MOSCOW, May 29. /TASS/. The proposed changes to the Russian tax system are a serious and needed initiative, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"This is a very serious initiative. It is really needed and is in line with the main conceptual messages that the President [of Russia Vladimir Putin] voiced in his address to the Federal Assembly. So, of course, there will be a broad discussion," he said.

The Russian Finance Ministry said in its press release on Tuesday that it has submitted to the government a package of amendments to the fiscal system. "The Russian Finance Ministry put forward to the government a package of draft laws comprising amendments to the Budget Law for 2024 and the planned period of 2025 and 2026, and amendments to Internal Revenue and Budgetary Codes. Proposals will be reviewed by the commission for lawmaking activity and then at a meeting of the Russian government," the ministry said.

The State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, can approve amendments as early as during the spring session, the ministry noted.

In particular, the ministry suggests raising the corporate income tax from 20% to 25% since January 1, 2025. The individual income tax on dividends and deposits is planned to be set as 13% for the amount up to 2.4 mln rubles ($26,600) and 15% above this amount. A progressive scale is planned for the individual income tax.

The mineral extraction tax is proposed to be increased by 1.15 times when producing iron, by 2.3 times for producers of potash fertilizers, and by a factor of two for producers of phosphate fertilizers.