Active grief is a way to avoid punishment

Paying taxes on time and submitting the necessary declarations is the basic obligation of the entrepreneur. Delays or mistakes may expose the business owner to negative consequences, depending on the size of the offense in the form of a fine, restriction or imprisonment. What can save an entrepreneur is active grief.

The institution of active grief is provided for in Art. 16 of the Fiscal Penal Code. Pursuant to this provision, the perpetrator of the prohibited act will not be subject to penalty if he notifies the tax authority about the error or failure to fulfill his obligations. It is worth taking advantage of this option when the necessary obligations are not fulfilled due to neglect, forgetfulness or mess.

The mere submission of an active grief does not guarantee the entrepreneur protection against punishment. The first and most important condition for its effectiveness is the fact that the tax authorities, at the time of its submission, no longer have clearly documented evidence that an offense or crime has occurred. The situation is similar when the tax authority has already taken some official actions to determine whether a prohibited act has occurred - these may include, for example, inspections.

The second condition for recognizing active grief is the fact that the negligence is settled. Therefore, the taxpayer must submit forgotten declarations or corrections, pay the arrears and any interest - it should be remembered that the day after the tax payment deadline expires, it becomes a tax arrears with accrued penalty interest. Thus, active grief protects against additional penalties, but does not release the taxpayer from the obligation to settle the arrears.

The Fiscal Penal Code also provides for situations that obligatorily preclude the use of the institution of active grief - these are situations in which a person directed the execution of a prohibited act, organized and headed a group gathered for such a purpose (unless an active grief was reported by the whole group), forced or induced a dependent or other person to do so in order to institute proceedings against him.

The taxpayer should report active grievance to the competent tax office. It is possible to present such information in writing or orally - then the testimony is also recorded in a special protocol. Self-accusation must take into account all aspects of the case - this means that the entrepreneur must indicate in it his own fault, but also of possible complicity. If necessary, the entrepreneur will be obliged to help the law enforcement authority in matters of co-participants.