Unfortunately, work and studies (even extramural) do not always"like". Most of the students can count on either low-paid or unpaid internships (valuable due to the relevant entries in the CV, but not repairing the budget too much), jobs that do not require high qualifications, but very demanding availability (shops, restaurants or shift work, usually in production plants) ) or part-time activities. It is true that in recent years employers (at least some of them) have been more flexible when it comes to students, but it still often happens that students face a dilemma - go to classes and face problems with the employer that requires overtime, or go to work and miss important activities. Such situations are not only frustrating, but also affect both the academic performance and the course of education itself, making studies another hard duty and depriving the learner of the joys and charms of student life.

No wonder that students more and more often decide to set up - while still studying - their own business. Theoretically, it is favored by more and more factors - the possibility of remote work in the increasing number of professions, the possibility of receiving EU subsidies, free participation in training, and even discounts in social security fees for start-ups. Looks wonderful? Well - almost everyone who runs DG in Poland will say that it only looks. Complications begin when starting a business (the mythical"one stop shop" is still just a myth), and then you only have to ... pay. And this regardless of whether the company earns money or not. And this is a lot to pay, especially when it is not possible to benefit from the reduction in social security contributions (for which the legislator made sure that it would cover a limited number of people). That is either nearly 350 or almost 800 PLN. Even a novice entrepreneur knows that it usually takes some time for the Company to start generating real income. On the other hand, if the entrepreneur is a student, he generally cannot afford to reduce his budget, which is so poor to pay the contributions. After all, he started the company to have more money, not less.

In Poland, students do not have any concessions in establishing and running a DG. They are treated in exactly the same way as other entrepreneurs. Fortunately, Poland has been a member of the European Union for over 6 years. This means that a Polish student can set up a company in any EU country, for example in the Czech Republic or Slovakia. The situation of entrepreneurs across our southern border is completely different.

First of all: we pay contributions (just like taxes) when we earn. In most cases, we pay them when the income exceeds a certain amount. In other words, we do not have to worry about what we will pay the premiums from, if we have not already"started" the company enough to afford it. This applies to both health and social contributions.

Second: taxes (which of course have to be paid everywhere) look a bit different - read more advantageously. It is enough to compare the Polish amount of just over 3,000 zlotys with the free allowance with the Czechs over 28,000 (and in the case of students 32,000) or even with the Slovakian 16,000 zlotys. The difference is clearly visible.

Third (but perhaps most importantly): offices. Are you afraid that the lack of knowledge of the language and the Czech or Slovak law will cause difficulties in running a business abroad? Nothing could be more wrong - Czech and Slovak officials, especially in border towns, have several years of experience with Polish enterprises, they often know Polish and are almost always very helpful. There are also companies that specialize in providing services to Poles who want to develop companies in the Czech Republic and Slovakia - from DG registration, obtaining (if necessary) all permits, through accounting assistance, translation of documents or lending an address necessary to conduct business. All this for reasonable fees.

In order for the student to be able to benefit from the discounts and privileges, it is necessary to obtain a certificate of education from his school and submit an application to the Czech Ministry of Education for recognition of studies. Confirmation is issued up to 4 weeks and is free of charge.

Even if there is no obligation to pay contributions, the period of business is included in the years worked (for retirement purposes). If the income (according to the table) is too low, the health insurance contributions are paid by the Czech Republic.

Joanna Gacka

A detailed offer of a virtual office for students is available here .