Confirmation of the sale of goods or services for a business or buyer in Poland can be provided by various documents: an invoice, a simplified invoice, or a sales receipt. We'll explore the differences between them and the transactions they are used for in our article.

Invoice VAT.

A seller of goods or a provider of services who is a VAT payer issues an invoice to a buyer, whether an individual or a legal entity (i.e., in B2C or B2B sales), indicating the key characteristics of the sale: date, number, seller and buyer details, their tax identification numbers, quantity and name of the goods or services, net price, discounts, VAT rate, and gross price. Other required elements of this invoice are established in accordance with Article 106e, paragraph 1, of the VAT Act.

Simplified VAT Invoice.

A simplified VAT invoice may be issued if the total gross transaction value does not exceed PLN 450 (or the equivalent of EUR 100). Furthermore, such an invoice must contain a few basic details—slightly less than a standard VAT invoice, in accordance with Article 106e, point 5, paragraph 3 of the VAT Act.

A simplified VAT invoice may not be issued for the following trade transactions:

• distance selling,
• intra-Union supplies of services,
• services provided to an EU customer,
• sales for which the recipient's VAT number is not indicated on the invoice.

Sales receipt (tax receipt or cash register receipt).

Every seller engaged in business activity and selling goods to private individuals (not engaged in business activity) or farmers registered on the ryczałt tax form is required to process sales using a cash register. In such B2C sales, the seller is obligated to issue a sales receipt or a fiscal receipt if a cash register is required, and, at the request of the individual, also an invoice.

The buyer may submit such an invoice request within three months from the end of the month in which the goods or services were delivered or full or partial payment was received.

However, as clarified in Article 106b, Section 2 of the VAT Act, the seller is not obligated to issue an invoice if they are exempt from VAT (either objectively or subjectively).

As specified in Article 111, Clause 1, Article 3a of the VAT Law, a taxpayer-seller selling goods or services using a cash register is required to issue and transfer to the buyer a receipt or invoice for each such sale:

• in paper form or
• in electronic form, but only after receiving the buyer's prior consent to this form of receipt of a document confirming the transaction.

A receipt, like an invoice, must contain the necessary elements to formally confirm the sale. In accordance with paragraph 25, point 1 of the Regulation of the Minister of Finance on cash registers (Rozporządzenie Ministra Finansów z dnia 25 czerwca 2025 r. w sprawie kas rejestrujących), the fiscal receipt must contain the following elements: seller's details, seller's tax identification number, printout number, date, hour and minute of sale, Pargon fiskalny name, name of the goods, their quantity, gross price, VAT rate and amount, sale currency, sales receipt number, fiscal cash register number, buyer's tax identification number (optional).

The link to the government business portal provides useful explanations of the different forms of sales receipts in Poland.

In our article, we also examine in detail which sales require the use of a cash register and the conditions for exemption from its use.

The following article also provides additional information on issuing sales documents.

Electronic sales receipt / Paragon elektroniczny.

An electronic sales receipt is a digital form of a cash register receipt that replaces a paper purchase confirmation. This electronic purchase confirmation can be transferred using an electronic receipt mobile app. This innovation reduces paper waste and makes it easier for shoppers to keep track of their transaction history in one place. This feature also simplifies document storage in the event of a lost card, facilitating payment verification at the bank, and reduces the risk of fraud with paper receipts.

Sales receipts for online or internet sales.

When selling remotely on online platforms, the sale may be documented with an invoice, while sales to individuals not engaged in entrepreneurial activity must be additionally documented with a receipt attached to the issued invoice.

In the case of prepayment or cash payment, the seller issues/sends the buyer an invoice and/or a sales receipt in paper or electronic form. In practice, sales receipts may be issued upon shipment of the goods and attached to the parcel.

At the same time, the seller has the right to issue/send an invoice in paper or electronic form to the individual buyer and retain the sales receipt in the case of payment after delivery of the goods.

We discuss detailed requirements for the use of a cash register and the conditions for exemption from its use in e-commerce sales: online and internet sales, in our article.

Invoice (excluding VAT).

A seller of goods or a service provider who is not a VAT payer issues a VAT-exempt invoice to the buyer. This invoice specifies the key details of the sale: date, invoice number, seller and buyer details, their tax numbers, quantity and name of the goods or services, discounts, and price. The VAT rate and net amount are not included.