From May 6, 2022, new interest rates of the National Bank of Poland, increased by 75 basis points, are in force, set at the following levels per annum:
- reference rate 5.25%,
- Lombard rate 5.75%,
- deposit rate 4.75%,
- bill rediscount rate 5.30%
- bill discount rate 5.35%
From the point of view of civil law contracts, the most interesting thing will be the value of the reference rate, as it has a direct impact on the amount of statutory (capital) interest, as well as statutory interest for delay and interest for delay in commercial transactions.
Pursuant to Article 359 §1 of the Civil Code (hereinafter referred to as the "Civil Code"), interest on a sum of money (capital interest) is due only if it results from a legal act or a statute, a court ruling, or a decision of another competent authority. The amount of capital interest is specified in §2 of that provision. Unless the interest rate is otherwise specified (for example, in a contract), statutory interest is due at an amount equal to the sum of the National Bank of Poland reference rate and 3.5 percentage points. This means that with the increase in the reference rate by 0.75 percentage points from May 6, 2022, the value of statutory interest due on the sum of money also increased by that same amount. Capital interest, after the change, is 8.75% per annum.
Furthermore, the maximum annual interest rate resulting from a legal act cannot exceed twice the statutory interest rate. As of May 6, 2022, the maximum annual interest rate on capital is 17.50%. If the interest rate resulting from a legal act exceeds the maximum interest rate, the maximum interest rate is due.
Statutory interest for default is regulated in Article 481 of the Civil Code. Thus, if a debtor delays payment of a monetary obligation, the creditor may demand interest for the period of delay, even if the debtor has not suffered any damage and even if the delay was due to circumstances for which the debtor is not responsible. Statutory interest for default is equal, in the absence of any provisions to the contrary, e.g., contractual provisions, to the sum of the National Bank of Poland (NBP) reference rate and 5.5 percentage points. Following recent interest rate increases, statutory interest for default, pursuant to Article 481 §2 of the Civil Code, is 10.75% per annum. The maximum rate of default interest, similarly to capital interest, is twice the statutory interest rate, i.e., 21.50%.
The third type of interest contingent on the NBP reference rate is default interest in commercial transactions, the rate of which is specified in Article 4 point 3 letters a and b of the Act of 8 March 2013 on Combating Excessive Delays in Commercial Transactions. In the case of commercial transactions in which the debtor is a public entity that is a healthcare entity, the rate of default interest in commercial transactions is equal to the sum of the National Bank of Poland reference rate and eight percentage points, and in the case of commercial transactions in which the debtor is not a public entity that is a healthcare entity, the sum of the National Bank of Poland reference rate and ten percentage points.
The recent change in the reference rate will not, however, translate into a change in the statutory default interest rate in commercial transactions today. Pursuant to Article 11b of the aforementioned Act, the National Bank of Poland's reference rate in effect on:
- 1 January – for interest due for the period from 1 January to 30 June;
- July 1 – for interest due for the period from July 1 to December 31.
This means that until June 30, the statutory interest rate for late payment in commercial transactions is, in accordance with the reference rate of January 1, 2022, 9.75% per annum for transactions in which the debtor is a public entity that is a healthcare entity and 11.75% for transactions in which the debtor is not a healthcare entity.
The change in statutory default interest rates for commercial transactions will take effect on July 1, 2022. However, with such frequent interest rate changes as we have seen recently (the fifth change in the reference rate this year), it is difficult to estimate their amounts. If nothing changes, they will be 13.25% and 15.25%, respectively.
sources:
- Act of 23 April 1964, Civil Code, Journal of Laws of 1964, No. 16, item 93, i.e. Journal of Laws of 2020, item 1740
- Press release from the Monetary Policy Council meeting on 5 May 2022 https://www.nbp.pl/home.aspx?f=/aktualnosci/wiadomosci_2022/rpp_2022_05_05.html
