With respect to employment contract, neither all nor part of the salary can be paid in the form of cryptocurrencies.
This is based on Article 86 § 2 of the Labour Code: Remuneration shall be made in cash; partial fulfilment of remuneration in a form other than cash shall only be permitted if provided for by statutory labour legislation or a collective agreement.
In accordance with Article 86 § 2 of the Labour Code, remuneration for work shall be paid, as a rule, in cash. Only a part of the remuneration can be paid in a form other than cash, under the condition that such payment is permitted by statutory labour regulations or a collective agreement.
It follows from common law that cryptocurrency – virtual currency – is not a valid currency, either domestic or foreign. It is therefore not a common means of payment that can constitute remuneration. Remuneration may be paid in a foreign currency, as stated in the provisions of the Civil Code, for instance in euros or dollars, however cryptocurrency cannot be considered as such foreign currency.
The payment of wages is regulated by law. Due to the fact that remuneration shall be paid in money, the employer and employee cannot freely agree that part of the remuneration will be paid in cryptocurrency.
Partial payment of remuneration in a form other than in money is only possible if permitted by labour legislation or a collective agreement. Labour legislation does not permit the payment of a part of the salary in cryptocurrency. The only solution is to allow for this in a collective agreement (conclusion of a collective agreement requires the functioning of a company trade union organisation within the workplace, the procedure itself is also complicated).
In addition, the provisions of the International Labour Organisation’s Convention No. 95 of 1 July 1949 on the Protection of Wages must be respected as well. Article 4 of the Convention stipulates that national legislation, collective agreements or arbitration awards may permit partial payment of wages in kind in occupations or industries where such type of payment is generally accepted in practice, or where it is desirable considering the nature of the specific industry or occupation.
Cryptocurrencies may represent possible other work-related benefits – benefits granted by the employer to employees (such as medical packages).
In respect of the contracts of mandate (or your settlement with the Client), the provisions of the Civil Code stipulate a general reference to the payment of remuneration to the person accepting the commission. Consequentially, in the case of a contract of mandate, parties may agree for the entirety or part of the remuneration to be paid in cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrency is treated as a property right and its value should be determined on the basis of market prices (Article 11 of the Act on Personal Income Tax).
Pursuant to the aforementioned Article 11 section 2 of the PIT Act, remuneration expressed in bitcoin, which is treated as a property right under the PIT Act, should be determined in monetary value on the basis of market prices.
Unfortunately, the Social Security Institution (ZUS) is probably not going to remain indifferent to such funds being paid out if it has knowledge of them.
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