Some silos may be taxed differently
A construction object, which is a silo and at the same time has features of a building, constitutes a construction if its usable surface area cannot be determined or is insignificant from the perspective of the relation of this feature to other technical parameters of the object and irrelevant for the purpose of its erection, results from the NSA ruling (file no. III FSK 1432/21), as described by the Rzeczpospolita daily.
Michał Nielepkowicz, tax adviser and partner at Thedy & Partners, commenting on the ruling in the newspaper, points out that first of all it should be appreciated that the NSA, following its resolution of September last year concerning taxation of silos, still perceives the need to clarify its standpoint expressed in the resolution and in subsequent rulings gives guidelines on how, in its view, the flawed provisions of the Act on real estate tax should be interpreted.
The NSA rightly pointed out that one cannot lump all tanks or silos together. There are such tanks or silos which obviously do not have the features of a building, e.g. portable silos for construction materials used at construction sites, but there are also objects with significant dimensions, including those with a usable area which can be measured and they should be taxed as buildings.
In this ruling, the NSA clarified that if the usable area can be determined and it is not insignificant plus the object has storeys, it should be considered as a building on the basis of the provisions of the Act on real estate tax and taxed on its usable area.
This also means that objects such as modern silos for sugar, clinker or cement – in light of the current case law of the Supreme Administrative Court and following the resolution of September 2021. – constitute buildings and not structures.
The entire article was published in Rzeczpospolita of 2 March 2022, p. H7