Tax Registration for Foreign Companies to Be Simplified

The Russian government has submitted a bill to the State Duma that fundamentally changes the tax registration procedure for foreign companies opening accounts in Russian banks. According to the initiative, the only method of registration for them will be through a bank, which, as the authors intend, will simplify and speed up the entire procedure.

The initiative is aimed at eliminating redundant administrative procedures. As noted in the explanatory note to the document, the current mechanism, which allows foreign organizations to apply to the Federal Tax Service (FTS) directly, has shown low demand. The new rules are designed to make the process more efficient through a single channel of interaction.

What is changing?

• Current procedure: A foreign company can register with the tax authority in two ways: by submitting an application to the FTS itself or through the bank where the account is being opened.
• New procedure: After the bill is adopted, only one option will remain: registration exclusively through a bank.

New procedure:

1. The foreign organization applies to a Russian bank to open an account.
2. The bank independently submits the necessary application to the tax service.
3. The FTS is obliged, within five working days of receiving the documents, to provide the bank with an electronic extract from the Unified State Register of Taxpayers (EGRN).
4. The bank transfers this extract to its client—the foreign company—thus completing its registration process.

Effective Date

If the bill is approved by the State Duma and signed by the President, it will come into force 270 days after its official publication. This transition period will give all market participants—banks and foreign companies—time to adapt to the new rules.