Publication date: June 1, 2026

Practical application – the case of a museum as a bidder

Can an entity endowed with a statutory right of first refusal simultaneously influence the price it ultimately pays? In the historical monuments auction market, this question is no longer merely a theoretical dilemma. The active participation of registered museums in auctions, combined with the possibility of later exercising their right of first refusal, raises serious questions regarding auction transparency, the equality of participants, and the limits of permissible exercise of public law rights. This article examines this issue at the intersection of civil law, cultural heritage protection, and fair market principles.

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Publication date: March 16, 2026

The concept of import tax

According to Article 2, point 7 of the Polish Value Added Tax Act of 11 March 2004, the import of goods should be understood as “the import of goods from a third country into the territory of the European Union.” Generally speaking, import taxes are charged by the customs authority of a given country or region for shipments originating abroad. However, this does not mean that a fee must be paid for every international shipment. Many countries and organizations (primarily the European Union) apply de minimis threshold. This is the minimum order value, determined in a given country, below which import taxes are not charged. For example, in the European Union, pursuant to Article 23, paragraph 1 of Regulation 1186/2009 establishing a Community system of customs duty reliefs, shipments from third countries containing goods of negligible value are exempt from customs duties. According to Article 23, paragraph 2 of that regulation, these goods do not exceed a value of EUR 150 per shipment.

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