the government is discussing the increase in tax fees with the rich. As one of the options considered the introduction of a progressive scale of tax on income of individuals: income tax for those whose incomes are more than 2-3 million rubles a year, can lift up to 15%
implications of the coronavirus and the isolation, and the economy has forced officials to revisit high taxation of wealthy Russians. This told Forbes two sources familiar with the discussion of this issue — the Federal official and a source in the state Duma. According to one of them, the discussion returned due growth “of a request for social justice.”
two More people — an expert who participated in the discussions, a source close to the government said that the issue of different approaches to the taxation of people with different incomes was discussed in the winter. The expert participating in the discussions, says that the options figured out last winter in anticipation of the President’s address, it was held in January 2020. “There are more than 10 different variants, the finished script is the administration of the President and the government, if necessary, it can be easy to get and apply,” he explains Forbes.
What is the threshold of annual income may be subject to higher taxes — is an open question. Among the possible options — annual income of 2-3 million rubles, said a source in the state Duma and the expert. Designed for the administration of the President and government scenarios, there is also the option of non-taxable income tax income in the amount of subsistence minimum or even more, the expert adds.
Discussion resumed on the backdrop of a sharp growth in the budget deficit. The Minister of economic development Maxim Reshetnikov at the end of April said that the budget deficit this year could reach 5-6%, the same assessment was given in may and the Central Bank. Finance Minister Anton Siluanov in early may said that the deficit could be around 4% of GDP. According to Siluanov, the budget revenues for the year will be about 4 trillion rubles less than planned. The budget expenditures will increase by about 1 trillion rubles.
“It’s not about increasing revenues, but rather about social justice to those who have very low income or temporarily low income, had less commitment to the state in the form of personal income tax, and those who have higher incomes, were slightly larger obligations. It would, perhaps, socially fair,” Forbes says the source familiar with the discussions.
However the final decision yet, said two sources Forbes. In particular, this initiative speaks against the Ministry of Finance, the official said. According to him, the Ministry’s position is that if the tax increase is small, and additional revenues from the change��tion rate will be small, but the administration complex.
Forbes sent a request to the Ministry of Finance and the official representative of the Prime Minister awaiting a response.
Authorities are discussing the introduction of a progressive tax rate is not the first year. In November 2016 Deputy Prime Minister Olga Golodets said that the government is considering the introduction of a progressive scale for personal income tax. Then RBC in January 2018, wrote that the government is discussing increasing the income tax to 15%, and it was about increasing taxes for citizens with incomes from 7 to 10 million rubles per year. At the end of 2019, “Vedomosti” wrote that the authorities may exempt from taxation incomes in the subsistence level.
Lyudmila Petukhova, Yana Milyukova, Elena Tofanyuk
