Buying a car out of a lease in 2026: privately or through the company, and when you can sell tax-free

The end of a lease is a single decision worth several thousand złoty. We explain the private and company buy-out, VAT, the six-year rule on selling, and which announced changes never actually came into force.

The end of a lease is the moment when a single decision can easily cost you several thousand złoty. Buy the car through the company or privately? Sell straight away or wait? In 2026 there is one more thread: announced changes that never came into force — and some business owners are planning the buy-out as though they had.

What changed in 2026, and what did not

Start with the news that got lost in the noise. The draft tightening the treatment of ex-lease cars — including extending the period after which a gifted car can be sold tax-free — did not come into force on 1 January 2026. The existing rules still govern the buy-out.

The change that did take effect concerns something else: the cost caps during the term of the agreement, that is 100 000, 150 000 or 225 000 zł depending on CO2 emissions. The buy-out itself and any later sale are settled under the old rules.

Private or company buy-out

This is the first fork in the road, and there is no single right answer — it all depends on what you plan to do with the car next.

A company buy-out means the car enters the company's assets. You settle the buy-out invoice as a cost — in one go or through depreciation, depending on the value — and deduct VAT on the general rules, at 50% or 100%. A later sale is then business income and is subject to VAT.

A private buy-out means the car does not enter the company — you buy it as a private individual. You cannot treat the invoice as a cost or deduct VAT. In exchange the vehicle is immediately in your private assets, and that changes the rules for selling it later.

The six-year rule on selling

This is where the most common and most expensive misunderstanding sits. Many people remember the rule of "six months and sell tax-free". That applies only to cars bought out by the end of 2021.

For later buy-outs the six-year rule applies: selling a car bought out of a lease into private assets counts as business income if it happens within 6 years, counted from the first day of the month following the month of the buy-out. Only after that period is the sale free of income tax.

A private buy-out is therefore not a route to a quick, untaxed sale. It is a way of taking the car out of the company — with a six-year clock that only starts running at that moment.

Gifting the car — how it really works

A popular variant involves gifting the car to a close family member, who can then sell it free of income tax after 6 months, counted from the end of the month of the gift. In the zero tax group the gift itself — once reported within the statutory deadline — is exempt from inheritance and gift tax.

This route still works in 2026, because the announced restrictions never came into force. Two things are worth remembering, though: the gift must be genuine, and the tax authorities take a critical view of structures created purely for a tax effect. If the car was previously bought out through the company and settled as a cost, moving it into private assets has VAT consequences.

How to decide

• The car stays in the company and will keep being used — buy it out through the company; costs and VAT work in your favour.
• The car is meant to be yours for years — a private buy-out; the six-year clock will run out anyway before you sell it.
• The car is to be sold quickly — calculate the tax before deciding, because with a company buy-out the sale is business income and subject to VAT.

It is also worth remembering that you set the buy-out price when you sign the lease agreement, not at the end of it. It affects both the size of the instalments and the arithmetic of any eventual sale — which is why it is best planned together with the end-of-agreement scenario from the outset.

At Nalan Trade we set the buy-out value together with the client when the offer is chosen, and work through the end-of-agreement scenarios — so that a decision made four years earlier does not turn out to be expensive at the finish.

Legal position: July 2026. This article is informational and does not constitute tax advice — it is worth confirming your individual position with an accountant.