| The White House is not yet ready to discuss the president's tax initiatives The Cabinet of Ministers will today consider draft changes in the tax sphere. True, this is not the main issue on the agenda of the meeting: it is the sixth item after the discussion of the transport strategy and the report of the head of the Ministry of Health and Social Development, Mikhail Zurabov, on the progress of implementing the law on the monetization of benefits and a number of others. Deputy Minister of Finance Sergei Shatalov will speak on the issue of taxes. As the Vremya Novostey newspaper learned, despite the Ministry of Finance’s assurances about the speedy implementation of presidential initiatives, Mr. Shatalov’s report will not respond to Vladimir Putin’s wishes regarding the abolition of the inheritance tax and the reduction of “tax terrorism” as part of audits over past years. The President, as he himself described the attitude of his subordinates to his assignments, once again received “neither answer nor greeting.”
Some government experts believe that it will be very difficult for the Ministry of Finance to fulfill the presidential wishes. And not only because of deep fiscal convictions, but also because of some anti-corruption considerations. After all, if you follow the formal logic, then leniency towards the tax “sins” of past years, on the one hand, makes life easier for the taxpayer, and on the other hand, it is fraught with the conclusion of all sorts of informal agreements between law enforcement officers and those under their jurisdiction. In general, corruption. And in order to avoid the negative consequences of such a step, it is necessary to describe the mechanism of “lenience” down to the smallest detail. And this, at a minimum, will take time for internal government discussions, even if we do not take into account the not too great desire of the tax authorities and the Ministry of Finance to indulge in tax democracy.
However, a draft of some tax amendments to the first part of the Tax Code will still be proposed to the Cabinet of Ministers tomorrow. Its goal, as defined by the Ministry of Finance, is “to improve tax control, streamline audits, improve conditions for taxpayers to independently and conscientiously fulfill their obligations, and expand legal guarantees of compliance with their rights.”
As stated in the explanatory note of the Ministry of Finance, the draft “attempts to specify the documents confirming the right of payers to VAT refund.” True, it is noted that it is impossible to request an “exhaustive list” of documents, for example, when it comes to taxes related to the use of natural resources, and it is simply wrong to confirm each tax deduction taking into account the specifics. That is, the right to compensation is declared, but cannot be executed because it entails “negative tax consequences.”
As for the frequency of tax audits, the authors of the bill propose that they should be carried out no more than twice during one calendar year. The deadline for conducting an on-site inspection is 2 months. But! In each specific case, it can be extended, according to the Ministry of Finance. This decision depends on the superior manager. At the local level, the extension period is set at 2 months. When permission is given by the deputy head of the Federal Tax Service, it takes up to 4-6 months. In general, if you do the math, tax officials can “live” at an object that particularly interests them for almost the entire calendar year: twice for 2 months plus six months...
Changes are also expected to be made to the procedure for granting deferrals (installment plans) for the payment of taxes and fees. The Ministry of Finance is ready to increase the period for providing deferments from 6 months to a year. At the same time, the institution of “tax credit” is abolished. The decision to defer (installment plan) for 3 years is proposed to be subject to approval by the government. The principles for writing off bad debts for taxes and fees are clarified.
Among the innovations regarding liability for tax offenses, there are some very heartfelt words. The Ministry of Finance believes that “the difficult financial situation of an individual held accountable is determined as an additional circumstance mitigating his guilt for a tax offense.”
The Ministry of Justice sent a not very favorable conclusion on the project of the Ministry of Finance. Lawyers, in particular, noted that the document was introduced in violation of the regulations - namely, without coordination with the interested ministries and departments. Vera Kuznetsova |
|
