UPL-1 in Poland — power of attorney for an accountant to file e-declarations for a JDG in 2026

UPL-1 is a unilateral tax power of attorney through which a business owner authorizes a specific person to electronically sign and submit e-declarations on their behalf. The form is free of charge. It can be filed online through the e-Tax Office or on paper with the competent tax office.

If you are changing accounting firms, UPL-1 is one of the permissions you must deliberately grant to the new firm and just as deliberately revoke from the previous one. The broader process is covered in the guide on how to change accountants in 2026.

What UPL-1 actually authorizes

UPL-1 authorizes a specified natural person to carry out activities related to the electronic submission of declarations on behalf of the taxpayer. In practice, this includes:

• signing and submitting electronic tax returns,
• filing JPK_V7, VAT-UE, notifications, and other forms required under tax legislation,
• signing corrections to those declarations,
• downloading official acknowledgements of receipt (UPO) for submitted declarations.

An attorney-in-fact acting under UPL-1 submits and signs documents as though the taxpayer had done so. The authority treats the declaration as filed on time provided that the power of attorney was valid when it was submitted.

What UPL-1 does NOT authorize

This is the most common misunderstanding surrounding UPL-1. The form is not a general power of attorney. In particular, it does not authorize the accountant to:

• sign responses to summons, replies to rulings, or procedural documents in enforcement and audit proceedings (PPO-1 or PPS-1 is used for this),
• act in a matter before the head of a Polish tax office outside the scope of e-declarations,
• manage KSeF access or receive and issue invoices through KSeF — this is a separate mechanism covered in the article on KSeF permissions for an accountant and accounting firm,
• access e-Tax Office mailboxes for activities other than submitting declarations,
• control funds in a tax account or tax micro-account, or control tax refunds,
• handle settlements with ZUS, Poland’s Social Insurance Institution — this requires a separate PEL power of attorney.

UPL-1 is a narrowly defined tool. It enables timely, hands-off submission of e-declarations. If the accounting firm needs to do anything more, the business owner must grant an additional power of attorney or carry out the activity personally.

Who can be an attorney-in-fact under UPL-1

The attorney-in-fact must be a natural person with legal capacity. In practice, this will be the accountant keeping the records, an employee of the accounting firm, or a trusted person in the business. The entity itself cannot be named as attorney-in-fact (for example, “Accounting Firm X Sp. z o.o.”); the form must identify a specific person and provide their PESEL number and identification details.

If several employees at the accounting firm submit declarations, a separate UPL-1 must be filed for each of them. There is no automatic right to delegate the authority further.

How to grant UPL-1 step by step

1. Choose how to file it: online through the e-Tax Office or on paper with the competent tax office.
2. Enter the taxpayer’s and the specific attorney-in-fact’s details required by the UPL-1 form.
3. Specify the period for which the power of attorney will apply.
4. Sign the form in accordance with the business’s representation rules.
5. File UPL-1 before the day on which the attorney-in-fact signs and submits the first declaration.
6. If filing online, download the UPO. For a paper filing, retain a stamped copy or proof of posting.

The office enters the details in the register of powers of attorney and does not send a separate notice that the matter has been completed. Therefore, do not wait until the first JPK file or declaration is being submitted to file UPL-1.

How to revoke it — the OPL-1 form

A UPL-1 power of attorney is revoked using the OPL-1 form. It can be delivered on paper to the same office or filed online through the e-Tax Office.

• Identify the attorney-in-fact whose authority you are revoking.
• For an online filing, sign OPL-1 using an accepted method and download the UPO.
• For a paper filing, retain confirmation of filing or proof of posting.

In OPL-1, enter the details of the power of attorney being revoked in accordance with the current version of the form. After filing it, retain the confirmation and check the list of powers of attorney in the e-Tax Office. Coordinate the timing of the revocation with the filing of the final declarations and receipt of their UPOs, so the former firm does not retain access for longer than is necessary to complete the handover.

The parties’ liability

UPL-1 does not automatically transfer responsibility for the tax settlement to the accountant. The business owner remains liable to the authority for:

• filing declarations on time,
• the truthfulness of the data and accuracy of the calculations,
• paying tax into the tax micro-account,
• keeping powers of attorney up to date.

The accountant is liable to the business owner under the bookkeeping agreement. They are liable to the authority only in expressly defined cases, and as a rule the taxpayer bears the consequences of a delay.

You should therefore retain a copy of every submitted UPL-1 and OPL-1, along with proof of filing and revocation. In a dispute, these are important records showing when the power of attorney was granted or revoked.

UPL-1 and other tax powers of attorney

UPL-1 is one of several tax powers of attorney. Do not confuse it with:

• PPO-1 — a general power of attorney for handling matters before tax authorities; broader than UPL-1, although it does not cover signing every type of document,
• PPS-1 — a special power of attorney for a specified matter, such as a particular audit or application,
• PEL — a power of attorney for ZUS, maintained in an entirely separate register and using different forms,
• KSeF permissions — granted within KSeF rather than in the e-Tax Office.

The most common mistake is assuming that one “power of attorney for an accountant” is sufficient. In reality, an accountant who submits JPK files, deals with ZUS, and handles KSeF needs three separate authorizations.

Most common mistakes

1. Granting UPL-1 instead of PPO-1 when the firm needs to respond to official summons.
2. Leaving the former accounting firm’s UPL-1 active after the contract ends.
3. Revoking UPL-1 before the previous firm submits the final JPK_V7.
4. Entering the accounting firm’s name on UPL-1 instead of the details of a specific natural person.
5. Treating UPL-1 as access to KSeF or as authority to control refunds.
6. Failing to retain a copy of OPL-1 after revocation.
7. Assuming that UPL-1 also covers ZUS (it covers tax e-declarations only).

When it is worth granting UPL-1

UPL-1 makes sense when the accountant actually submits e-declarations and needs to do so on time without repeatedly asking the business owner to sign them. It does not, however, replace the other required permissions.

Grant only the scope the firm genuinely needs. Revoke it immediately when the cooperation ends — but only after the final declaration has been submitted and its UPO received.

Sources

• Biznes.gov.pl — tax powers of attorney (UPL-1, OPL-1, PPO-1, PPS-1)
• Ministry of Finance — tax power-of-attorney forms

This material is general in nature. The detailed scope and procedure for granting a power of attorney follow from the provisions of the Polish Tax Ordinance and the current e-Tax Office instructions.