Business Purpose: How We Will Prove It
The tax security of your organization is an integral part of business security. Cancellation of Presidential Decree No. 488 dated October 23, 2012 “On certain measures to prevent illegal minimization of tax liabilities” does not mean that the state has abandoned control over ongoing transactions.
Taxation in Belarus tends to be based on a presumptionand the integrity of the payer of taxes, fees (duties) (subclause 1.4 of Article 2 of the Tax Code). But the concept of good faith of a taxpayer is not yet directly defined in the Belarusian tax legislation.
According to the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Belarus dated December 19, 2019 No. 6 “On the application of legislation by courts when considering economic and civil cases arising from tax legal relations” (hereinafter referred to as Resolution No. 6) The burden of proving non-fulfillment or improper fulfillment by the payer of tax obligations and (other) duties imposed by tax legislation, the unjustified offset (refund) of paid taxes, fees (duties) lies on tax and other authorized bodies and their officials (subclause 1.4 clause 1 of article 2 of the Tax Code).
To help protect your business, we suggest considering how tax and other regulatory authorities will prove the payer’s dishonesty.
So, the payer of taxes and fees is considered to be in good faith until proven otherwise.
More details on the Economic Newspaper website: →https://neg.by/novosti/otkrytj/delovaya-cel-biznesa
Posted by:Olga VELISHKEVICH, senior lawyer, GRATA International BY