Unblocking 124k PLN for a construction company in 14 days
The Tax Office seized the account due to an error in the VAT declaration. We prepared a correction and an application for immediate reversal of the seizure so the company could pay salaries.
In mid-July 2024, a Lublin-based construction company Bud-Lub Sp. z o.o. lost access to its main bank account. The Tax Office seized exactly 124,318 PLN due to an error in an old VAT declaration, threatening to halt salary payments for 38 employees.
The challenge
The problems started with a mistake in figures when accounting for construction materials for May. An official in Lublin considered this an intentional tax underpayment and blocked the funds without warning. The company owner found out on Monday morning when a transfer for excavator fuel didn't go through.
The situation was critical because salary payday fell on the 20th of the month. Lack of access to cash meant not only contractual penalties for delays at the construction site on Nałęczowska Street but, above all, a real risk that the construction crew would not show up for work. The company had 47 active orders and every day of delay generated losses of around 3,400 PLN.
Our approach
We started with an immediate audit of VAT documentation from the last 4 months. Our specialist, Tomasz Borkowski, personally went to the First Tax Office in Lublin on Fabryczna Street to determine exactly which document triggered the block.
Instead of writing general requests, we prepared hard evidence that the error was purely technical. We focused on demonstrating the so-called social interest. We argued that the account block would lead to the collapse of a local employer and a lack of livelihood for 38 families. At Sarmatia Risk Control, we know that offices don't wait, so we acted urgently, filing a request to lift the seizure that same afternoon.
The solution
We prepared a correction of the VAT-7 declaration along with a so-called 'voluntary disclosure' (czynny żal), which protected the board from fiscal penalties. However, the key element was the application for suspension of enforcement proceedings.
We provided officials with a list of the company's fixed costs, including employment contracts and equipment lease invoices. We showed that maintaining the block was disproportionate to the error committed. For 11 business days, we held daily talks with the enforcement department, making sure our letter didn't get stuck at the bottom of the pile.
Results
Thanks to the quick filing of the correction and proving the error, the Tax Office unblocked the account after 11 business days. The company paid salaries with a one-day delay, which saved team morale and continuity of work on contracts.
Timeline
-
July 12, 2024Bud-Lub notices the account block and calls SRC.
-
July 13, 2024Document analysis at the SRC office and visit to the tax office on Fabryczna Street.
-
July 14, 2024Filing of VAT correction and application for immediate reversal of seizure.
-
July 26, 2024Office decision to unblock funds and return the full amount.
"We were backed into a corner. If it weren't for Sarmatia Risk Control's quick reaction, I would have had to close the construction site and lay off people. They knew exactly who to go to at the office and what papers to file."