA, rental of property or cash in hand is taxable at the going rate.
I am not sure whether you have to provide your National Insurance number to buy Premium Bonds -if so, then this makes the job easier for the Polish taxman.
However, I do wonder what would happen if by pure chance, someone who is counted as a Polish resident bought a Lottery ticket and just happen to win the 5 million pounds that week. The Polish taxman would be rubbing his hands with joy - so best not to tell him.
Simply that someone used to the British system wouldn't expect to be taxed on a gambling win.
As for your point about the Urzad Skarbowy rubbing their hands in glee at a big win, yes - the American Internal Revenue do just that and yes it would be better not to tell them in PL. Fortunately lottery winners (and pools winners before) in the UK get first class tax and investment advice.
I'm lucky since I spend just short of 183 (or is it 186) days at home in PL due to working away though now I'm worried that they might start sniffing around investments in the UK. An ISA wouldn't be useful for me since I'm not a UK resident however my shares etc are managed through a UK bank. Time to think carefully.
I believe if you hold premium bonds and are no longer tax resident in the UK then you are obliged to fill a declaration (its on the NS&I website) providing your tax residency and Tax ID number. I imagine doing this would more or less guarantee that the Polish Tax man hears about any winnings. Maybe if you maintain a UK address for your NS+I accounts you might get away with forgetting to do this. In my case I don't hold any in my name, just my kids. Which raises the question - is a parent liable to pay tax on a child's income?
