Belousov announced plans to scale the experiment with zero VAT for catering

The authorities intend to extend the experiment of exempting catering organizations from paying VAT to new industries, First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Andrei Belousov said at parliamentary hearings on the development of SME. Event broadcast was carried out on the Duma-TV channel.

“We plan to extend the experiment on a transitional tax regime in the public catering sector to other industries <...>. The measure has proven its effectiveness, we will scale it up,” he said.

In June, plans to expand the “restaurant” regime with zero VAT to new industries said and Deputy Minister of Finance Alexey Sazanov. According to the Ministry of Finance, the “loss” in revenues from VAT and insurance premiums is completely covered by the whitening of wages and the growth of employment in the catering sector. The department is considering extending the regime, for example, to such industries as the activities of security services and retail trade in non-food goods.

From January 1, 2022, the authorities exempted catering services in restaurants, cafes, canteens, etc., as well as their catering services, from VAT. To apply the benefit, the taxpayer for the previous calendar year must meet a number of conditions: the amount of his income cannot exceed 2 billion rubles, the share of revenue from core activities must be at least 70%, and the average monthly amount of payments and other remuneration must not be lower than the average monthly salary on the activities of public catering establishments in the relevant subject.

Previously, the initiative to extend the experiment of zeroing out VAT to areas where business expenses strongly depend on the number of employees was taken by the association “Opora Rossii,” Vedomosti wrote. The association said that thanks to the benefit, the wage fund increased by 1.5 times, insurance premium payments by 1.4 times, and employment increased by 1.3 times.