MOSCOW, July 19. /TASS/. Russia’s State Duma (lower house of parliament) has passed a bill in the second reading imposing a windfall tax on large companies. The document was proposed by the Russian government.

According to the document, the tax must be paid no later than January 28, 2024. It will be paid solely to the federal budget and will be a one-time fee, with around 300 bln rubles ($3.4 bln) worth of additional revenues expected.

The bill suggests imposing a windfall tax on entities whose average profit for 2021 and 2022 exceeded 1 bln rubles ($11.5 mln), defining that the tax base for this tariff is calculated as the increase of the arithmetic mean value of profit for 2021 and profit for 2022 over the arithmetic mean value of profit for 2018 and profit for 2019, while the tax rate is set at 10%

Meanwhile, if a certain amount of funds (of security payment) is virtually transferred to the federal budget in 2023, the tax may actually equal the amount calculated at the rate of 5%, while those funds will be set off against the windfall tax, the government said.

The bill also implies a number of categories of organizations that will be excluded from the number of windfall tax payers. The issue is about small and medium-sized enterprises, entities paying single agricultural tax, Russian organizations set up after January 1, 2021 (excluding those founded as a result of reorganization), foreign organizations that started activities in Russia through permanent missions after January 1, 2021.

Companies operating in the oil and gas sector as well as coal production are also excluded from paying the tax. Deputy Finance Minister Anton Siluanov explained earlier that additional tax exemptions on a mineral extraction tax and motor fuel duty are already envisioned for such companies this year.

It is suggested that if passed, the document will take effect on January 1, 2024.

"With the federal law ‘On windfall tax’ passed and implemented, the federal budget will receive 300 bln rubles ($3.4 bln) worth of additional revenues," according to the financial analysis of the draft law.