How and when an on-site tax audit can be extended. "salary" commissions of the Federal Tax Service: who will be invited. Checks of the Federal Tax Service on wages

It is no secret that employees of Russian tax inspectorates belong to the category of civil servants. The main task of this body is to control the flow of finances into the country’s budget. Tax officials have the right to carry out audits in organizations and enterprises, identify violations and punish those who try to hide income and evade paying taxes. All these funds subsequently enter the state treasury, and are then distributed by the relevant services on a general basis. The mission of the tax service is quite responsible. Only professionals: accountants and auditors can cope with this task.

Work in tax office Few people strive, since the wages of workers in this structure are low. Some people wonder what the salary of tax workers is and whether it is expected to increase this year.

It is worth noting that the current situation for the tax service is far from enviable. Firstly, there is a shortage and turnover of personnel, which is not only not the most in the best possible way affects the quality of work performed, but also undermines the reputation of individual organizations.

Secondly, according to statistics, salaries for tax service employees have not been increased for quite a long time, starting in 2006.

Questions about increasing salaries in this area began to be raised. There have been reports in media sources regarding current tariffs and the possibility of maintaining permanent jobs for tax workers by increasing their salaries. According to media reports, the salaries of tax service employees will be identical in size to salaries.

The average wage (per month worked) will be 42 thousand rubles. In 2019, it was planned to increase the salaries of tax officials by 10%. This increase will cover the inflation rate, which remains at 5.5%.

Inflation, according to data provided by financial analysts, will be within 12%.

The Ministry of Finance sent a bill to the State Duma to increase salaries of Federal Tax Service employees by 30% compared to current tariffs.

About the wages of tax officials

If we talk about sizes wages tax workers, then attention should be paid to the difference in salaries in the federal tax service and in regional offices. Rosstat, in particular, provides the following information about accrued amounts:

• employees of the federal service - 70 thousand rubles;
• employees of regional divisions – 30 thousand rubles.

The difference in numbers is quite noticeable. Thus, the wages of tax workers in the federal service are almost twice as high as those who work in administrative departments of Russia. It is worth noting that the income of individual employees may differ significantly from the average.

The difference in the salaries of employees living in different areas can be not only two times, but also 4 and 6 times.

If we take the structure of the Ministry of Emergency Situations and the police service as a comparative example, then, at first glance, their salaries are only slightly higher than those of tax officials. However, police officers and firefighters, thanks to the availability of numerous benefits, have a much higher standard of living. Employees of the Russian tax service are deprived of even these privileges.

Thus, we can conclude that the personnel crisis for tax officials in Russia is associated with the lack of benefits and the minimization of wages. This state of affairs forces tax officials to look for higher-paying jobs. As for young people, they come to the tax service mainly to gain experience, after which they quit due to the reasons described above. Apart from experience, there is no incentive for young specialists in this structure.

The fact is that they are offered a fixed salary. The maximum is 10–11 thousand rubles. It would seem quite good for young specialists learning a profession. However, the trouble is that there is no prospect of increased pay for them. Experienced tax specialists, in turn, refuse to perform additional duties without payment and prefer to look for vacancies in other departments. Thus, the level of training of young specialists in the workplace is also reduced.

Personnel turnover in tax authorities is quite high: this figure is approximately 35 thousand people per year. In 2010, a bill was passed according to which the monthly pay of civil servants should increase every year for 5 years. The law was suspended in 2014: the reason for this was the crisis in the country caused by the fall in oil prices. Today, tax officials do not have much income. Whether there is hope in this regard for 2019, it is advisable to consider in more detail.

Should we expect a salary increase?

Will the wages of tax service employees increase in 2019? Questions regarding upward changes in salaries were raised by the Ministry of Finance and submitted to the State Duma for consideration. The opinion of experts is that their decision will stop staff turnover and discourage employees from changing jobs and looking for them in other structures.

Today, it is planned to gradually increase salaries for employees of this department. The project provides for wage growth over three years, starting in 2017. According to the plan, by 2019 wages will increase by approximately 30% compared to current tariffs. Despite the fact that the percentage is small, these will already be effective measures. The Ministry of Finance proposed to increase only the incentive share of the salary, and employees of the Ministry of Labor proposed to increase the monthly rate.

According to officials, it is precisely this approach that will allow the tax service to return to its former reputation, as a result of which its employees will no longer have the desire to change their place of work.

It is not yet known exactly what percentage of the salary increase will be put into effect. Both bills are currently being considered in the State Duma, after which their adoption is expected. The hope that tax revenues will increase should be justified. Previous projects to increase wages and indexation for civil servants were suspended, despite the fact that prices for many goods were repeatedly increased. It goes without saying that this did not lead to an increase in tax revenues.

The order to return indexation for civil servants has already been issued and will soon come into force. Revenues should be indexed taking into account the inflation rate, which is expected to be within 4–5%. It is worth noting that the tax authorities themselves do not agree with such measures. In their opinion, more currency depreciation is expected. In addition, the wages of tax workers have not been indexed for approximately two years, despite the economic changes described above. However, increases interest rate not expected.

According to officials, the inflation threshold will not exceed 6%. Salaries for the previous two years were not recalculated for the reason that there was not enough budget funds. Time will tell what awaits tax workers in 2019.

Salaries for tax service employees have not been increased for more than seven years, despite inflation, price changes and other economic factors that have occurred in the country. The Russian government promises to increase the salaries of all public sector employees by 10%, where tax workers are no exception. Another scheme is also expected to increase salaries for working personnel of tax authorities in 2019, which was applied during the reform of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

When a significant part of the employees were laid off, and the remaining employees received additional salaries and were assigned additional responsibilities. Despite the unusual nature of such measures, officials' statements are optimistic.

Thus, we can note the ambiguity and inconsistency of the latest news regarding changes in the income of tax officials. At the moment, the Duma is considering several projects, including the issue of indexing wages by 3% starting in 2006. In addition, all tax services in 2019 can be transferred to hourly payment. At the same time, the accrual of bonuses and various types of additional payments, for example, for intensive work and overtime, will not be excluded at all.

The fact is that staff reductions in the tax department are expected to be partial and on a much smaller scale than in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The situation is due to the different specifics of work in the tax services. According to analysts, a total reorganization will lead to a decrease in the quality of work performed and a loss of control over the filling of budgets.

You need to be especially careful when paying insurance premiums in 2017, since tax authorities now control these contributions. In this regard, the Federal Tax Service has released a special table of indicators that indicate the fulfillment by the company/individual entrepreneur of its obligations to calculate and pay contributions. We present it in our material and tell you how it works and in general how it will help the payers themselves.

Why use

The indicators for the implementation of payment discipline on contributions to funds identified in 2017 by the Federal Tax Service of Russia are addressed not only to its territorial bodies. They partly allow each payer to independently verify the payment of insurance premiums. And this, in turn, will prevent:

1. Summons to the commission on legalization of the base for contributions + personal income tax.
2. Purpose on-site inspection organization/entrepreneur.
3. Accrual of penalties and fines for non-fulfillment or inadequate fulfillment of obligations on insurance premiums.

Data sources

In letter dated July 25, 2017 No. ED-4-15/14490, the Federal Tax Service of Russia, among other things, provided a list of indicators that allow both tax authorities and payers themselves to analyze the payment of insurance premiums in 2017 and beyond. This, in turn, makes it possible to identify potential and real risks.

Tax authorities took 4 main sources as the basis for this analysis:

1. Calculation of insurance premiums (approved by order of the Federal Tax Service dated October 10, 2016 No. ММВ-7-11/551).
2. Information from the budget settlement card (CRSB).
3. Calculation according to form 6-NDFL.
4. Information on the average number of personnel for the year (approved by order of the Federal Tax Service dated March 29, 2007 No. MM-3-25/174).

Indicators for analysis

The table below shows what indicators should lead you to think about compliance with tax law requirements for the payment of insurance premiums. In 2017, their composition is as follows:

Indicators for calculating and paying contributions
№	Source	Indicator
1	Calculation of insurance premiums (hereinafter referred to as DAM)	The amount of contributions to compulsory health insurance at the basic tariff payable
2	RSV	The amount of contributions to compulsory health insurance at a reduced rate payable
3	Card of settlements with the budget (hereinafter – KRSB)	The amount of contributions to compulsory pension insurance listed
4	RSV	The amount of contributions to compulsory health insurance at additional tariffs payable
5	KRSB	The amount of contributions to compulsory health insurance at additional tariffs listed
6	RSV	Amount of additional social security contributions payable
7	KRSB	The amount of contributions for additional social security transferred
8	RSV	The amount of compulsory medical insurance contributions at the basic tariff payable
9	RSV	Amount of compulsory medical insurance contributions payable at a reduced rate
10	KRSB	The amount of contributions for compulsory medical insurance transferred
11	RSV	The amount of contributions for illness and maternity at the basic rate payable
12	RSV	The amount of contributions for illness and maternity at a reduced rate payable
13	KRSB	The amount of contributions for illness and maternity listed
14	RSV	Amount of payments not subject to insurance premiums
15	DAM and KRSB	Debt in payment of contributions. Calculate using this formula: (Clause 1 of this table + clause 3 + clause 5) - (clause 2 + clause 4 + clause 6)
16	RSV	Basis for calculating contributions
17	RSV
18	Calculation according to form 6-NDFL	The total amount of payments calculated by the payer of contributions to employees
19	KRSB and DAM	The total amount of payments calculated to employees, not included in the DAM for contribution purposes. Determined by the formula: Item 10 – item 11 of this table
20	RSV	Number of employees
21	6-NDFL	Number of employees for the reporting (calculation) period
22	Information on the average number of personnel	Number of employees per year

The Federal Tax Service has changed the rules of tax audits - briefly about the innovations

On January 1, 2017, a number of changes to the Tax Code of the Russian Federation came into force, based on the requirements of laws adopted last year, 2016. Among them are:

• Law “On the Introduction...” of 07/03/2016 No. 243-FZ, the purpose of which is to assign the Federal Tax Service the powers to collect insurance premiums and extend the norms of tax legislation on inspections to organizations and citizens who are payers of funds sent to the Pension Fund, the Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund and the Social Insurance Fund;
• Law “On the Introduction...” of November 30, 2016 No. 401-FZ, which provides the opportunity for interested parties to make tax payments instead of the taxpayer, determines the degree of responsibility of the taxpayer’s guarantors, establishes the procedure for calculating penalties and the specifics of conducting tax audits.

Among the innovations of 2017, it should also be noted the law “On the Introduction...” of July 18, 2017 No. 163-FZ, the norms of which, according to Art. 2 of this law apply to inspections carried out from August 19, 2017. The purpose of this law is to supplement the Tax Code of the Russian Federation with a new article. 54.1, which determines the limits of a taxpayer’s ability to take advantage of unjustified savings through tax payments.

Each of the listed laws requires a detailed analysis, and for the convenience of readers we will refer to the norms of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation in the new edition, taking into account the changes of 2017.

Insurance premiums - new in checking statements

Clause 1 Art. 2 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation determines that the norms of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, from January 1, 2017, apply in full to the payment of insurance premiums. Based on clause 3 of Art. 8 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, the norms of tax legislation are widespread:

• for payments for pension insurance to the Pension Fund;
• payments for health insurance to the Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund;
• payments to the Social Insurance Fund directed to social insurance and in connection with the birth of children.

At the same time, based on the requirements of paragraph 3 of Art. 2 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, the norms of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation still do not apply to insurance against injuries at work and insurance of unemployed citizens.

According to Art. 419 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, payers of contributions are:

• organizations and individual entrepreneurs who pay remuneration in their activities individuals;
• citizens (notaries, lawyers, appraisers, etc.), regardless of whether they pay remuneration to other individuals or not.

The responsibilities of the listed entities in accordance with Art. 23 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation includes:

• payment of fees;
• submission of calculation of contributions;
• submission of documents and information to verify the validity of the accruals made;
• storage for 6 years of documents required for payment of contributions.

Reporting on insurance premiums in accordance with Art. 80 and 423 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation is sent quarterly in the form of a calculation, which indicates generalized data on all insured persons, the amounts accrued to them and the income they received, the size of the base subject to contributions, calculated contributions, etc. The procedure for filling out and the reporting form are approved by order of the Federal Tax Service RF “On approval...” dated 10.10.2016 No. ММВ-7-11/551.

Tax audits on contributions in 2017

The transfer of functions for administration and control over payments for insurance premiums to the Federal Tax Service assumes that in 2017 all reporting on contributions will be submitted to the tax office. Accordingly, it is automatically subject to the rules on conducting desk audit, carried out in accordance with Art. 88 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. At the same time, all reporting issues that arose before the transfer of control functions to the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation still remain under the responsibility of the relevant funds, since the transfer of reporting documentation to the bodies of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation is not expected.

When conducting an audit in practice, tax authorities will be able to rely only on documents and information they received from the taxpayer, starting from the 1st quarter of 2017, since Art. 4 of Law 243-FZ does not grant the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation the right to conduct control measures and accrue additional payments on contributions until January 1, 2017.

A similar procedure applies to on-site inspections. That is, as part of an on-site inspection conducted in accordance with Art. 89 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, only documentation on contributions only for 2017 and subsequent periods can be checked.

Practitioners should also pay attention to the letter of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation dated November 16, 2016 No. 03-04-12/67082, which determines that all by-laws, as well as clarifications of the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation on the calculation of contributions, issued before 2017, remain valid, since The procedure for calculating and paying contributions does not change. At the same time, the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation has the right to clarify all emerging questions regarding contributions in 2017.

Don't know your rights?

Arrears on contributions

Clause 2 of Art. 4 of Law 243-FZ determines that the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation has the right to collect unpaid contributions, accumulated penalties and fines that accrued before January 1, 2017.

Collections are carried out in the manner and within the time limits specified in Art. 46-48 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. To perform this function, clause 2 of Art. 4 of Law 243-FZ obliges the relevant funds to transfer information about the accumulated debt on contributions to the tax authorities.

Simultaneously with the right to collect arrears, the tax authorities are given the rights to return overpayments on contributions for periods before 2017 in accordance with Art. 78 and 79 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. In addition, debts incurred before 2017 are subject to the regime provided for in Art. 64 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation regarding the provision of deferments or installment plans for such payments.

It is also worth remembering that if the possibility of collecting insurance premiums, arrears, penalties and fines for periods before 2017 is lost due to improper transfer of information about them to the tax authorities or for other reasons, in accordance with clause 3 of Art. 4 of Law 243-FZ, such debt is considered bad and must be written off.

Innovations of Law 401-FZ

New clause 8.6 of Art. 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation expands the powers of tax authorities within the framework of conducting audits of taxpayers’ reports. From January 1, 2017, during a desk audit, in addition to documents relating to the calculation and payment of insurance premiums, tax authorities also have the right to require written confirmation of benefits or other grounds for exemption of amounts paid to individuals from taxation of insurance premiums or the application of preferential (reduced) tariffs in relation to them rates.

Also, Law 401-FZ establishes a number of innovations regarding the consequences of tax audits:

1. According to paragraph 1 of Art. 45 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, the obligation to pay taxes or other payments, including penalties and fines, can be fulfilled for the taxpayer by another person. At the same time, such a person does not have the right to demand a refund of overpaid amounts of tax or other payment.
2. According to paragraph 3 of Art. 74 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, if there is a guarantee for the payment of taxes, the taxpayer and the guarantor bear joint liability. If the taxpayer fails to fulfill his obligations, arrears and tax sanctions may be collected from the guarantor out of court in accordance with the requirements of Art. 46-48 Tax Code of the Russian Federation.
3. Clause 4 of Art. 75 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation introduces a new procedure for calculating penalties for each day of delay in tax payment. From January 1, 2017, a penalty is charged in the amount of 1/300 of the refinancing rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation for each day of delay. For organizations, the fine is doubled if the delay is more than 30 days.

Innovations of Law 163-FZ

The purpose of adding a new art. 54.1 in the Tax Code of the Russian Federation is the implementation of the previously established judicial practice to distinguish between real and fictitious transactions, which tax specialists face when conducting audits. The new article is based on the resolution of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation “On Assessment...” dated October 12, 2006 No. 53. It sets out the basic principles for determining the degree of good faith of a taxpayer when reducing the tax base, obtaining tax deduction or another tax benefit, to which tax authorities pay close attention.

Clause 1 Art. 54.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation establishes a direct ban on obtaining tax benefits by distorting reporting, information about the facts of economic activity or property that is subject to taxation.

However, in practice, there are often situations when entrepreneurs enter into legally correctly executed transactions that have no economic meaning and are aimed only at reducing the tax base.

It is precisely to combat such phenomena that the norms of paragraph 2 of Art. 54.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, which define 2 mandatory criteria for recognizing a transaction as valid for tax purposes:

• the presence of a business interest, that is, the transaction pursues not only the goal of reducing tax payments;
• obligations under the transaction are fulfilled by the other party.

Checks for suspicious transactions

According to paragraph 5 of Art. 82 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, verification of a transaction on grounds of economic feasibility is carried out during tax control, that is, during desk or on-site inspections in accordance with Art. 88 and 89 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

At the same time, proving the fact that the transaction does not make economic sense (fictitious) is the responsibility of tax specialists. Provisions of paragraph 3 of Art. 54.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation point to 3 circumstances that do not confirm the taxpayer’s guilt in committing a fictitious transaction:

• the transaction documents on the part of the counterparty were signed by an unidentified person or entity that does not have such authority;
• violation of tax laws by the counterparty;
• the possibility of obtaining a similar economic result in a different way.

In turn, clause 4 of Art. 54.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation determines that similar criteria for determining the fictitiousness of transactions can be used by payers of not only taxes, but also fees, as well as insurance premiums.

To summarize, we note that those adopted or entered into force in 2017 regulations establish a significant number of innovations that will affect almost all taxpayers both when calculating tax and other payments, and when conducting audits and implementing their results.

From an entrepreneur tax audit often causes concern. However, any other too, but all businessmen pay close attention to the tax office, which is understandable. As usual, they are divided into planned and unscheduled

For what reason can a scheduled tax audit be carried out?

The procedure for conducting scheduled audits is regulated by Order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia No. MM-3-06/333 dated May 30, 2007, which approved a unified concept for the planning system for on-site tax audits. As it says, “to improve taxpayer literacy, strengthen discipline, and improve the work of tax authorities.” The main principles of the Concept are:

1. The audit planning system is uniform for tax authorities.

2. It must be clear and accessible to taxpayers. To independently assess the risks of being included in the tax audit plan, the taxpayer can familiarize himself with the publicly available criteria that are used by tax authorities to select companies when conducting on-site tax audits. There are 12 of them in total.

3. Most favored nation treatment for conscientious payers.

4. If signs of a possible violation of the legislation on taxes and fees are detected, the response is timely.

5. Punishment of unscrupulous taxpayers, if violations of the legislation on taxes and fees are found, is inevitable.

6. The selection of objects that were included in the tax inspection plan (for 2017 and beyond) is justified.

How to find out about a scheduled tax audit?

In what case is a taxpayer most likely to be included in the Federal Tax Service's on-site inspection plan for 2017? This is likely provided that the company meets the risk criteria. If you have concerns that your company could be included in the schedule of tax audits for 2017, read the criteria that are given in Appendix No. 2 to the order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia No. MM-3-06/333 dated May 30, 2007, carefully.

There is a high probability of being included in the tax inspection plan for 2017 if:

• Over several tax periods, the organization reports losses;
• The company reflects in tax reporting large amounts of tax deductions;
• A company may be included in the tax audit schedule if the value average salary per month of the company's employees is below the average level (salaries are compared with salaries for this economic type in the region);
• The faster growth rate of expenses than the growth rate of income from the sale of goods (works, services);
• Taxpayers who have repeatedly been close to the indicators that give them the right to apply the special regime have a great chance to be included in the plan for on-site tax audits for 2017;
• The company enters into contracts with intermediaries and resellers without having justified reasons for this;
• On-site tax audits in 2017 may affect your company if you have not provided the inspection with the required documents or explanations of any inconsistencies in the activities of your company. Perhaps the tax office has information that some documents in your company were destroyed;
• The reason why an on-site inspection by the Federal Tax Service may be carried out in your company in 2017 may be repeated “migration” between tax inspectorates - that is, a regular change of location.

Tax audits in 2017, list of organizations

Some taxpayers are confident that information about on-site tax audits is freely available and published on the Internet. To some extent, the already familiar register of inspections of the Prosecutor General's Office on control measures of other departments gives them the right to think so. The tax inspection schedule for 2017 cannot be found in the unified register of inspections published on the official website of the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation.

This register does not concern tax officials. Yes, and it is impossible to enter the query “tax audits in 2017, list of organizations” into a search engine and reliably check whether your company should prepare for an audit by the tax inspectorate. There is no list of tax inspections for 2017.

Both unscheduled and scheduled tax audits for 2017 are carried out without prior familiarization with them to the general public.

Only certain enterprises can learn about the schedule of tax audits. Before December 31, a list of scheduled tax audits for 2017 was published on the official website of the Federal Tax Service. But it does not apply to all companies, but only to legal entities engaged in state-regulated activities.

Tax audits are necessary to control the payment of mandatory tax amounts entrepreneurs, identifying and eliminating violations. The tax service monitors the correctness of calculations and timely payment.

The implementation of tax audits is simplified. Non-standard control methods are being introduced.

Changes in tax policy in 2019

In plans tax policy for 2019, increase tax revenues to the budget without allowing an increase tax burden. There are more tools for obtaining arguments for the need for inspections.

Administration and reporting on contributions have changed significantly. The rules for calculating some taxes have also undergone changes.

Administration of insurance payments

Tax authorities control the payment of insurance contributions to the Social Insurance Fund, Pension Fund, and Federal Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund.

The calculation is provided monthly, no later than the 30th day of the current month (for the previous month). Payment is due next month before the 15th.

From January 1, 2017, payers whose total income for 9 months did not exceed 90 million rubles. If in a year it does not exceed 120, work in the simplified tax system will continue. The maximum residual value of funds under the conditions of transition to the simplified tax system should not exceed 150 million rubles.

At zero tax rate

Used for main gas pipelines and gas production. This also includes the development of mineral resources, subsoil, helium production, facilities capital construction. The full list of objects has been approved by the Government of the Russian Federation.

In incentive payments

One-time incentive payments for sports projects are not subject to taxes, namely, for prizes in the Olympic, Deaflympic, and Paralympic games to participants and their coaches (specialists involved in preparation).

What do these changes mean for taxpayers?

Pros for taxpayers:

1. Reducing the deadline for filing objections based on the results of examinations and other events. Its length has been reduced to 10 working days from the completion of the controversial event.
2. Eligibility of the requirement by the inspectorate additional information on tax benefits. In addition to supporting documents, the provision of explanations on problems of property and transactions in the field of benefits may be initiated. This information must be provided within 5 days. All explanations regarding VAT are accepted only in electronic form. Paper versions of declarations are unacceptable. Penalties are imposed for failure to provide an electronic version of a document.
3. More frequent verification of the reliability of the Unified State Register of Legal Entities. Moreover, all complaints and claims (for example, from a competitor) are considered. Based on received signals, additional checks are initiated and carried out within a month. Any suspicion that a company or its legal address is fictitious raises suspicion. For example, several legal entities are registered at one address. During the verification of doubtful information, the tax control has the right to suspend the registration of the company. But this should last no more than a month. If false information is confirmed, the business reputation of the manager and the entire company is damaged.

What will be checked more often in 2019

1. Registration, registration. Operating a company without registration is classified as “illegal business” (faces up to 5 years in prison).
2. Legality of income and full payment of taxes on it. Salaries and other income of employees are taken into account. The presence of “gray” salaries is revealed, although these violations are difficult to prove. When calculating additional contributions, only specifically identified amounts are taken into account.
3. Creation of “left” companies. If you illegally create a legal entity and use documents for this purpose, there is a risk of imprisonment for up to 5 years, and for cashing out funds through shell companies - up to 7 years.
4. Artificially inflating costs and purchasing prices. In 2019, there is an increase in tax penalties for the use of non-market prices.

Types of checks

Inspections are represented by desk and field inspections, scheduled and unscheduled.

Cameral

Conducted at the tax authority using tax return data. It is legal to check documentation if (Article 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation):

• the declaration states tax for budget reimbursement;
• the organization has submitted an application for a tax reduction, an increase in the amount of losses 2 years after the first declaration;
• a number of inconsistencies or contradictions have been discovered;
• claimed use of tax benefits.

If violations are detected based on the results of a desk inspection, an on-site inspection may be initiated.

Visiting

To avoid stressful situations, you must always be prepared for such meetings. Information may come from the counterparty, tax inspector. The database is closed to public access.

On-site inspections involve a thorough examination financial statements with the possibility of subsequent sanctions (from fines to arrest). There is no way to know about an upcoming visit in advance. But for 2019, tax authorities are required to carry out an on-site audit based on the results of a desk audit if there are any shortcomings.

Stages of implementation:

1. Documentation analysis. It is carried out on the territory of the organization (enterprise) with preliminary notification and presentation of an official ID. Procedures: requesting documentation, obtaining the necessary explanations, inspecting the territories, seizing the necessary financial documents. The duration of the check should not be more than 2 months. An extension of up to 4 months is eligible in the following cases: the object is one of the largest taxpayers, force majeure circumstances.
2. Summing up the results with a report. The report compiles the tax base, analyzes identified violations, and makes recommendations for correcting them. If necessary, additional taxes are assessed and sanctions are imposed.

What do tax authorities want to find first? If previously the priority of the search was unreasonable expenses for additional accrual of profit and VAT, now the search for undeclared revenue has been added. Even complaints from employees dismissed from the organization are considered. The courts often side with the tax authorities.

Suspension and extension

An audit of taxpayers (on-site or desk) may be suspended in the following cases:

• implementation of counter verification;
• removal of necessary documents;
• carrying out the examination.

An extension can be implemented for many reasons:

• if the taxpayer is one of the largest;
• according to available information from various sources about tax violations;
• in the event of a force majeure emergency (fire, flood, etc.);
• if available separate divisions at the company;
• failure to provide requested documents on time;
• due to other circumstances.

The duration of a standard on-site inspection is two months (can be increased to 4-6).

Scheduled and unscheduled tax audits

Scheduled inspections are carried out mainly once every three years. The company is notified about them no later than three days in advance. But there are also unplanned ones. They can be carried out by Rospotrebnadzor in places of public catering and sale of medicines.

The table shows situations, which may cause the initiation of unscheduled tax control in 2019.

What is a signal to check (reasons for control)	What violations are expected?
Reducing the tax burden relative to the industry average (by 10% and below)	There is a suspicion of tax savings
Lack of active communication during the conclusion of the contract, violation of the rules for its execution, lack of reliable information about the location of the premises	Interaction with counterparties that cause suspicion (mistrust)
Exceeding the rate of increase in expenses over income	Assumption of underestimation of income, overestimation of expenses
Continued losses	Discrepancy between losses and increased sales revenue
Low employee salaries (10% below the industry average)	Suspicion of payments “in envelopes”
The dubiousness of contracts with existing intermediaries	Suspicion, for example, of manipulation with a product that simply could not be produced in a given volume at a given time. Inconsistency of the indicated material resources factual data, another.
Change of location	Special delay to correct identified violations
Inconsistency with the industry average level of profitability	Underreporting

Common measures taken by tax officials to find information and evidence are following:

1. Interviewing counterparties (employees under the contract) and all possible witnesses.
2. Fining witnesses for failure to appear.
3. Visiting witnesses, if they fail to appear when called, at home with drawing up a protocol and recording it on video.
4. Using the capabilities of the local inspector in searching for witnesses, interrogating him in order to obtain information.
5. Looking for an informal approach, alternative sources, the use of photos, audio, video recording facts, which since May 2016 are eligible as evidence in court.
6. Searching for information and evidence on the Internet, in the 2-NDFL database, on requests from banks, the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate, the Russian Federation.
7. Seizure of material evidence (hard drives, computers) in the presence of police.
8. Use of cell phone call printouts and social telephone surveys.

Advice on the best options for a director’s behavior in the event of an audit may be as follows::

In 2019, enterprises will be included in the tax audit plan in the following cases:

1. If the amount of violations is above 10 million rubles.
2. In case of gross violations or complete disregard of tax reporting requirements.
3. If the organization is included in the plan for 2019 based on the results of a desk audit.
4. If the balance is zero, the liquidation process is initiated.
5. When you become one of the largest taxpayers.
6. On behalf of law enforcement agencies.

Responsibility based on results

The inspectorate has the right to apply tax liability sanctions to entrepreneurs and legal entities. Some documents may be transferred to the police department to initiate a criminal case. The degree of punishment depends on the violations identified and the conditions that aggravate or mitigate them.

Removal of tax liability is expected in following cases: when the statute of limitations has expired, not guilty of a tax-related offense. Natural disasters, force majeure, and execution of written instructions from regulatory agencies are excluded.

The list of mitigating and aggravating conditions is reflected in Article 112 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Tax liability does not guarantee exemption from criminal or administrative charges.