The marking will be deducted from the excise – Newspaper Kommersant No. 214 (7415) dated 11/18/2022

Due to the planned introduction of beer labeling in 2023, market participants may receive a deduction when paying excise taxes. The government instructed the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy to prepare proposals on this issue. The amount of the deduction can be calculated based on the costs of implementing the label. Although the operator of the system itself believes that the already provided support measures for business should be sufficient.

The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy should prepare proposals for granting tax deductions to manufacturers of brewing and low-alcohol products when paying excises in connection with the introduction of labeling. The corresponding instruction is contained in the minutes of the meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Grigorenko dated November 7. Kommersant has a copy of the document. The Ministry of Finance confirmed that the issue is being worked out. The Ministry of Economy and the press service of the government did not respond to requests from Kommersant.

In Russia, until February 28, 2023, an experiment is underway to label brewing products and certain types of low-alcohol drinks. Then the measure should become mandatory. As follows from the minutes of the meeting with Mr. Grigorenko, the government agreed to introduce the labeling of beer kegs from April 1, 2023, from October 1, 2023 – drinks in glass and plastic bottles, and from January 15, 2024 – in other types of packaging.

From 2022, the excise tax on beer is set at 24 rubles. per 1 liter for drinks with a strength of 0.5% to 8.6%. There is a zero rate for non-alcoholic beer. In 2023–2024, excise tax indexation is provided for 1 ruble. annually.

In 2020, market participants paid over 172 billion rubles. excises, reported the Association of Beer Producers (APP; includes AB InBev Efes, Baltika and Heineken). In the first quarter of 2022, 25.2 billion rubles were paid from the production and import of beer. excises. According to a Kommersant source, for large companies, the cost of excises may exceed the cost of production.

APP Executive Director Vyacheslav Mamontov says that in the face of growing costs for beer producers against the backdrop of sanctions and complicated logistics, any tax incentives benefit the entire industry. Partial compensation of labeling costs, which for large companies will amount to tens of millions of rubles, will be very useful for market participants, he adds.

Aleksey Nebolsin, a member of the Presidium of Opora Rossii, believes that the deduction from the excise tax can be calculated based on the cost of the costs of introducing the marking, confirmed by the prices of integrators. The main question is at what tariff to carry out the calculation, he points out. So, according to Mr. Nebolsin, the cost of one line with a manual code applicator is estimated at 200 thousand rubles, with an automatic – 1.1 million rubles. And the speed of shipment of beer depends on the choice of equipment, which is especially important in the summer season of high demand, he points out. In addition, Mr. Nebolsin continues, it is not clear how to take into account the option of providing brewers with installment plans to pay for equipment.

The operator of the labeling system CRPT considers the tax deduction for excise payments for brewers to be an excessive measure, since “a lot has already been done to reduce business costs as much as possible.”

As the representative of the CRPT notes, a three-year interest-free installment plan for equipment without payment in the first year has been launched; there is a stock of equipment and consumables at purchase prices; free tools for ordering, printing, applying and scanning codes; free electronic document management and mobile application. And due to boxed solutions for small businesses, the implementation costs will be from 20 thousand rubles, they say in the CRPT. They add that marking leads to the automation of business processes and reduces the operating costs of the business.

Yury Antonov, general director of MPBK Ochakovo, says that his company is against the labeling system for a variety of reasons, and the possible elimination of one of the key obstacles does not solve the problem entirely. Aleksey Nebolsin also points out that, regardless of the decision regarding the deduction from the excise tax, Opora Rossii will continue to insist on the abolition of the labeling of brewing products.

Anatoly Kostyrev