Running a business is a huge amount of obligations that must be handled regardless of all other accompanying circumstances. Some of these obligations lead to income, while some of them have been imposed by various tax and other regulations. There are so many tasks that the entrepreneur may need help in carrying them out at the initial stage. For this purpose, he may hire a suitable employee. However, this is a risky activity, especially when you do not have experience in recruitment and it is difficult to find a responsible and trustworthy person. Your spouse can help you. His actions will certainly serve the development of the company, and all arrangements can be made at any time. The problem, however, is that hiring a spouse is an extremely expensive investment.
Your spouse can be hired in several ways. Among them there is a specific task contract, mandate contract, employment contract and cooperation without a clearly defined contract. Each of these solutions has specific legal consequences. It is also important whether the spouse is also employed by another entrepreneur, and if so, in what form and on the basis of what contract. This is extremely important for further cost determination. Employing a spouse on the basis of an employment contract or a specific specific contract is associated with the payment of the entire contribution to the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS). It is about the full Social Insurance Institution applicable to every entrepreneur. In this case, the level of income obtained does not matter, and the premium does not result from the salary. It is determined in the same way as for an entrepreneur, but you cannot even apply for a preferential ZUS. The whole thing has to be paid for. Such an obligation also occurs when the spouse does not have any contract with the spouse – the entrepreneur, but acts for his company, supports and actively helps. In such a situation, you also have to pay the full ZUS. In a situation where the spouse is employed in the company on the basis of a mandate contract, then the spouse who is an entrepreneur may pay contributions to ZUS based on the actual income obtained.
This is a question that practically all married couples who want to run a business together, but also look for savings. There is a way out of the situation. Of course, apart from contract employment and payment of contributions calculated on the basis of the income received. This solution is the situation when the spouse works full-time for another entrepreneur and receives at least the minimum wage with him. Then, the entrepreneur pays full ZUS contributions, while the spouse who is the entrepreneur pays only health insurance contributions for the employed family member. The health insurance premiums alone amount to around PLN 300, so in view of the full ZUS amounting to over PLN 1100, it is basically a small amount.
A very interesting phenomenon is the issue of accounting for the spouse’s income by the company. Well, the remuneration paid by the spouse of the entrepreneur to a family member does not constitute business costs. What does it mean? This remuneration does not reduce the tax base. It cannot be treated as a tax deductible cost. This is an expense with no tax benefits. However, it should be remembered that the entrepreneur is obliged to settle the family member’s accounts with the tax office. Therefore, he has to calculate the amount of the advance tax and this advance payment for his spouse. However, the legislator made it possible to settle the contributions to the Social Insurance Institution, which the entrepreneur pays. You can enter them as tax deductible expenses, but keep in mind that your employed spouse will not be able to settle these contributions in your tax return. In other words, contributions to ZUS for an employed spouse may only be deducted by one person, an entrepreneur or an employee.
When deciding to hire an employee, it is worth considering which solution will be more advantageous – a foreign employee, whose contributions are deducted according to the amount of his earnings, and all costs incurred constitute the basis for deductions and thus lowering the tax base, or a spouse, which generates more costs, but only a part of them can be deducted from the obtained income. However, it should be considered not only in terms of finances. There is also a question of trust and mutual support at work and in business, and this is much more important than the cost and expenses.