A commentary with approving and critical remarks on the judgment of the Voivodeship Administrative Court in Gliwice of 26 September 2024, case file I SA/Gl 649/24

Abstract

The judgment of the Voivodeship Administrative Court in Gliwice of 26 September 2024 (case file I SA/Gl 649/24) concerns the refusal to issue an individual tax ruling due to the existence of a general interpretation of the Minister of Finance of 9 December 2021 (No. DCT2.8203.2.2021) regarding the concept of a homogeneous controlled transaction. The Court held that the general interpretation comprehensively clarifies the notion of homogeneity of controlled transactions and that, pursuant to Article 14b § 5a of the Tax Ordinance, this excludes the possibility of issuing a separate individual interpretation within the same scope. This commentary largely endorses the Court’s position, emphasising its consistency with the objective of ensuring the uniform interpretation of tax law and avoiding the duplication of general interpretations. It discusses the essence of homogeneous transactions within the meaning of Article 11k of the CIT Act and analyses the prerequisites for the application of Article 14b § 5a of the Tax Ordinance in light of administrative case law. The commentary identifies the criteria of homogeneity (including economic uniformity, comparability criteria, and transfer pricing verification methods) and examines practical interpretative issues – for example, the impact of differentiated characteristics of individual transactions (such as varying loan terms or the use of safe harbour simplifications) on the assessment of their homogeneity. At the same time, the author notes that the abstract nature of general interpretations may give rise to doubts as to their application to specific factual circumstances. The commentary concludes with an overall approving assessment of the judgment, while also highlighting the need for more detailed guidance from the authorities (for instance, through a more comprehensive general interpretation) in order to eliminate potential ambiguities for taxpayers and to ensure full legal protection.