The White House has defined the criteria for companies from which it expects technological breakthroughs

The government has approved a procedure for identifying small technology companies (STC), which the authorities see as the object of an experiment to develop developers of scarce technologies – the Russian Federation lost access to many of them after the deterioration of relations with developed countries due to the military operation in Ukraine. Organizations that fall under the criteria – small, not bearing systemic risks and economically flexible – will be included in a special register and will be able to count on targeted support measures. The desire to provide additional assistance specifically to the Ministry of Transport and Communications indicates that the risk of technological lag is actually recognized by the authorities as a more serious and tangible problem than a shortage of goods.

By Resolution No. 1847 of November 2, the government determined the procedure for classifying technology companies as MTK. Organizations with revenues of up to 4 billion rubles, engaged in priority sectors, such as agriculture, IT, tourism, education and healthcare, will be able to apply for the status. Depending on the revenue for the previous year, MTK will be classified into one of four categories – startups with a minimum revenue indicator (up to 1 million rubles), startups (from 1 million to 300 million rubles), early-stage companies (from 300 million to 2 billion rubles .) and mature (RUB 2–4 billion) companies.

All small tech companies will be entered into a special register based on the GIS “Economy”. To get into it, enterprises will need to undergo an independent examination in “trusted” centers, for example, the Fund for Assistance to the Development of Small Innovative Enterprises in the Scientific and Technical Sphere. They will assess the infrastructure provision of companies, the level of qualifications of specialists, the availability of rights to the results of intellectual activity, scientific and technical potential and other indicators of potential MTC.

It should be noted that the allocation of the category of small technology companies is part of the government’s work to bridge the gap between science and industry (its logic is described in the draft law “On Technology Policy” developed by the Ministry of Economy, see Kommersant on September 25). The very idea of ​​a separate register of such companies was borrowed from China, says Evgeniy Kutsenko, director of the Russian Cluster Observatory center at ISSEK. After undergoing an examination, Chinese technology companies are entitled to tax preferences – the profit tax rate for such organizations is reduced from 25% to 15%. “In essence, the creation of the register is an attempt, using team methods, to solve the problem of lack of information about non-public companies. Often such companies do not disclose financial indicators, do not register intellectual property rights, and their real capabilities, experience and scientific and technical potential are unclear. Because of this, they are often left without investors and government support,” notes Mr. Kutsenko.

According to the Ministry of Economy, by the end of the year more than 3 thousand companies will be able to receive ITC status. So far, assistance to them has focused mainly on simplifying access to existing support measures. In the future, the authorities expect to develop more targeted assistance mechanisms for MTC, including a special tax regime (similar to the simplified tax system), as well as to stimulate government procurement from such companies. Let us recall that earlier the SME Corporation proposed introducing separate quotas for purchases by the state and state-owned companies from the Ministry of Transport and Trade, but the Ministry of Finance did not support the idea, citing procurement legislation that does not provide preferences for certain areas of activity (see Kommersant on September 27).

It should be noted that the logic laid down in the government resolution of focusing support not on everyone in need of it, but only on companies promising for economic growth, first appeared to the authorities during the pandemic (see “Kommersant” dated August 9, 2021). Now the government plans to use this same idea to overcome the technology shortage, which, unlike the shortage of goods, cannot be solved by increasing parallel imports. To achieve the goals of techno-sovereignty, enterprises that fall under the criteria of the MTC are recognized by the authorities as the most suitable – they are more flexible than large ones both in adapting to “changing economic realities” and in generating and developing techno-innovations.

Kristina Borovikova, Venera Petrova