The A1 certificate constitutes the document confirming the appropriate legislation in the field of social security. It should also be held by a self-employed person who is active in several EU Member States.
1. A1 certificate for a self-employed person
Essentially, the obligation to pay social security contributions arises in the country where the economic activity is conducted, regardless of the place of residence of the person running this business and the place where the activity is registered. At the same time, the rule that a person can only be covered by the social security system of one State applies. Consequently, when conducting the economic activity in several countries, there are doubts as to which social security system the person running this business is subject to and where he/she should pay social security contributions. For this reason, a self-employed person who is active in several EU Member States shoud obtain an A1 certificate. The document in question confirms in which country the entrepreneur is subject to social security and, therefore, where he/she is required to pay social security contributions.
2. Temporary transfer of self-employed activity to the territory of another EU Member State
Entrepreneurs who plan to conduct the self-employed activity for some time in another EU Member State but still want to be subject to Polish social security system should apply for an A1 certificate on the basis of Article 12(2) of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the coordination of the social security systems, hereinafter referred to as the Regulation. This provision states: A person who normally pursues an activity as a self-employed person in a Member State who goes to pursue a similar activity in another Member State shall continue to be subject to the legislation of the first Member State, provided that the anticipated duration of such activity does not exceed twenty-four months.
When applying for an A1 certificate on the basis of the provision quoted above, a self-employed person should first prove that he/she have been actively runnign business in Poland for a period not less than 2 months before the start of his/her activity in another country. For this purpose, it’s necessary to submit documents confirming professional activity in the Republic of Poland during the indicated period, i.e. contracts, invoices, etc. In addition, the entrepreneur must demonstrate that his/her activities in another EU Member State will be similar to those performed in Poland. The actual nature of the ctivity determines whether it is similar. The condition for issuing an A1 certificate is also that the self-employed person maintains the infrastructure necessary to run this business after returning to Poland.
It clearly results from the content of Article 12(2) of the Regulation that an A1 certificate may be issued for a period not exceeding 24 months. In the event that an entrepreneur would like to reapply for an A1 certificate under the provision in question, he/she should actively conduct business in the Republic of Poland again, for a period of at least 2 months.
3. Self-employment in two or more EU Member States
According to Article 13(2) of the Regulation: A person who normally pursues an activity as a self-employed person in two or more Member States shall be subject to:
a) the legislation of the Member State of residence if he/she pursues a substantial part of his/her activity in that Member State or
b) the legislation of the Member State in which the centre of interest of his/her activities is situated, if he/she doesn’t reside in one of the Member States in which he/she pursues a substantial part of his/her activity.
When applying for an A1 certificate under Article 13(2)(1) of the Regulation, the key criterion is: performing a significant part of the work. In order to determine whether this criterion has been met, it’s necessary to take into account the following factors:
- turnover,
- working time,
- the number of services provided,
- income in the country of residence.
It is assumed that if each of the above criteria is at least 25% in the country of residence, a self-employed person will be covered by the social security system in that State. However, in the event that any of the criteria is less than 5%, the activity carried out is considered to be marginal and the entrepreneur can’t be covered by the social security system in his/her country of residence.
If a self-employed person doesn’t reside in the State where he/she performs a significant part of his/her work, he/she will be covered by the social security system in the country where the centre of interest for his/her activity is located. When determining where this place is, it’s necessary to evaluate:
- where the fixed establishment is located,
- the duration of this activity,
- the usual nature of the activity,
- the number of services provided,
- the intention of the person conducting the business.
The A1 certificate, issued on the basis of Article 13(2) of the Regulation, is valid for a period of 12 months. Therefore, when applying for an A1 attestation, the entrepreneur should plan the work for the period covered by this document and attach a schedule of planned work to the application.
4. ZUS PUE
The A1 certificate is issued at the request of the interested party by the social security authority in a given country. In Poland this is the Social Insurance Institution – Zakład Ubezpieczeń Społecznych (ZUS).
A self-employed person should submit an application for an A1 certificate via the ZUS PUE platform. Using the platform in question, ZUS will provide the entrepreneur with an A1 attestation or a decision refusing to issue it, as well as other appropriate documents.
5. Legal notice
The study is a work within the meaning of the Act of 4 February 1994 on Copyright and Related Rights (OJ 2006, No. 90, item 631, consolidated text, as amended). Publishing or reproducing this study or its part, quoting opinions, as well as disseminating in any other way the information contained therein without the written consent of Crede sp. z o.o. is prohibited.
