Self-employment in Russia: myth or new opportunities
2022-09-15 05:34

Self-employment in Russia: myth or new opportunities

Photo: Pxhere

Roskachestvo told who can't become self-employedSelf-employment in Russia is gaining more and more popularity, but many entrepreneurs fear that with this status they will only complicate their lives.

About who can register as self-employed, what is needed for this and what advantages it has - read the material "Made in Russia" and the experts of the Center for Financial Expertise of Roskachestvo.What is the self-employment tax?

Self–employment is a tax on professional income (NAP), a special tax regime for people who work for a result or, for example, rent out property.

The state gives the self-employed the opportunity to run their own business by applying a reduced tax rate, which will not rise until December 31, 2028.

The self-employed pay tax at two rates:

  • From receipts from individuals — 4%.
  • From receipts from sole proprietors and legal entities — 6%.

The NAP should be paid only for those months when there was income. If you have not earned anything, you do not need to pay tax.

For example, you knit socks and sell them. If you sell them to buyers online, then you will pay 4% of their price as tax from each pair sold. If you sell socks to a company that provides its employees with socks, then you will pay 6%. If for some reason you haven't sold anything for a whole month, then you won't have to pay anything.

The NPD is paid once a month. Within a month, the self-employed reports on income, and then the Federal Tax Service itself calculates the tax and sends a payment receipt no later than the 12th of the next month. It must be paid by the 25th of the same month.

In order to become self-employed, you need to download the application "My Tax" and register there or issue a status through the personal account of the self-employed on the website of the Federal Tax Service. Then the self-employed person must send a notification to the tax service about the rejection of other tax regimes.

Who can't become self-employed?The new tax status cannot be obtained by those who are engaged in:

  • resale of goods and property rights;
  • entrepreneurial activity with the hiring of employees;
  • trade in excisable goods and goods requiring labeling;
  • work on commission, surety, agency agreements;

delivery services, except in cases where there is a cash register and a receipt is issued to the customer for the delivered goods;

extraction, sale of minerals.

If you produce some products that are subject to mandatory labeling, you will have to register an individual entrepreneur and pay taxes already in accordance with a different tax regime.

Is it possible to combine self-employment with work?Yes, a self-employed person can work somewhere under a contract or officially in the state, deduct personal income tax from his salary and at the same time run a small business, and pay NAP from the income from it.

However, it is impossible to provide services and sell goods to your employer. If you quit, then by law your former employer can become your client only after two years.

How does the income accounting scheme work for the self-employed?Accounting of income from which you have to pay tax is conducted through the application "My tax".

For example, you sold a pair of socks to a customer, he will pay, and you declare the receipt as income in the application. The application forms a link to the receipt that you send to the client. You can transfer the receipt in the following ways:

  • send by sms or via messengers;
  • send by e-mail;
  • let the customer read the QR code on the receipt;
  • print it out and hand it over in paper form.

The self-employed decides which check to issue: electronic or paper. At the same time, a self-employed person does not have to have an online sales register.

If you work through order search sites or buyers, they can themselves transmit information about your income to the Federal Tax Service and automatically withhold tax from you.

Is the experience of the self-employed counted for a future pension?The self-employed decides for himself whether to deduct insurance contributions to the Pension Fund.

But if you deduct less than 34,445 rubles every year – the minimum annual amount – then this year will not be taken into account in the work experience. Therefore, if you do not make contributions to the FIU at all, then in old age you will be able to rely either only on your own savings, or on a social pension. At the same time, if you have an official place of work, then there is no need to worry. The employer will make contributions to the FIU for you.

If you are offered to quit and continue working as a self-employed person, you will not be protected by the Labor Code (or not fully protected), you will not have vacations, sick days, or time off. And you will pay taxes yourself, not the company for you. You will also not be able to work for a former employer (this rule is valid for 2 years).

Why is it profitable to become self-employed?You can not pay taxes for years, for example, by doing some work, until the tax service finds out about it.

You place your store on a social network platform, sell knitted socks, and someone informs the tax service that you are hiding from taxes. The Federal Tax Service conducts a control purchase, and it is confirmed that you have not paid the tax. If the tax service finds out that a person has not paid taxes, it can add them for 3 years and collect penalties — 1/300 of the Central Bank's key rate for each day of delay.

The penalty for non-payment of taxes is from 20 to 40% of the unpaid amount. There is also a fine for unreleased declarations — up to 30% of the tax amount for each year. And if you do not pay for years, and the amount accumulates more than 2.7 million, then such a person already faces criminal liability.

Having registered the status of self-employed, you can place ads about your goods and services on the Internet without fear, expand the base of customers who would like to work officially, as well as defend your rights if you run into an unscrupulous client. Yes, legal entities may prefer to work with sole proprietors rather than self–employed, but self-employed is better than a person working without documents. In addition, you will be able to issue checks to customers, and if you are going to take out a loan or mortgage, it will be easier for you to prove the stability of income.

Are there any benefits for the self-employed?The self-employed already pay at the lowest tax rate of 4%.

However, if you are applying for self–employed status for the first time, you can count on a tax deduction of 10,000 rubles. Less taxes will be withheld from you until this amount accumulates.

Who is unprofitable to become self-employed?"It is unprofitable for people with high incomes to apply for self-employed status, first of all.

If you assume that your annual income will exceed 2.4 million rubles, then it is better to register an individual entrepreneur. In this case, you will be able to switch to a simplified system and pay 6%, while the self-employed will have to pay 13% of the income from this amount. Those who are thinking about a state pension should also think about it, since you need to make contributions to the FIU yourself, whereas an individual entrepreneur (on a simplified system) can reduce the tax on the amount of insurance contributions to the FIU," explains Igor Pozdnyakov, legal adviser of the Consumer Protection Department of Roskachestvo.Read more interesting news in our Telegram channel

Author: Alexander Baigazin

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