Vacations again: why they decided to extend the moratorium on business inspections. Business under surveillance Who should expect a tax audit

Russia has established a three-year moratorium on routine inspections of small businesses. In this case, the procedure is carried out outside scheduled inspections toughened up. At the same time, officials point out that the discontent of entrepreneurs is not always justified: they often flagrantly violate the law. Has it become easier for business entities and how do regulatory authorities work in the new conditions, the RG correspondent found out.

Vacation assignment

The three-year “supervisory” vacation started on January 1, 2016. Amendments made to Law No. 294-FZ prohibited scheduled inspections of enterprises with annual revenues of less than 800 million rubles and a staff of up to 100 employees. There are exceptions - do not leave the business completely without supervision. Thus, the exemption did not affect medical and educational organizations, companies working in the field of social services. The law applies only to enterprises that have not lost their license over the past three years, where managers have not been disqualified, and which have not been subject to administrative suspension of activities. Inspections of businesses working with budget funds are still allowed. Tax audits were not included in the moratorium.

A year has passed, and the regions began to sum up the first results. Thus, in the Oryol region, violations by regulatory authorities have become slightly less. Regional business ombudsman Evgeniy Lykin noted this in his annual report. According to him, the quality of the inspectors' work has improved, and the number of complaints against them has decreased slightly. Overall, the workload on business has decreased.

The first step was taken several years ago, when regulatory authorities were required to coordinate inspections with the prosecutor's office. The register is published in the state information system. Having found himself on the list, the entrepreneur can request exclusion from the plan. The moratorium did not cancel unscheduled inspections, but they also require approval. Business considers them the main instrument of pressure. However, the situation is changing.

The principled position of prosecutors contributed to the reduction in the number of illegal inspections and the reduction of administrative pressure on business, says Evgeniy Lykin. - In 2016, the regional prosecutor’s office received 155 applications from state and municipal control authorities to approve unscheduled inspections of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs. In 84 cases they were refused.

That is, over 54 percent of applications were rejected. This suggests that the desire to “nightmare” the business has not disappeared. About 70 percent of applications involved inspections of small businesses. Perhaps the inspectors were trying to find a gap. The exception was municipal control bodies. They “calmed down” and over the past year they submitted only two applications for unscheduled inspections, and even those were rejected.

However, there are still facts of unjustified interference in the activities of entrepreneurs, continues Evgeniy Lykin. - An assessment of the work of regulatory authorities indicates that in the absence of strict compliance with the law, serious risks arise. They pose a threat of business closures.

Little tricks

Inspectors are looking for workarounds. For example, this practice has appeared. Initiate administrative proceedings on suspicion of committing an offense. And within its framework, in fact, an unscheduled inspection is carried out. An administrative investigation is a disguise. But it is difficult to prove that something else is being done under the guise of one thing. The moratorium does not exempt from liability. An entrepreneur from Oryol fell into this trap. She rented space in the city center and opened a hair salon. One day Rosreestr employees came to her, but not to inspect the enterprise, that would have been illegal. An administrative survey of the site on which the building stands was carried out. They drew up a protocol - they say that the land is intended for the maintenance of a residential building, and not a hairdressing salon. There was no inspection, but a fine was imposed, and it’s not clear why.

The decision of Rosreestr, after an inspection at the request of the businesswoman, was protested by the environmental prosecutor’s office and completely cancelled, said Evgeny Lykin. - It was declared illegal because the individual entrepreneur did not commit an offense.

In Mtsensk, the police opened a criminal case about illegal business. Operatives came to the plant and temporarily paralyzed its work. They were interested in the stoves, which someone allegedly used for illegal business. The prosecutor's office declared the actions of the police illegal. As the department explained, “there was a substitution of the investigative action “inspection of the crime scene” with the investigative action “search.”

About 70 percent of applications from inspectors involved inspections of small businesses

Substitution of concepts is one of the biggest risks for business. A criminal case is initiated based on the fact, and not against a specific person. Next, the company or individual entrepreneur’s computer and accounting department are confiscated, and accounts are blocked for the period of the investigation. But it can last for months. The company cannot operate normally. You can’t even give out a salary, because you can’t use accounts. Three months later, it is quite possible to open a case against the director for non-payment of salaries. But what could he do when everything was taken away from him? This creates corruption risks. The return of seized documents, equipment and unblocking of accounts may become the subject of dubious bargaining. What should an individual entrepreneur do in such a situation? The law seems to protect him, but it doesn’t seem to.

However, the inspectors also found themselves in difficult conditions. Inspections and audits have become one of the tools of dirty competition. The point is not that the supervisory authorities are supposedly helping someone to deal with their opponent. It’s just that some are trying to settle scores with someone else’s hands. For example, there was a case when a patient complained about the work of a private dental office - his teeth were poorly treated and they hurt. An unscheduled inspection was allowed, because it was about human health. Rumors spread. The townspeople began to avoid the office. During the inspection, a suspicion arose that a competitor had sent the picky patient. This could not be proven. But even if it had been possible, no one would have been punished. No law yet protects against such a risk. And the examination showed that the charges were far-fetched.

It's your own fault

Businesses are increasingly challenging rulings and orders in court. Controlling authorities have to be distracted by litigation and prove that they have not violated the rights of the entrepreneur. Yes, owner grocery store challenged the fine imposed by Rosselkhoznadzor for selling sausage without labeling and accompanying documentation. He stated that the department exceeded its authority and arrogated to itself the functions of... Rospotrebnadzor.

I had to prove that sausages were checked in terms of epizootic welfare, and this is our field of activity,” said Lev Leizerov, deputy head of the Rosselkhoznadzor TU. - Without labeling with the date of manufacture, it is impossible to compare products with veterinary accompanying documents and confirm their epizootic safety.

The entrepreneur insisted that he was punished for violating trade rules, and this is truly the area of ​​activity of Rospotrebnadzor. But the court rejected his claim and declared the inspectors’ actions legal. It takes both time and effort to sort things out. The essence of the “supervisory vacation” is precisely to create a risk-based model for organizing inspections. It will start working after the moratorium ends in 2018, although implementation has already begun locally.

We have created a register of subjects of supervision according to classes of potential risk of harm to public health,” noted Alexander Rumyantsev, acting head of the Rospotrebnadzor department. - The introduction of this model has already made it possible to reduce the administrative burden on conscientious entrepreneurs who comply with the requirements of sanitary legislation.

It is assumed that the model will eliminate inspections, and therefore bureaucratic delays, from those areas of business that can be left without strict supervision, where the risk of dangerous consequences is low. Already now, as Alexander Rumyantsev assured, for the first time an offense has been committed, an entrepreneur is warned, and not punished with a fine. However, there are also counter examples. Business requirements are so varied, numerous and contradictory that you can find fault with anything.

Thus, in Orel, only the court saved the owner of a small cafe from ruin. Migration service employees found a waitress, a forced migrant from Ukraine, who did not have a patent to work in our country. The entrepreneur was fined 250 thousand rubles. For him, this is a large amount that he could not “pull” out of circulation. In court, the IP proved that the punishment was disproportionate to the violation. He did not deny guilt. The fine was replaced with a warning. But the inspectors could have warned.

When assigning punishments, in most cases the goals, objectives and rules for bringing to administrative responsibility are not taken into account, says Evgeniy Lykin. - Factors of insignificance and the possibility of exemption from liability are not even considered, and preference is given to the unconditional imposition of a fine.

According to him, this, oddly enough, is causing the treasury to lose money. Practice shows that supervisory authorities litigate to the last. If they lost the case to the entrepreneur in the first instance, they will definitely appeal the decision in appeal, and then in cassation. They reach Supreme Court. They spend it on litigation budget resources, sometimes much larger amounts than the fines for which they are being sued.

Decisions in the interests of entrepreneurs in the vast majority of cases remain in force, so we can rightfully talk about the unreasonable expenditure of public resources, adds Evgeniy Lykin. - Given the length of the challenge procedure, the work of entrepreneurs in some cases is paralyzed for a year or more.

Businesses complain that they are being “strangled,” but they violate the law en masse. Last year, 9,049 inspections were carried out - almost two thousand less than the year before. As a result, 4,519 officials and 996 legal entities were brought to justice. By the way, this year many departments began to hold open days and round tables for entrepreneurs, organized hot telephone lines, public reports. Perhaps this will help establish a dialogue.

Help "RG"

In 2016, when monitoring compliance with legislation in the field of protecting the rights of subjects entrepreneurial activity The prosecutor's office of the Oryol region found 867 violations. 273 were brought to disciplinary liability officials and, to the administrative one - 48. 18 applications were sent to the court, seven officials were warned about the inadmissibility of violations of the law. In addition, based on the materials of the prosecutor's checks, three criminal cases were initiated.

Good afternoon, dear readers. Many of you are aware that from January 1, 2016, small businesses began “supervisory holidays.” A moratorium on inspections will also be in effect in 2017 and 2018. In this article we will talk about the nuances of the so-called “supervisory holidays” and how the moratorium on inspections of small businesses works in 2017.

Who can count on a moratorium on inspections in 2017 and 2018?

Article 26.1. Federal Law No. 294-FZ dated December 26, 2008 (as amended in 2016) establishes a moratorium on inspections of small businesses.

Small businesses include organizations with a staff of no more than 100 people and annual revenues of up to 800 million rubles. There are also conditions for participation in authorized capital state (no more than 25%) and foreign companies(up to 49%).

For which organizations are exceptions made by law?

The moratorium on inspections of small businesses in 2017 and 2018 will not affect companies operating in the fields of education, medicine, social services, audit organizations, as well as management companies of apartment buildings and organizations working with state secrets. Also, companies that have committed gross violations or lost their licenses within 3 years before the scheduled inspections will not be exempt from inspections.

What checks are retained?

There will still be tax audits and audits regarding the payment of contributions to extra-budgetary state funds, as well as audits in the field of fire, environmental, industrial, radiation safety of objects of hazard classes I and II.

Unscheduled inspections, which are carried out after complaints against companies are received by the relevant supervisory authorities, have not undergone any changes either.

Orderexclusion of an organization from the inspection plan.

If your organization is nevertheless included in the inspection plan and this was done illegally, you have the right to file a complaint government agency, drawing up this plan, an application for exclusion from the annual plan for conducting scheduled inspections.

Carrying out a scheduled inspection in violation of the requirements of 294-FZ is a gross violation of the requirements of the legislation on state control (supervision) and municipal control and entails the invalidity of the results of this inspection.

Let's summarize.

Despite the persistence of unscheduled inspections, as well as tax and a number of others, experts agree that the moratorium on inspections of small businesses in 2017 should have an exclusively positive effect. economic effect, and the above law was adopted just in time. We hope our article will help you be more prepared in communicating with inspection authorities. Thank you for your attention.

The moratorium on inspections of small businesses began on January 1, 2016, and will end on December 31, 2018. Considering that the halfway point of the allotted period has recently passed, it is time to consider this law, the features of its implementation, and how well theory coincides with practice.

general information

As mentioned earlier, the law on a moratorium on inspections of small businesses operates in the period from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2018. What does it give? The law introduces a ban on scheduled inspections of legal entities classified as small businesses, as well as individual entrepreneurs. This was done with the aim of creating favorable conditions for the development of small economic entities. But this is still an incomplete defense. Thus, an exception is made for radiation, environmental and fire supervision, as well as in the field of ensuring state secrets and in the use of nuclear energy. Therefore, the three-year moratorium on inspections of small businesses was not fully felt by those entities engaged in potentially dangerous activities.

The legislative framework

What should you do if you want to see the original? In this case, you can read the federal law under number N 294-FZ of December twenty-sixth two thousand eight “On the protection of the rights of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs in the exercise of state control (supervision) and municipal control.” This is the specific part. But in terms of theory, it relies on the fourth article of the federal law numbered N 209-FZ of July twenty-four, two thousand and seven, “On the development of small and medium-sized businesses in the Russian Federation.” Further in the article will be given short description in understandable “human” language about its action.

What does the law say?

First let's look at the timing. The moratorium on small businesses is valid from January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2018. And this is enshrined at the legislative level, and is not an order of the government, the president or anyone else. This is stated in Article 26.1 N 294-FZ of this document. It should be noted again that the ban is not absolute. Thus, it does not apply to unscheduled inspections. This is discussed in Articles 10 and 26.1 N 294-FZ. Unscheduled inspections can be carried out without restrictions. What it protects against is clearly indicated in parts two and three of Article Nine of Law No. 294-FZ. There are also certain limitations in the base of action. So, if the inspection does not comply with the requirement of the same law under number N 294-FZ, then it can also be carried out without any restrictions. The entire list can be found in parts 3 and 3.1 of the first article. In short, the federal law of interest here is No. 144-FZ of August 12, 1995, “On operational investigative activities.” The law will not stop civil servants who follow the Code of Criminal Procedure Russian Federation. In other words, tax, police, prosecutorial, customs, insurance, currency, and banking checks will continue. In addition to them, it is also worth mentioning compliance with the law regarding and also when distributing information or when storing it.

Where else will a moratorium not protect?

Of general interest are subparagraphs from the first to the eighth and sixth parts of Article 26.1 in Law N 294-FZ. As previously written in the article (albeit briefly), inspections by fire inspectors and Gosgortekhnadzor for production facilities that belong to the 1st or 2nd hazard class have not been canceled. In addition, they monitor those who have access to state secrets. Management organizations that provide accommodation in apartment buildings are not exempt from licensing inspections. Auditing companies did not sigh either, because external control over their activities and quality of work was not abolished either. The moratorium on inspections of small businesses in Russia has not been lifted in the areas of education, healthcare, electricity, heat supply, energy efficiency, energy saving and regarding social entities. This is stated in the ninth and first parts of Articles 9 and 26.1, respectively. Despite the fact that the main points are spelled out in the law, decree issued by the Government of the Russian Federation No. 944 of November twenty-third, 2009 also has a certain influence. Why is that? The fact is that Law No. 294-FZ contains quite a lot of vague wording, which is why the decision was made on Resolution No. 944.

Even less protection

The moratorium on inspections of small businesses also does not apply if the subject is compliant economic activity a whole set of conditions. Some of them, it should be recognized, are quite adequate and necessary. In other cases, a certain amount of doubt arises regarding the possibility of manipulation. Thus, there is no need to talk about a moratorium on inspections of small businesses in cases where such violations were discovered over the last 3 years of activity that led to the disqualification or suspension of the activities of an economic entity for gross violations. The decision to revoke a license or to impose an administrative penalty must also enter into legal force. And while all this is not there, the question remains. These requirements are in the second part of the ninth article of Law N 294-FZ.

Important point

When a plan was formed (or will be), it must be submitted to the prosecutor's office no later than September 1 of the current year. And from the next one it will already be in effect. This requirement is provided for by Russian Government Decree No. 489 of June thirtieth, 2010. Although other departments recommend contacting them even earlier. So, in methodological recommendations, approved by Rostrud under number N 455 dated October twenty-eighth, 2010, states that all documentation must be ready before the first of July. This is done to ensure a timely response to all requests. Although we should remember that this is not a requirement, but a recommendation.

Changing reality

Alas, the moratorium does not apply to tax audits of small businesses. And nothing can be fixed here. But what if a business or organization believes that it is subject to the law when an audit is already planned for it? In this case, it is quite possible to change reality. What needs to be done for this? Initially, a statement is written asking to exclude the inspection from the annual plan. It states that the current state of affairs violates Article 26.1 N 294-FZ. All requirements and recommendations for the application can be found in Resolution N 1268 of the Government of the Russian Federation dated November twenty-sixth, 2015. It contains a list of documentation that must be prepared for approval of a positive decision. But what if a scheduled inspection starts literally now? In this case, it is necessary to provide the documentation collected for the application and indicate the fact that there is no need for verification. And if there were no administrative violations or data about them before, then this process will be terminated. In this case, a special act is drawn up, which is provided for by the fifth part of Article 26.1 of the considered N 294-FZ. If the inspection was nevertheless carried out, then you can file an appeal and have it declared invalid. In this case, the first and seventh parts of Articles 20 and 26.1, respectively, will come to the rescue.

Misconceptions

Sometimes you can hear incorrect information, which is either a conscious deception, or a desire to see something that is not there, but what you want. Thus, you can find mention that a moratorium on inspections of small and medium-sized businesses was introduced. This is not true. Although such proposals were made when the law was just being discussed, end result Small businesses and individual entrepreneurs fell under its effect. Also, as already discussed, it does not provide 100% immunity from government officials. Once again, I would like to focus on the fact that the moratorium is aimed only at routine inspections. If an interested person contacts the relevant authorities, it will not be possible to avoid communicating with the state in the person of its representatives. For example, this could be a citizen who has a stomach ache after eating in a cafe.

Why was this law introduced?

The moratorium on scheduled inspections of small businesses is aimed at improving the economic situation in the country and ensuring the activities of economic entities. It is understood that it will give entrepreneurs the opportunity to develop, rather than waste time on paperwork. The extent to which this goal will be achieved can only be judged after the end of the grace period. For now, let’s limit ourselves to the greatest benefit from the law considered by those entrepreneurs who have chosen a white model of work and do not commit offenses. And this is good, because they were the main goal of the event.

Conclusion

Despite this pretty good law, there is still a lot of work to do. Now the Russian Federation is going through not the easiest times. Therefore, it is necessary to concentrate on creating our own sustainable economy. The Russian Federation has already run out of one large reserve cash fund, and two more are running out. And questions are increasingly raised about what we will do after they are exhausted. In this case, you can only rely on yourself. And at the head of the train that will pull us all out will be entrepreneurs - people who are not afraid to take responsibility and act. We should take care that the honest and skillful find themselves in the most favorable conditions. To do this, it is important not to interfere with their actions. And having become rich, they will make other people around them the same. You just need to be patient.

What inspections are small businesses exempt from?

*This material over three years. You can check with the author the degree of its relevance.

What inspections are small businesses exempt from?

From January 1, 2016, “supervision holidays” will begin to apply. Small companies will be exempt from most scheduled inspections for three years.

The essence of “supervisory holidays” is to rid those areas of business from unnecessary bureaucracy in which the risk of dangerous consequences of “neglect” is not great.

Does not work

The main thing in the article

• Small businesses will be exempt from most scheduled inspections. And this will happen for three years in a row. True, this will not affect audits carried out by tax authorities and funds.
• If officials mistakenly include a company in the inspection plan, you must submit an application and documents that will confirm the exemption.
• Unscheduled inspections will be carried out as before. The new rules do not apply to them.

What checks will not be carried out?

From January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2018, there will be no scheduled inspections of small businesses. However, the ban applies only to those checks that are regulated by Federal Law No. 294-FZ of December 26, 2008 “On the protection of the rights of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs...”. They are carried out labor inspections, sanitary and epidemiological stations, Rospotrebnadzor authorities.

To take advantage of the benefit, the farm will not have to collect documents and contact authorities. When drawing up an inspection plan, officials themselves will exclude small businesses from it.

What to do if you are accidentally included in the test plan

What if the organization was included in the plan by mistake? Then you need to apply. It should be accompanied by a document confirming the illegality of the inspection. A certificate containing data on the composition of the company's participants, annual revenue and number of employees is sufficient. It must be signed by the head of the enterprise. Send the application and certificate to the authority that decided to inspect your company. For example, for inspections in the field of advertising, this is provided for by the letter of the FAS Russia dated August 12, 2015 No. AK/41908/15.

Who is not exempt?

Companies that have previously seriously violated the law cannot avoid inspections. And therefore there is reason to check them again.

The organization will be checked if there is a resolution imposing punishment for a gross violation of the rules. Or about disqualification, suspension of activities. Or when a company's license has been revoked or suspended.

When a company is a small business

Small businesses include companies that meet the following criteria (Article 4 of the Federal Law of July 24, 2007 No. 209-FZ “On the development of small and medium-sized businesses in the Russian Federation”). The first is the share of participation of the Russian Federation, the subject or municipality, public and religious organizations, foundations does not exceed 25 percent. And the share of foreign companies or legal entities that are not small or medium-sized enterprises is 49 percent. Second - average number employees for the previous year up to 100 people. Third, sales revenue excluding VAT or the book value of assets does not exceed 800 million rubles.

Grounds: Part 2 of Article 26.1 of Law No. 294-FZ. An important condition: the audit, as a result of which such resolutions or decisions were made, was completed in the last three years.

I would like to note that the assigned inspection subject matter must coincide with the one during which the violation was discovered. Let's say that Rospotrebnadzor found shortcomings. On this basis, the labor inspectorate cannot include a small business company in its inspection plan.

What checks will remain

No one canceled unscheduled inspections. They are carried out based on statements and complaints from citizens. Or when a government agency has information that a company is violating the law and this may threaten the life and health of citizens and the security of the state. In fact, any request from a consumer or company employee can serve as a reason for verification. Or information received from other sources. Please note that some scheduled inspections will remain in place. These are audits of the tax office and funds. And also, for example, currency or environmental supervision.

Important to remember!

Environmental supervision is carried out in companies that operate facilities that have a negative impact on the environment of category I or II.

What to expect for companies after 2018

The essence of “supervisory holidays” is to rid those areas of business from unnecessary bureaucracy in which the risk of dangerous consequences of “neglect” is not great. The risk-based approach that legislators have introduced is as follows. The state will classify the company as certain group risk or hazard class. The government will determine the criteria for this. And for each group/class they will develop conditions, determine the frequency and intensity of inspections and other control measures.

The changes since 2016 are just the first step towards a risk-based approach. It will be fully applied in 2018.

tax audits, registration and reorganization, company registration, legal advice

• What is the essence of the moratorium on inspections of small businesses?
• What to do if the control body comes with a scheduled inspection, bypassing the moratorium.
• What are the results of the current “supervision holidays”.
• Has the moratorium on inspections for small businesses been extended until 2022?
• How to obtain the status of a small or medium-sized enterprise.
• How to confirm that your company is a small business.

Moratorium– a temporary restriction of a rule. In 2016, such a restriction was imposed by federal law on all government inspections of small businesses.

The essence of the moratorium on inspection of small businesses

For a strictly limited period of time, the state relieved small businesses from planned checks regulatory authorities.

From checks not released:

• legal entities operating in the field of healthcare, education and social services, in the field of heat supply, electricity, energy saving and increasing energy efficiency;
• companies that have previously committed gross misconduct violations of the Code of Administrative Offenses RF, this was established based on the results of previous inspections, the person was brought to administrative responsibility, disqualified, or his activities were suspended and his license was revoked, less than three years have passed since such an inspection.

The legislator has identified strategically important areas of activity that are subject to a moratorium on inspections didn't touch:

• compliance with safety standards for hydraulic structures, if the company operates hazardous production facilities and hydraulic structures (hazard classes 1 and 2);
• environmental safety, if the company operates facilities that have a negative impact on the environment (hazard categories 1 and 2);
• compliance with standards industrial safety and fire supervision;
• compliance with radiation safety and nuclear energy use requirements;
• companies that manage apartment buildings (MCs) have a valid license;
• protection of state secrets if the organization’s activities are in one way or another connected with its observance;
• activities of audit companies (external control of their work).

There are objects, excessive loyalty to the operation of which can cost the safety and lives of people, so careful government control and supervision in these areas is necessary. The moratorium applies only to scheduled inspections. The new rules do not protect small businesses from unscheduled inspections, which mandatory carried out by a government agency upon the request of an interested person. Therefore, the management of companies covered by the above law should not neglect safety requirements, consumer rights, sanitary standards.

Checks that bypass the law

If your company is classified as a small business, you can expect that, starting in 2016, you will not face scheduled inspections. If the supervisory authority does come, it will be enough for its representatives to show documents confirming the company’s involvement in small business. If such documents are available and in order, then the inspection must be stopped immediately. If you find your organization on the list of persons against whom an inspection is planned, you have the right to submit an application to the supervisory authority and demand that the company be excluded from the annual inspection plan. One way or another, the head of an organization in which an audit was carried out in circumvention of the moratorium law has nothing to worry about, since its results will be considered invalid.

Since January 1, 2018, the legislation has enshrined a “risk-based approach”. This method is aimed at reducing costs, both on the part of the inspecting supervisory authorities and controlled entities. The risk-based approach is that all companies over which control is maintained are conditionally divided into groups according to their hazard classes and risk categories. That is, the classification of subjects depends on the severity of the negative consequences that are likely to occur due to administrative violations of a person, as well as on the likelihood of committing such administrative violations. For example, large production company operating facilities that are harmful to environment, must be classified as a higher risk class than the organization providing domestic services to the population.

You can find a list of scheduled inspections in relation to your organization on the FSIS website " Single register inspections”, for this it is enough to enter the OGRN, INN or the full name of the organization.

Results of the moratorium for 2018

The innovation has proven its effectiveness: the administrative and bureaucratic burden on small companies, the path to development is open for many domestic startups. As part of the presidential reform of control and supervisory activities, many legislative initiatives have been implemented: a Unified Register of Inspections has been introduced, the process of electronic interaction between government bodies has been intensified, and a risk-based approach has been introduced when conducting scheduled inspections.

According to the All-Russian public organization small and medium-sized enterprises "Support of Russia", the total number of scheduled inspections in 2017 decreased by an average of 40%.

During this period, the number of unscheduled inspections increased. The regulatory authorities themselves violate the law or treat its implementation in bad faith. Every year, the prosecutor's office has to reject many proposals from regulatory authorities to include in the consolidated inspection plan if they are drawn up incorrectly or in violation of the law. For example, for persons who have been checked in the last three years or who have even stopped commercial activities. Large enterprises began to split up, registering their divisions as separate legal entities and striving for each of them to obtain the status of a small business entity. This trick has been resorted to by chain stores that have a large number of separate divisions. In addition to reducing the supervisory burden, the status of a small enterprise provides advantages in taxation, which optimizes the costs of the enterprise. The tax service may regard such manipulations as a way to evade taxes, which threatens criminal liability for the leader.

The moratorium on routine inspections of small businesses will be extended until 2022.

Extension of the moratorium until 2022

Currently, the Russian Government plans to extend the moratorium on business inspections until the end of 2022. This is due to the desire to reduce the administrative burden on domestic enterprises. The State Duma is talking not only about prolonging the moratorium, but also about expanding its scope to medium business. According to market participants, in 2017 greatest number Administrative checks fell specifically on medium-sized businesses.

New inspection rules were developed as part of the presidential reform of control and supervisory activities in the Russian Federation. And in the draft “road map” for implementation in 2018–2019. “Strategy for the development of small and medium-sized businesses until 2030”, prepared by the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, introduced an initiative to permanently ban scheduled inspections of small businesses.

An initiative is not a bill yet, but a bill is far from being adopted Federal Assembly and a federal law signed by the President. State policy regarding administrative inspections of entrepreneurs may change several times, but today there are all prerequisites to say that the trend of reducing the administrative burden for small and medium-sized businesses will continue. In this regard, entrepreneurs have a question: how to obtain the status of a small or medium-sized enterprise in order to legally use state support and benefits?

Small business status

In addition to exemption from scheduled inspections, the status of a small business entity provides tax benefits, access to government procurement and other government support measures.

To confirm the status of a small business entity you need:

• correspond certain criteria established by law;
• turn on company or individual entrepreneur in the register of small businesses.

The law names only 3 factors for assessment:

• composition of founders(evaluated only for companies claiming to be a small enterprise, if they include organizations other than individuals);
• quantity full-time employees (for the previous annual period cannot exceed 100 people for small enterprises, 250 people for medium-sized businesses);
• amount of income(should not exceed 800 million rubles for the previous year, while the income portion is summed up for all types of activities and taxation regimes).

Entity cannot become a small business entity if its founders are:

• by 25% – state entities(RF, constituent entities, municipalities);
• by 25%– public or religious organizations and foundations;
• by 49%– any other organizations.

A company can try to obtain status if its main shareholders are organizations engaged in the innovative sector of the economy, participants in the Skolkovo project, or they themselves have the status of small or medium-sized businesses.

How to verify that you belong to a small business

To confirm that his company belongs to a small business (for example, when including inspections in the plan to bypass the moratorium), the manager should obtain an extract from the Unified Register of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises.

This unified register is maintained by the Federal tax service RF. The Federal Tax Service of Russia automatically enters information about all companies that meet the criteria for small or medium-sized businesses. No additional actions are required from the head of the business entity. The tax office independently analyzes information about enterprise income, the average number of staff, data from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities and the Unified State Register of Individual Entrepreneurs, as well as information from other authorities.

To receive an extract from the Unified Register, you need to go to the official website, enter the registration data of the legal entity and print the finished document. Such an extract will have full legal force, since it already has a strengthened electronic signature. This document does not require additional certification.

As directed by the Federal Tax Service Russia dated August 8, 2017 No. GD-4-14/15554@ local tax inspectorates are not authorized to issue certificates confirming that a legal entity belongs to small and medium-sized businesses.

If you believe that your company is classified according to all criteria as a small or medium-sized enterprise, but did not find it in the Unified Register on the website of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation, you can submit an application yourself. Tax office in this case, will analyze the information provided and, if the decision is positive, will make entity to the Unified Register manually. You can also correct incorrect data on the site or enter additional information about your company (inform about the conclusion of new contracts, participation in partnership programs, list products and add contact information).

The moratorium will be implemented key functions, which the Government of the Russian Federation entrusted to him when developing the idea of ​​​​reducing administrative pressure on small businesses. The extension of the new rules, as well as the expansion of their scope to medium-sized businesses, seem completely justified and logical. Supervisory authorities still have the opportunity to conduct unscheduled inspections, and also maintain special control over strategically important areas of activity that were not affected by the moratorium on inspections. A big step in this matter was the introduction of a risk-based approach to the inspection of enterprises; it saves inspectors’ time, and, accordingly, budget funds.