Excise taxes, which in the budgetary practice of the Second Polish Republic were included in the category of indirect taxes, went through the complicated path of development within the two decades of interwar period. The first decade of independence brought about a territorial and material unification of these provisions, which were initially based on some solutions from the times of partitions, and later on the country’s own legal base. In mid–twenties, when the supporters of the monopoly taxation of certain means of consumption gained victory, there was a significant reduction of indirect taxes share in the income of the Treasury. During the Great Depression the situation has changed. The specifics of consumption tax guaranteed the stability of income it was generating, which resulted in real increase of tax put on excise products and the related increase of indirect taxes in the revenue. In the situation of deflation, such clearly visible fiscal policy of tax authorities resulted in severe and persistent decrease in sales of products subject to excise duty. Few reductions in tax rates occurred only in the mid– thirties. It has not changed, however, the overall trends in government policy towards indirect taxes focused on maximizing tax revenue. As a result, by the end of the interwar period, excise tax remained a stable and significant source of revenue from consumption tax.

Excise taxes, which in the budgetary practice of the Second Polish Republic were included in the category of indirect taxes, went through the complicated path of development within the two decades of interwar period. The first decade of independence brought about a territorial and material unification of these provisions, which were initially based on some solutions from the times of partitions, and later on the country’s own legal base. In mid–twenties, when the supporters of the monopoly taxation of certain means of consumption gained victory, there was a significant reduction of indirect taxes share in the income of the Treasury. During the Great Depression the situation has changed. The specifics of consumption tax guaranteed the stability of income it was generating, which resulted in real increase of tax put on excise products and the related increase of indirect taxes in the revenue. In the situation of deflation, such clearly visible fiscal policy of tax authorities resulted in severe and persistent decrease in sales of products subject to excise duty. Few reductions in tax rates occurred only in the mid– thirties. It has not changed, however, the overall trends in government policy towards indirect taxes focused on maximizing tax revenue. As a result, by the end of the interwar period, excise tax remained a stable and significant source of revenue from consumption tax.