On 18 November 2025, a specialist meeting focused on support instruments for the defence industry and dual-use products took place at the Gdańsk Science and Technology Park. The event was organised as part of the Global Entrepreneurship Week celebrations in Pomerania and gathered representatives of companies, business environment institutions and experts specialising in investment financing and state aid. The Polish-Ukrainian Investment and Trade Office (PUBIH), which has for many years supported entrepreneurs interested in economic cooperation with Ukraine, also actively participated in the meeting.
One of the main speakers of the event was Arkadiusz Kalwik, Director at KPMG and a tax advisor specialising in corporate income tax, VAT, withholding tax, R&D reliefs, IP Box and support within the Polish Investment Zone. In his presentation, he outlined the practical aspects of obtaining and settling public support for companies operating in the industrial, technological, construction and defence sectors.
The event programme included two in-depth presentations delivered by KPMG experts. The first presentation focused on the operation of the Polish Investment Zone, with special attention given to the most recent regulatory changes affecting support for defence-related activities. Participants learned about the conditions for obtaining support decisions, available levels of public aid and practical examples of investments implemented under the Polish Investment Zone. An important element of this part was also a presentation of the European Defence Fund, including the types of projects eligible for co-financing, the rules for cumulation of public aid and the possibilities of using EU funds in defence and dual-use projects.
The second part of the meeting was concerning alternative forms of support available in Poland. The experts presented nationwide and regional grant programmes, tax incentives and financial instruments enabling the implementation of investments in the defence sector and dual-use technologies. Particular attention was paid to the possibility of combining different sources of financing and to the importance of proper tax planning in high-value investment projects.
The group of speakers also included:
Wojciech Kotlowski – Partner at KPMG, expert in the field of international corporate taxation and transaction advisory;
Krzysztof Szwaja – Partner at KPMG, specialising in restructurings, operations in special economic zones and transfer pricing.
The meeting concluded with a Q&A session, during which participants were able to consult individual investment cases and obtain practical guidance regarding planned projects. The event had a distinctly practical character and constituted an important platform for the exchange of knowledge between business, tax advisors and institutions supporting the development of entrepreneurship in the defence and technology sectors.
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