There are no plans to change the income tax in Russia in the next three years. This was announced on Monday by the head of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation Anton Siluanov. He also stressed that the Russian authorities are very careful about changing the taxation of individuals. And since the federal budget for the next three years is being signed now, no adjustments are expected in this regard.
In general, in the next three years, wealthy Russians, owners of factories, newspapers, ships, can sleep peacefully.
The introduction of a progressive taxation scale to combat poverty in our society has long been a talk of the town. Politicians and social activists have been talking about it since the beginning of perestroika, since the “dashing 90s”. The ice, it would seem, broke when two years ago, finally, it was decided to raise personal income tax for those who earn more than 5 million rubles in a calendar year.
Since January 1 of this year, they have been paying not 13%, like all other citizens, but 15%.
It seemed to everyone that the first such step would be followed by the second and the third, because in some developed countries of the world, depending on income, the sharks of capitalism pay more than 50%.
But, apparently, our Cabinet has taken a tax break for the next three years.
According to the Finance Minister, further tax increases will not lead to anything good, as large billionaires will find a way to hide from such payments. The middle class will be the first to suffer.
The logic for the country’s chief treasurer is strange. And why then did the state create entire structures that track the income of citizens? After all, in other developed countries of the world, such problems are somehow solved, why exactly in Russia the progressive scale does not work?
As long as the government stubbornly avoids a progressive taxation scale, Russians’ incomes continue to fall. How do we get out of poverty? We asked this question to Igor Nikolaev, Doctor of Economics, Professor.
– Igor Alekseevich, if the government imposed a 50% income tax on our oligarchs, would we eliminate poverty?
– No, 50% is not effective, in the current conditions it is a prohibitive rate. The financial elite will find an opportunity not to pay and will leave as tax residents to other countries.
But this does not mean that there should not be a progressive scale. I am just a supporter of this system. However, at the current stage, it should be moderate. Let’s say 20% of those who earn more than a million rubles a month. It’s quite real. They would pay, like dear ones, they would not disappear and become impoverished.
Yes, there are taxes of 50-60% in the West, but these rates have been going on there for many years.
– Would the introduction of a progressive scale solve our problem with poverty?
– In a radical way, no. If only because there are a lot of poor people in Russia, almost 20 million people. Objectively, we will not be able to raise enough money to raise the incomes of the poor. However, the situation softened to some extent. The problem of poverty is being solved not only in this way.
– What else?
– A working economy that would generate income for citizens. In particular, so that incomes from individual entrepreneurs are significant, and not decrease from year to year, as it is now.
A progressive scale is one of the mechanisms in a market economy, it must be there. But as a magic wand, you cannot bet on it.
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