Russia may abolish transport tax

The Ministry of Transport of Russia may cancel the transport tax for cars and introduce instead of it an environmental fee. The Ministry of transport indicate that the rationale for this innovation to be ready before the end of 2017.

“The work is carried out in accordance with the Transport strategy of Russia for the period up to 2030. The document envisages reduction of energy intensity of transport and wider application of fuel efficient vehicles”, —  the newspaper Izvestia notes. Also, the source in the Ministry of transport pointed out that the discussed tax unlike the current does not provide for regional differentiation, Russian Reality reports.

The amount of the current tax is determined for each vehicle individually. Individuals pay it once a year, legal entities- quarterly. Its size is calculated on the basis of the regional rates, engine power, brand and model of the car, year of production and the time of ownership. Specific figures for all interested persons can be found out by entering these data on the website of the Federal Tax Service (FTS).

The office of Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich confirmed that such an initiative is being discussed. "Work to improve taxation on this topic continues,” the press secretary of the government's deputy chairman, Aliya Samigullina said. In turn, the Ministry of Economic Development told the newspaper that they had not yet got acquainted with the proposal of their colleagues from the Ministry of Transport.