Tax on Selling a Flat in Poland: How to Legally Avoid the 19% PIT

Tax on selling a flat in Poland is one of those topics where not knowing the rules literally costs money. It concerns the 19% PIT income tax, which applies when property is sold before a certain period has passed. In our practice at Mokko Real Estate we regularly see clients from Warsaw, Kraków, Wrocław and other cities paying this tax without realising that they have every right not to pay it.

When the obligation to pay tax arises

If you sell a flat or other residential property less than 5 years after purchase, Polish tax law obliges you to pay 19% PIT on the difference between the purchase price and the sale price. Put simply — on your profit from the transaction.

One detail that many people miss is important here: the five-year period is counted not from the exact date the sale contract was signed, but from the end of the calendar year in which the purchase took place. This means that if you bought a flat in November 2020, the five-year period expires on 31 December 2025 — and a sale in January 2026 is no longer taxed.

The ulga mieszkaniowa relief: how to avoid the tax legally

Polish tax law provides an exemption from tax on selling a home even before five years have passed — a relief called ulga mieszkaniowa, i.e. the “housing relief”. The mechanism is simple: if within 3 years of the sale you put the proceeds towards improving your living conditions, you do not have to pay the tax.

What exactly counts as a permitted use of funds under this relief:

buying a new home for your own residence (not for renting out — this is critically important);
renovation costs for the new home;
repaying a mortgage taken out to buy the new home.

The key condition that deserves particular attention: the home must be acquired for your own use. If the funds are used to buy a flat with the aim of renting it out, the relief does not apply.

Why clients overpay and how to avoid it

In our experience at Mokko Real Estate, most clients who sell a flat before the five-year mark either do not know that ulga mieszkaniowa exists, or know about it only roughly and do not understand which expenses fall under it. The result is tax paid that, with proper planning, could have been avoided entirely.

A few practical points that will help you avoid mistakes:

The period for using the proceeds is 3 years from the date of sale, not from the moment the money reaches your account. The date of sale is fixed by the notarial deed.
Expenses must be documented: contracts, invoices, payment documents — you will need all of them when filing your tax return.
The relief applies proportionally: if you spent only part of the proceeds on the new home, tax is paid only on the remaining part.
The five-year ownership period and the relief are different mechanisms. If 5 years have passed since the end of the year of purchase, there is no tax automatically, with no conditions attached.

What to pay attention to when planning a transaction

The tax consequences of selling a flat in Poland should be calculated before the decision to sell is made — not after the transaction is completed. This is especially relevant for those living in Poland as foreigners: tax residency, other property owned, the source of funds for the purchase — all of this can affect the final picture.

At Mokko Real Estate we work with clients at every stage: from assessing the tax consequences of a specific transaction to selecting a new home that allows you to use the ulga mieszkaniowa relief and not lose money to tax. This is not a formality — in real transactions we are often talking about tens of thousands of zloty.

If you are planning to sell a flat in Warsaw, Kraków, Gdańsk, Poznań or another city in Poland and want to understand how PIT applies in your specific situation, it is better to sort it out in advance.