Taxation in Russia is something that gives the population a lot of trouble. Especially if you don’t know the nuances of the current legislation. Today we will find out whether there is a property tax for a minor child. And if so, how to pay for it correctly. After all, tax debts are fraught with serious consequences. For example, fines. So what should modern citizens know?
Property tax is...
Do minor children pay property taxes? The first step is to understand what the taxpayer will be dealing with. What fee are we talking about?
Property tax is an annual payment made by all property owners. It is regulated at the federal level, but the amount of payments depends on the region in which the “real estate” is located.
Are minor children subject to property taxes? To accurately answer this question, let’s consider the main nuances of this payment.
Beneficiaries
Let's start with the benefits. In Russia, taxation provides some government "bonuses" to individual citizens. Some are entitled to discounts, while others are completely exempt from the Federal Tax Service.
Is there a property tax for minor children? Benefits in 2018 are offered to the following segments of the population:
- families with many children (discounts in some regions);
- pensioners;
- disabled people;
- veterans;
- heroes of the Russian Federation or the USSR;
- combatants;
- victims of the Chernobyl accident.
All of these people can receive a property tax exemption. But there is one rule - you can not pay for only one object from each category.
Property types
Is property tax assessed on minor children? Understanding this issue is not as difficult as it seems. But only if you understand well what you have to deal with.
Real estate includes:
- rooms;
- apartments;
- Houses;
- dachas;
- land;
- garages;
- parking spaces for vehicles;
- unfinished construction projects;
- non-residential premises.
In addition, shares in the listed property will be taken into account when calculating real estate taxes. Accordingly, it is not necessary to own the entire object. To charge the tax, it is enough to have at least some share of property.
Major payers
The majority of families are interested in whether minor children pay property taxes. This question arises because not everyone understands the specifics of tax legislation.
According to the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, all able-bodied citizens must pay for their property on time. In addition, any property owner must transfer funds for the property.
But what about children? After all, this is a disabled segment of the population. Is property tax assessed on minor children? And how to deal with such payments?
Tax about taxation
To correctly answer these questions, it is necessary to study the basic nuances of the legislation. What do the Federal Tax Service say on the topic being studied?
Juvenile property taxes are normal. After all, according to current laws, if there is property and its owner, then there will be a tax.
From all of the above it follows that children are not included in the number of beneficiaries. This means that they will receive appropriate payment notifications. What to do with them?
Citizens' opinion
That is, employees of the Federal Tax Service believe that demanding taxes from a child is normal. The population doesn't think so.
At a minimum, children do not have their own sources of income, and they are not responsible for their property. Banking transactions are also not available to them. It sounds absurd, but some Federal Tax Service requires tax from a one-year-old baby or a preschooler.
The Tax Code of the Russian Federation is partially on the side of ordinary citizens. Article 45 of this set of laws states that money must be transferred towards tax by the owner of the object or its share. That is, as a child. This is impossible for several reasons.
Firstly, as already mentioned, banking transactions are not available to minors. Secondly, children, as we have already said, do not have any sources of income. After all, minors are considered a disabled segment of the population.
Own funds
Are minor children subject to property taxes? As was emphasized earlier, children receive payment notifications. But, according to the law, the child must pay out of his own pocket. Children do not have it and cannot have it until the age of 16. Only at this age do minors have the right to official part-time work. Accordingly, they will have personal money that they have the right to dispose of.
From all of the above, the conclusion is that you don’t have to pay your invoices. Many citizens share this opinion. But is this really so? And how to behave in this or that case?
Consequences of debt
They are trying to scare individual citizens about the serious consequences of late taxes. As a rule, this is punishable by a fine. Its size ranges from 20 to 40 percent of the debt amount.
It is worth remembering that the measure studied can only be applied to persons over 16 years of age. Accordingly, the penalty does not occur until the specified age. They resort to intimidation only to force the family to pay taxes.
To pay or not - that is the question
Is there a property tax for minors? Yes, but there are problems with closing it. After all, children cannot perform banking transactions.
To avoid any problems in the future, you will still have to pay the issued bills. Only parents should do this, not children. The main thing is to indicate in the comments to the payment that the transaction is taken into account against the child’s property tax.
In legislative terms, such an act is somewhat contrary to the rules established in Russia. However, the child will no longer have tax debt. The tax will be paid in full from the parents' money. This practice is becoming more and more common.
If there is no comment
Minor children must pay property tax. This is a fact that not every family knows about. Therefore, individuals may have problems with the Federal Tax Service.
There are transactions to pay off the tax debt on the child’s property, but they are received by the tax authorities without comment. What to do in such circumstances?
It is necessary to contact the Federal Tax Service as soon as possible with payment documents and the child’s birth certificate. Having informed the service employees about the tax transaction in the name of a minor, you can simply wait for the funds to be transferred to the desired tax account. The main thing is to do this as soon as possible.
Due date
Do minor children pay property taxes? Yes, but only through parents. Under no circumstances will they be able to carry out such transactions on their own.
How much time is given to the population to pay off property debt to the Federal Tax Service? The deadline for paying the tax under study is the same for all categories of taxpayers.
In 2017-2018, citizens must transfer funds to the state treasury as contributions for property before December 1. After this date, the citizen will begin to accrue debt. And for children too. With each day of delay in payment, the penalty increases.
That is why parents of young owners should hurry up and pay the assessed tax. Otherwise, the child may be sued. It sounds absurd, but sometimes such situations actually occur.
Payment Methods
How do I pay my child’s property tax? To do this, you can use standard methods of transferring funds to the Federal Tax Service.
Namely:
- make a bank transfer through a cash desk;
- Internet banking transfer;
- through payment terminals or ATMs;
- through online wallets;
- bank plastic.
The main thing, as we have already said, is to indicate in the comments to the transfer that the money is transferred to pay property taxes for a particular child. This is an extremely important nuance.
Finally
We found out how minor children pay property taxes. More precisely, whether they should do it or not.
Practice shows that more and more often the Federal Tax Service requires payment of property taxes from all taxpayers. Even from kids. On the one hand, this is correct - you need to pay for property. On the other hand, demanding money from a child is absurd.
Therefore, their legal representatives must pay for the children’s property. It is important to remember that parents of minors do not have any rights to their children’s property. Tax payments are provided free of charge. And this is a normal, although not entirely legal, phenomenon.
If a child is emancipated or has full legal capacity, they must pay their own property taxes. Such a minor is treated as a citizen who has turned 18 years of age.
Paying taxes is a constitutional duty of a citizen of the Russian Federation. The collection can be carried out for various reasons, but with one goal - to replenish the treasury of the state or municipality.
To find out whether minor citizens are subject to property tax, you need to know some of the features of the concept itself. There are main types of taxes:
- Central, the proceeds of which go to the implementation of the tasks of the entire state.
- Local, which are produced to implement the functions of local governments.
By definition, property tax is a local fee that is established by the representative body of a municipal entity (city, village council). In addition, payment terms and procedures and interest rates are set.
Simply put, paying property taxes allows you to own that property. The grounds and subtleties of this type of duty are established by Chapter 32 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.
You can find out, view or check the rate of tax payments in the person’s personal account on the government services website.
Who should pay
Until the end of 2014 The taxpayer was recognized as the owner of property that may be subject to duty, in accordance with the second article of Law No. 2003–1. Since 2015, changes have been made to the definition. Now the payer is the person who has the right of ownership to those properties that are listed in Art. 401 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.
A taxpayer is a legally capable individual or legal entity who has a direct obligation to pay the duty. The subject of taxation are persons who own:
- Living space, this includes an apartment or room.
- Own residential building.
- Parking space for a vehicle or garage.
- A single real estate complex.
- A piece of property whose construction has not yet been completed.
- Share in the above property.
All of the above types of property have their own subtleties. Thus, a citizen’s living space is part of an apartment building. Such a house is equipped with a staircase, a roof, and windows. All these elements are not taxable to an individual resident.
The plot of land where the house is located for personal farming, gardening, and livestock farming belongs to the second point. Therefore, he is subject to tax. It is necessary to mention the innovation in the legislation of the Russian Federation since 2016. Now non-residential premises are equal to residential premises and, accordingly, oblige the owner to pay a tax fee for them. Such locations include country or garden houses, gazebos.
Citizens can receive some privileges when paying taxes. Persons entitled to be partially or completely exempt from payments include:
Registration of social benefits is not limited by time. The person collects the required package of documents and submits it in any convenient way. The list of papers is as follows:
- Written confirmation of the object for which it is planned to receive material benefits;
- Evidence confirming the possibility of obtaining tax privileges.
The citizen chooses how to submit an application:
- Go to your local tax center yourself;
- On the Federal Tax Service website;
- Send a letter by mail.
Large families are a category of citizens to which the state pays special attention. However, they are not provided with benefits when paying the duty. In conditions of limited material capital, such privileges are not expected either at the federal or local level. The only exceptions may be certain municipalities that are legally exempt from taxes.
By law, large families are entitled to privileges when entering kindergarten. Minors from such families are enrolled in an educational institution with priority.
Children should pay taxes (opinion of tax authorities)
Tax center staff are conservative in their decision. For their reasons, minority does not exempt from constitutional obligation. Any person who owns any property is subject to taxation. Therefore, every time they intend to oblige the minor to pay fees. The basis for this decision of the tax authorities are logical facts:
- Property that is legally subject to duty is registered in the name of the child.
- Minors are not included in the list of grounds for obtaining benefits.
- According to Art. 80 of the RF IC, parents must support minor children.
In practice, it is the parent or legal representative who pays the tax fee for their child. After all, the youngest child does not have sufficient income to fulfill his responsibility.
As is known, in case of non-payment of duty, a fine is charged. Since in this situation the taxpayer is the teenager, penalties are issued in his name. However, the legislation of the Russian Federation prohibits bringing minors (under 16 years of age) to tax liability. Based on this provision, the actions of the Federal Tax Service are contradictory.
Arguments against"
For each statement of the Federal Tax Service, you can provide a counter-argument. Let's look from the other side at the obligation to pay property tax for a minor child.
| Argument from the tax authority | Counter argument |
|---|---|
| Art. 80 of the RF IC – maintenance by parents of a person under eighteen years of age. | The opinion of lawyers is that a kind of dependency does not include paying taxes for a child. |
| Penalties for non-payment or late payment. | Clause 2 art. 107 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation establishes that bringing to financial liability is possible only in relation to persons who have reached the age of 16. The resolution of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation dated March 13, 2008 regulates that full civil capacity arises only after reaching the age of 18. Ownership of real estate presupposes the implementation of certain legal actions (transactions, sales). The child, due to his minority and limited civil capacity, cannot fully manage his property. Hence the conclusion is that a minor with only partial civil capacity cannot pay tax. |
| Art. 8 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation defines the concept of “tax”. | Based on the theory given in the legislation, the taxpayer must pay the fee independently and with his own funds. As we know, minors do not fully have this opportunity. |
| Art. 45 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation stating that payment of the fee is made by the taxpayer himself. | Practice shows that the implementation of constitutional duties is undertaken by the legal representative. Here we can mention the Letter of the Ministry of Finance dated April 22, 2015. Payment of the fee by third parties, including relatives, is prohibited. |
| Letter from the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation dated April 23, 2009 N 3-5-04/495@ stating that the parent must pay a fine for his child. | This is counterbalanced by the decision of the Supreme Arbitration Court that the subject of tax legal relations is exclusively the teenager himself. Neither relatives, nor friends, nor legal representatives of the person. |
| Art. 51 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, which regulates the duty of a guardian to pay a fee for persons whose civil rights are limited by the court. | It is unlawful to use such an article, at least because children are not incapacitated persons. |
conclusions
So, does the child have to pay property taxes? Due to his minority, a citizen is not able to fully independently implement his constitutional obligation. The main helper and sponsor in such a situation are parents.
Ignoring receipts for property tax payments is not the most correct and fair decision.
It entails appropriate sanctions. In particular, a fine in the name of the taxpayer. Even in this case, parents take responsibility.
Opinions on this issue differ, but practice shows one thing: tax authorities continue to oblige children to pay a fee for property registered in their name. But this obligation is unconditionally fulfilled by the parents of their child.
However, it is worth remembering that property tax is set by the municipality. Thus, in Novosibirsk since 2010, the number of beneficiaries includes:
- minor citizens;
- orphans;
- orphans and persons without parental care aged 18-23 years.
Thus, the debate about the need to pay property tax for young children remains open today. Theoretical arguments do not justify the actual story. The older generation conservatively follows the maternal instinct - to be responsible for your child in any situation.
- The tax office demands that our daughter, who owns
part of the apartment paid property tax. But the girl is only 4 years old. How
Can I tax a child?
When forcing a child to pay property tax, tax authorities refer to the Tax Code and the Law of the Russian Federation of December 9, 1991 N 2003-1 “On the property tax of individuals.” Both there and there are no benefits for children, so formally the inspectors are right. Although the demands are absurd, these are our laws - officials are justified. However, they prefer not to notice that the Tax Code also contains arguments for the protection of children. Unfortunately, these arguments are often not noticed by judges in civil courts, who act on the principle: “If there is a tax, then someone has to pay it.”
Let's try to challenge this point of view. Let's start with the fact that according to Article 45 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, the taxpayer himself, that is, the child, is obliged to pay the tax, but he cannot do this. There may be exceptions to the rule given in Article 45, but they must be defined in the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, and there is nothing said there about payment for children. True, there is Article 27 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, from which it follows that the legal representatives of minors are their parents and therefore they must represent their son or daughter in every possible way, including paying tax - this is what the inspectors say. But let us remind you that according to Article 8 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, a tax is considered “a mandatory, individually gratuitous payment levied on organizations and individuals in the form of alienation of funds belonging to them by right of ownership.” Simply put, the tax must be paid “out of your own wallet,” which a four-year-old child does not have. Therefore, in fact, the tax may not be paid.
Inspectors, of course, do not like this logic, and they can impose a fine under Article 122 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation “Non-payment or incomplete payment of tax amounts.” It says that the defaulter will be charged 20 percent of the tax amount, or even 40 percent, if the inspector proves that the child was aware of the “illegal nature of his actions” (Clause 2 of Article 110 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). But the question is: who will they fine? A four year old girl? It won’t work, because according to Article 107 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, sanctions are legal if the violator is 16 years old. It seems possible to demand a fine from the parents; they are already over 16. But let us remember that officials call the father and mother “the legal representative of the individual taxpayer.” And the Tax Code of the Russian Federation provides for liability only for the action or inaction of legal representatives of the organization (Article 28 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation), to which a four-year-old girl again does not apply. Tax officials cannot take advantage of Article 51 of the Code, which deals with “fulfillment of obligations to pay taxes... by an incapacitated individual.” This article determines that a guardian can pay tax, but only for a person whom the court has declared incompetent. That is, this norm does not apply to children. Another “clue” for officials is Article 80 of the Family Code, which states that parents are obliged to support minor children. But does paying tax count as such content? We doubt it. And, besides, in tax legal relations, the Tax Code is more important, not the Family Code (Clause 1, Article 11 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).
To be fair, we note that for malicious evasion of child support, Article 157 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation also provides for criminal liability (three-month arrest). But we don’t think that judges will demand that a person be arrested for failure to pay a little over 30 rubles (that’s what they demand from a persistent four-year defaulter).
And finally, the last thing inspectors can threaten is penalties. Their amount is small (1/300 of the debt amount for each day of delay, multiplied by the Bank of Russia rate). This rate is now 16 percent, and annual penalties are approximately 19.5 percent (16 percent: 300 days X 365 days), or about 6 rubles. But, in our opinion, this amount does not have to be paid, since penalties are charged if the tax was transferred later than necessary (Article 75 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). And we have already said that in our case no one should list it. And in conclusion, we note that the tax can be collected only for three years (clauses 10 and 11 of Article 5 of the Law of the Russian Federation of December 9, 1991 N 2003-1 “On the property tax of individuals”).
Artem RODIONOV, tax expert, deputy editor-in-chief of the Double Entry magazine - especially for the Russian Business Newspaper.
Regardless of belonging to one category or another, every person who owns property on the territory of the Russian Federation pays property tax in accordance with the regulations established by law. The exception is preferential categories that are exempt from taxation under current tax legislation. If in relation to adult owners there is no doubt about the obligation to fulfill tax payments. The question of whether children pay property taxes is of interest to many parents.
To understand whether a child must pay property tax, it is necessary to refer to Russian legislation regulating the rights and obligations of citizens.
Property tax legislation
In the Federal Law “On Property Taxes” dated December 9, 1991. provides an exact indication of which categories of citizens are recognized as taxpayers. Thus, according to the provisions, any owner of an object recognized as taxable is obliged to pay tax. Exemption from the tax burden is not provided either by the property status of citizens or by the age of the owners. Thus, any individual, including citizens under 18 years of age, dependents, students, students, must pay tax for residential premises, house, cottage, garage, etc. under the following conditions:
- Availability of property included in the list of taxable real estate;
- Lack of federal and regional benefits in relation to the property or category of owner.
Since a minor child carries out all legally significant actions through his official representative, tax obligations also fall on the shoulders of the parents. If the legal representative of the child is a guardian, adoptive parent, or trustee, the rights to dispose of the minor’s property and the obligation to pay taxes are transferred to them.
Tax obligations of minors
- Property tax for minor children;
- Transport tax;
- Income tax.
Due to the fact that the income of persons under 18 years of age most often consists of alimony, pensions, various state benefits, as well as income as a result of inheritance, the vast majority of children's income is not subject to taxation.
Due to the lack of exclusivity in the status of a minor, the same principles of assignment to one or another preferential category apply to him as for adults. The conditions for receiving benefits that exempt minor children from paying property tax are given in federal legislation and locally established standards.
In order to correctly determine whether a child belongs to the preferential category of individuals, parents must come for clarification to the local branch of the Federal Tax Service, or clarify the issue on the website of the fiscal authority. If a minor owner falls into a preferential tax category, official representatives must promptly contact the tax office with a request for a benefit.
The easiest way to control children’s tax issues is to register them as taxpayers on the Internet portal of the Federal Tax Service. From your child’s Personal Account you can find out about all the property taxes payable on individuals, clarify the transfer details and pay. To gain access to your Personal Account, parents or guardians request a registration card at the nearest Federal Tax Service branch.
Objects of taxation
Information on taxable real estate is provided in Article 401 of the Tax Code.
Items for which you will need to pay tax in 2017 include:
- Residential buildings, other residential real estate, regardless of the number of shares and conditions of ownership;
- Country houses;
- Garages and parking lots;
- Unfinished construction projects;
- Other buildings and premises.
Before calculating the amount of property tax for minor children, the fiscal authority requests information about the property status of citizens to Rosreestr. It is on the basis of the information received about the registration of property rights within their region that Federal Tax Service employees will calculate payments and prepare receipts.
Privileges
The principle of assignment to one or another preferential category for children is the same as for adult taxpayers. The full list of persons exempt from taxes is specified in Article 407 of the Tax Code.
From the approved list of federal beneficiaries for this age category, benefits are provided if the child grows up in a family of military personnel who have lost their breadwinner. Status recognition is carried out in accordance with the provisions of Federal Law No. 76 “On the status of military personnel” as amended in 2016.
If the area of real estate (house, other building) built on a plot of land for gardening, vegetable gardening, individual housing construction, private household plots does not exceed 50 meters, the tax is not calculated.
In addition, the child may be granted a benefit at the level of local legislation. More detailed information is available in the regional offices of the Federal Tax Service.
Where to apply for benefits
In order for the child to be exempt from the tax burden, you should come to the appropriate tax office.
All measures to provide benefits are carried out by the child’s legal representative (parent/guardian/adoptive parent).
When contacting the fiscal authority, an adult representative presents the following documents:
- Personal identification documents and rights of representation;
- Documents of the minor;
- Certificates confirming that the case is eligible for preferential taxation.
If parents have previously applied for benefits, they will not need to apply again.
It is important to remember that according to the latest changes, the benefit can be provided only for one object of each type of property; the remaining objects, if there are several, will require payment of tax. At their discretion, the child’s legal representatives determine the object that will be exempt from tax. In the absence of timely notification, employees of the fiscal authority will independently select an object to assign a benefit based on its value.
Attention! Due to recent changes in legislation, the legal information in this article may be out of date!
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In this matter, the accuracy of the wording is important, so first it should be noted that, according to paragraph 1 of Article 54 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation child recognized as a person under the age of eighteen years (the age of majority).
Children must pay taxes (position of tax authorities)
On the one hand, according to Article 19 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation (TC), taxpayers and payers of fees are organizations and individuals who are obliged to pay taxes and (or) fees, respectively. Tax officials miraculously connect this obligation with Article 27 of the Tax Code, from which (in their opinion) it follows that the legal representatives of minors are their parents, and therefore they must pay taxes for their children and even refer to it in various explanations and letters (for example, in Letter of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation dated August 11, 2011 No. 03-05-06-01/62).
Tax authorities usually do not object to parents paying taxes for their children, since for them paying the amount to the budget is preferable. I believe that in this case, the parent who paid the tax can subsequently apply to the Federal Tax Service with a request for a credit or refund of the overpaid tax in accordance with Article 78 of the Tax Code, since The tax authority will have no grounds for refusal, but such a requirement may cause stupor among tax officials.
Arguments for why a child should not pay taxes
On the other side:
Tax return
The provision of Article 8 of the Family Code of the Russian Federation that parents are obliged to support their minor children has nothing to do with taxes, because Child support in the sense of family law does not mean the obligation to pay taxes for him.
Sample of filling out the 3-NDFL tax return for 2018: