How to suspend a business
An entrepreneur registered in CEIDG may suspend their business for any period of at least 30 days, provided they employ no staff under employment contracts. The application is filed online via CEIDG or the mObywatel app — free of charge, effective from the date indicated, including retroactively.
ZUS consequences
- from the suspension date you pay no social or health contributions — ZUS deregisters the payer automatically,
- 30 days after the last health contribution you lose access to public healthcare — consider registering as a family member of an insured person or paying voluntary contributions,
- the suspension period does not count towards your pension,
- a break in sickness insurance means a new 90-day waiting period for sickness benefit after resuming.
Income tax during suspension
No PIT advances are due during suspension. However, you may (and sometimes must):
- collect receivables arising before suspension and settle earlier liabilities,
- sell fixed assets and equipment — such revenue is taxable despite suspension,
- incur fixed costs (subscriptions, bookkeeping) — they can be tax-deductible,
- file the annual return on time — suspension does not exempt you from PIT-36/PIT-36L/PIT-28.
VAT — beware of deregistration
An active VAT payer suspended for more than 6 months is removed from the VAT register ex officio (reinstated upon resumption without re-registration, if the suspension was reported). During suspension you do not file JPK_V7 — unless a sale occurs or you want to deduct VAT on fixed costs; then a file is submitted for that period.
When is suspension worthwhile?
Suspension makes sense for longer breaks (several months). For short slowdowns, compare it with the contribution holiday — one month without social contributions, with no loss of health coverage or benefit continuity. We are happy to help you choose the better option for your situation.