Taxes. Podatki - ebook

Taxes

The history of taxation goes back to the times of ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome. The term tax means a rate or sum of money assessed on a citizen’s person, property, or activity for the support of the government, levied upon assets or real estate, upon income or upon the sale or purchase of goods. Taxes can be divided into direct or indirect, state or local, income or property, or sales or consumption. Four basic functions of taxes can be distinguished: fiscal, redistributive, stimulating and informative.

Whether we like it or not, taxes must be paid and tax evasion is a crime and can result in serious penalties. The taxes we pay to the Government and local authorities help to provide public services. This small selection of tax terms gives an insight into the complex and sophisticated world of tax issues.A

abatement – a tax rebate or decrease – obniżka podatku

accounting cycle – accounting procedures beginning with an initial entry, such as the first sale of the year, and culminating with the closing entries – cykl księgowy

accounting period – the period covered by a tax return – okres objęty deklaracją podatkową

accrued taxes – the amount of taxes owed, based on income earned or a property value assessment, but not yet paid – zadłużenie z tytułu podatków

ad valorem – Latin for “according to value” – od wartości

asset – anything owned that has value – składnik majątku

audit – an examination of a taxpayer’s books and records – audyt; kontrola finansowa

average tax rate – the rate obtained when total taxes paid are divided by income – przeciętna stawka podatkowa

avoidance of tax – a method by which a taxpayer legally reduces his or her tax liability – unikanie płacenia podatku

B

balance sheet – a financial statement that gives an accounting pic-ture of the property owned by a company or individual and of claims against that property on a specific date – bilans

before-tax cash flow – the cash flow before deducting income tax payments or adding income tax benefits – przepływy środków pienięż-nych przed opodatkowaniem

book value – the value of individual assets, calculated as actual cost less allowances for any depreciation – wartość księgowa

C

calendar tax year – a period of time, beginning on January 1 and ending on December 31, used by a taxpayer for determining tax liability– kalendarzowy rok podatkowy

capital – the possessions or assets of a corporation or other business that are used in operating the business – kapitał

capital assets – all property held for investment by a taxpayer that, when sold, is subject to special tax treatment – aktywa majątkowe

capital gain – the gain on the sale of a capital asset – zysk kapitałowy

cash basis – the accounting method used by most individual taxpayers – baza gotówkowa (metoda stosowana w rachunkowości)

commuter tax – a tax imposed on persons who work in a place other than where they live – opodatkowanie osób dojeżdżających do pracy (wUSA)

consolidated tax return – a return combining the reports of the companies in what the tax law defines as affiliated groups – skonsolido-wana deklaracja podatkowa

D

death tax – a term that often refers to state inheritance taxes – podatek spadkowy

deductible – in a tax return, denoting an expense that may be sub-tracted from income – podlegający odliczeniu/potrąceniu

deferral of taxes – the postponement of tax payments from the current year to a later year – odroczenie podatków

domicile – the permanent home or principal establishment of an indi-vidual – miejsce zamieszkania; domicyl

double taxation – an effect of federal tax law whereby a corpora-tion’s earnings are taxed at the corporate level, then taxed again as dividends of shareholders – podwójne opodatkowanie

E

earnings before taxes – sales revenues less cost of sales, opera-ting expenses, and interest, before taxes have been paid – zysk przed opodatkowaniem

effective tax rate – the rate at which a taxpayer would be taxed if his or her tax liability were taxed at a constant rate rather than progressively – efektywna stawka podatkowa

employment tax – tax to be paid on wages and salaries – podatek od wynagrodzeń

environmental tax – tax to be paid for covering the costs of envi-ronment protection – podatek na rzecz ochrony środowiska

estate tax – the amount due to the government, generally based on the fair market value of one’s property at death, less liabilities – podatek spadkowy

evasion of tax – a method of avoiding or reducing taxes not permit-ted by law – uchylanie się od płacenia podatku

excise tax – a tax imposed on an act, occupation, privilege, manufac-ture, sale, or consumption – podatek akcyzowy

F

face value – the value indicated in the wording of an instrument – wartość nominalna

fair market value – the price at which an item would be sold at retail by a willing seller to a willing buyer – godziwa wartość rynkowa

fiscal tax year – a regular fiscal tax year is a 12-month period that ends on the last day of any month except December – rok podatkowy

flat tax – a tax applied at the same rate to all levels of income – podatek ryczałtowy/liniowy