Photo: https://guberniya.info/
The first month of summer brought a lot of innovations to the Russians. This includes paying additional allowances for children, tax write-offs for small and medium-sized businesses, as well as self-employed residents, revival of commercial domestic flights, and new rules for the sector of recreation and treatment.
New Benefits for Children
From June 1, the Russians can receive additional social payments for children. They were introduced by the government due to the coronavirus pandemic. A one-time allowance of 10,000 rubles ($142.45) will be paid to the people who have children aged 3 to 15 years. Notably, the child must not be more than 16 years old before July 1 of the current year.
Vladimir Putin announced the introduction of this payment during his address to the Russians on May 11 this year. There is also a simplified procedure for applying for this payment. To get it, it is only necessary to contact a multipurpose center or an office the Pension Fund. This payment can be also made remotely. It requires only visiting the website of public services and filling out an application. A child's birth certificate, TIN, and passport details of one of the child's parents are needed. These applications can be made from mid-May, and the documents have to be processed by October 1, 2020.
According to the Ministry of Labor, almost 22 mln young Russians are eligible for these payments.
Low-income families will receive additional payments for children aged 3 to 7 years, too. The amount of the monthly allowance is equal to 50% of the subsistence rate. It will be accrued from the beginning of the year and then will be paid monthly.
Bailiffs are to get More Information About Debtors
Since June 1, bailiffs have got access to information about the bank accounts of debtors. This is done so that debtors cannot easily hide from fines. At the same time, the requirements for the Russians receiving social payments will be tightened. These innovations are regulated by the Law on Enforcement Proceedings, which came into force on June 1 this year.
In order to prevent bailiffs from arresting social benefits, now, these payments will get an additional protection, namely, special marking. Notably, it was forbidden to arrest social payments earlier, but the bailiffs referred to the fact that it is impossible to distinguish social payments from other payments that are remitted go to bank accounts.
Assistance to Small and Medium-Sized Businesses
In mid-May, Putin proposed to relieve small and medium-sized companies of taxes and insurance premiums for the second quarter of this year. It also refers to self-employed entrepreneurs who have suffered losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, only VAT will not be written off.
At a press conference recently held by the Moscow Ministry of Investment, Industry and Science, the participants were told that as of June 1, the taxes on professional income will be paid back to self-employed residents in the Moscow region. Almost 73,000 residents of the Moscow region can apply for these refunds. At the same time, tax reimbursement would be made automatically, and no additional statements would be required from people.
Holiday Season is Starting
As already reported by wek.ru, the holiday season will start in some regions of the Russian Federation in June. However, it regards not only holiday homes and health resorts that have obtained special medical licenses. These facilities will be allowed to resume their operation with restrictions. Additional measures will be also required to ensure the safety of holidaymakers against the background of the pandemic of the novel coronavirus. This applies to holidaymaking and treatment in the Republic of Karelia, the Krasnodar territory and the Crimean Peninsula. Resolutions on reopening these facilities will be made by regional governments.
In general, there are some innovations in the tourism industry, too. For example, the administrative responsibility for violating the laws that regulate the organization of children's leisure and recreation. Only the organizations that were placed in a special register will have permission for providing these services. Fines of 500,000 ($7,122.50) to 1 mln ($14,245) rubles will be imposed for the violations of this kind.
Flights Are to be Resumed
Since the beginning of summer, Pobeda low-cost airline has resumed domestic flights. The resumption will be a step-by-step procedure. The low-cost airline announced pleasant news for travelers that prices for tickets were reduced after the forced suspension of flights. The airline's management is going to apply to the Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsiya) to get permission for COVID-19-lelated subsidies.
Banking “Roaming Services” are Canceled
Since June 14, due to the Law on Amendments to Article 29 of the Federal Law on Banks and Banking activities adopted in December last year, bank “roaming services” will be canceled. This means that from mid-June, money transmissions between clients’ accounts in the same bank will become free even if they were opened in different regions. Previously, higher interest rates were charged. Recall that the Central Bank has already imposed a ban on charging fees for “quick transfers,” which a client makes by phone number. At present, almost 50 credit institutions have joined the faster payments system. This easing of regulations took effect as of May 1. It concerns the transfers not exceeding 100,000 rubles (1,424.50.)