26 April 2004 01:02
Russian deputy premier says tax and social reform package nearly ready
Moscow, 26 April: Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Zhukov reported to President Vladimir Putin that the package of
draft laws on taxation and reforms in the social sphere is essentially fully complete. "We have already started to
introduce some of the draft laws, one of them is on increasing export duties and tax on extraction of mineral
resources," Zhukov said at a meeting in the Kremlin.
Zhukov noted that this document had already been "adopted by the State Duma in three readings". "We
hope that this week it will be approved by the Federation Council and will be submitted for a signature (of the
president)," Zhukov said.
According to him, "this is the most urgent law" as it will come into force at the moment of signing and
will make it possible, utilizing the favourable market situation, to mobilize additional funds to the budget.
"This money will become useful for ensuring that the reduction of the tax burden goes smoothly, particularly
with regard to the single social tax and other proposals that will be considered at government sessions in the near
future," the deputy prime minister said.
On 23 April the State Duma adopted a law, proposed by the government, which increases tax on super-profits of oil
companies as well on export duties on oil and oil products and the tax on the extraction of mineral resources.
According to the law, export duties on oil an oil products increase in correlation with the world prices of energy
carriers. The law makes it possible to ensure additional tax revenue from export duties on oil and oil products at 397m
dollars when the price of barrel of oil is at 22 dollars, 794m dollars at 24 dollars a barrels, 1.9bn dollars at 27
dollars a barrel and 3.4bn dollars at 30 dollars a barrel.
At the same time the tax on extraction of mineral resources increases from the present R347 to R400 per tonne of oil
produced, which makes it possible to collect for the federal budget additional income of 1-2bn dollars.
In the view of the State Duma speaker Boris Gryzlov, "in social respect, the law ensures the realization of the
principle according to which income from the extraction of mineral resources of the country should benefit all its
citizens".
[ITAR-TASS news agency] |
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