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0. None of the obligations imposed on residents would apply to him (APPLICANT).
1. Tax Incentives for Investment in the Russian Economy. Special tax incentive instruments aimed at attracting investment in the Russian economy have been developed to help counter the current economic _________ in Russia (STABILITY).
2. They are designed to enable potential investors to save money through the use of various kinds of tax relief, and in some instances to enjoy more ________ business conditions when carrying out investment projects in certain regions of Russia (FAVOUR).
3. The principal types of tax incentives available to investors include the following: relief granted to _______ of priority social and economic development areas (“SDAs”) (RESIDENTIAL).
4. With regard to mineral extraction tax, a special coefficient is introduced which enables that tax to be reduced to zero until the first ______ begins to be earned and for two years thereafter (PROFITABILITY).
5. The concept of a regional investment project and the relief _______ for companies engaged in such projects were introduced in the Tax Code with effect from 1 January 2014 (AVAILABILITY).
6. A regional investment project is a project whose purpose is the manufacture of goods (with certain exceptions) which meets the ________ specified by tax law (REQUIRE).
7. A participant in a regional investment project is _______ to tax relief subject to certain conditions being met (ENTITLEMENT).
8. In order to obtain the relief _________ by regional legislation for such investors, a taxpayer must satisfy a number of requirements, prepare certain documents and sign an investment agreement with regional authorities (PRESCRIPTION).
9. Dividends that Russian companies distribute abroad are _______ at source at the rate of 15% (TAX).
10. Applying the investment criterion in practice is often _________ (PROBLEM).
Exercise 8.
Match the words (1-4) with their definitions (A-D).
1. tax evasion A goods to be bought and sold
2. value-added tax B the total value of goods and services produced
within a country in a year
3. tax burden C reduction or minimization of tax liability by illegal
methods;
4. GDP D a tax on the amount by which the value of an article
has been increased at each stage of its production
or distribution;
5. merchandise E the amount of tax suffered by an individual or
organization;
UNIT EXTENSION
Exercise 9. Two-minute presentation.
Choose one of the following subjects about t he Russian tax system and prepare to give a two-minute presentation about it to the group.
· The history of tax development in Russia
· Evolution of tax system in Russia
· Russian tax policy trends till 2019
· Implementation of tax policy in the financial transactions
· Tax policy in natural resources taxation
· Projected reforms in personal taxation
· Taxation and doing business in the Russian Federation
· Taxation in Russia before the Code
· Federal taxes in Russia
· Regional and local taxes
· Tax policy and tax system in Russia: the case of the banking sector
· The difference between the tax law in Russia and in Europe
PART 2
TOPIC FOCUS: Roles of Tax Consultants
Discuss these questions with a partner.
1. What type of services do tax consultants provide?
2. In what situations do companies and individuals engage tax consultants?
3. What type of educational background do tax consultants usually have?
4. What is a merger of equals?
5. What is a hostile takeover?
6. How do companies benefit from mergers?
7. What are possible negative aspects of mergers?
8. What happens if a merger is not successful?
With so many different forms of taxes to pay and tax legislationconstantly evolving, it is no wonder that companies and accounting practicesoften employ special experts, knowledgeable in both tax accounting and law. These professionals, known as tax advisers or tax consultants, are recruited by major taxation and accountancy firms, financial institutions, legal firms, multinational corporations, many government departments or, alternatively, work independently in their own practices.
Their primary task is to ensure that all tax returns are properly submitted, tax compliance efficiently performed and tax liability reduced to a minimum. They perform the key role in creating tax strategies for their clients or management, designed to comply withtax laws and mitigatetax liabilities.
Tax consultants also play an important role in setting upnew businesses. They provide advice on tax regulations regarding various types of business organizations, as well as on relevant tax implications. They are involved in disputeresolution,strategic planning,tax recovery, audit defence and provide support in mergersand acquisitions. Last but not least, they are able to exploit loopholes in tax laws to benefit their clients.
As all tax advice and opinion are based on tax legislation, most tax consultants come from a legal background. The tax consultant position requires high competence, an advanced professional experience and, preferably, a qualification from a chartered body. Professional accounting bodies provide different qualifications for licensed tax advisers: in the UK, charteredaccountants tend to train toward qualification as chartered tax advisers, while the equivalent qualification in the USA is acertified tax consultant.
Exercise 1.
In the text, find the answers to the following questions.
1. What is a tax consultant’s primary role?
2. In what other situations do tax consultants help?
3. Why do tax consultants come from a predominantly legal background?
