Explanations on VAT. Electronic format for giving explanations on VAT. How does a taxpayer provide explanations?

During a desk audit of a VAT return, the Federal Tax Service has the right to demand from the taxpayer an explanation regarding the data reflected in the document. In this article we will talk about how to correctly draw up an explanation to the tax office regarding VAT and submit it to the Federal Tax Service, as well as analyze common mistakes and answer questions on the topic.

When can the Federal Tax Service request clarification on VAT?

The conditions under which the Federal Tax Service has the right to request clarification from the payer on the VAT return are enshrined in current legislative acts. Regulatory documents also regulate the procedure, timing and form of providing a response to a request.

Legislative acts on the topic

The table below shows regulatory documents that establish the rules for sending requests and providing a response to them.

Main reasons for requesting clarification

As we can see, tax authorities have the right to request clarification only in specific cases - when discrepancies, errors, or inaccuracies in the information specified in the declaration are identified. In practice, tax authorities request clarification in the following situations:

1. Arithmetic errors were identified in the calculation of tax amounts indicated in the declaration.
   If the declaration incorrectly indicates the amounts of income, expenses, and tax payable, and the error was made as a result of arithmetic calculations, then the Federal Tax Service has the right to request clarification in the prescribed manner. Read also the article: → "".
2. Inconsistencies were found between the indicators reflected in the declaration and the amounts indicated in the supporting documents.
   Another common reason for requests is discrepancies between the declaration data and supporting documents. Some information is not included in the sales/purchase book, the amount of the transaction indicated in the declaration is underestimated compared to the invoice - all these facts are grounds for requesting clarification.
3. Discrepancies were identified regarding the fact of cross-checking.
   If discrepancies are identified as a result of comparing the declarations of the taxpayer and counterparties, as well as by cross-checking supporting documents, then the Federal Tax Service has the right to demand clarification in the prescribed manner.
4. The payer filed an updated declaration, the amount of tax in which was reduced compared to the originally submitted documents. The taxman has the right to request clarification with the calculation and documents on the basis of which the payer reduced the amount of tax liabilities.

In addition to clarifications of the VAT return, tax authorities often make requests to clarify the data specified in the income tax return.

As in the situation with VAT, if a “clarification” is submitted with the tax amount downward, the Federal Tax Service has the right to request explanations and documents. In addition, the Federal Tax Service authorities request justification in case of filing a “unprofitable” declaration. To be fair, we note: if you submitted a “clarification” with a tax reduction or provided a declaration with losses, then the Federal Tax Service will ask you for clarification in almost 100% of cases. The actions of the Federal Tax Service in such situations are simply explained.

Firstly, the losses reflected in the declaration may be fictitious in order to reduce tax liabilities. Therefore, the fiscal service has every reason to request documents confirming income and expenses, as well as request a written explanation from the payer. As for the “clarification” that reduces the tax, tax authorities in this situation also have the right to receive written justifications and documents.

Step 1. Acceptance of a request from the Federal Tax Service

The first step in the procedure for drawing up and sending an explanation is to receive a request from the Federal Tax Service. According to regulatory documents, tax authorities send the request electronically via telecommunications channels. The fact that the request has been accepted is confirmed by a receipt that the taxpayer sends in response to a request from the Federal Tax Service.

Be careful: you must accept the request and send the receipt no later than 6 business days from the date of its receipt. That is, if you received a request on 07/17/17 (Monday), then you must accept it and send a response receipt no later than the following Monday (07/24/17). In case of delay, the Federal Tax Service has every reason to block the organization’s bank accounts and prohibit transfers cash in any form.

Step 2. Clarify the error code

According to current legislation, the Federal Tax Service's request is sent to the taxpayer indicating the code of the identified error. The code is assigned in accordance with the following classification:

• If you identify discrepancies with counterparties, enter error code “1”. A similar classification is applied to errors in cases where:

1. the counterparty did not indicate the entry you reflected in the declaration;
2. the partner submitted a “zero” declaration, while you provided data on the existence of transactions with the counterparty;
3. The supplier/buyer has not provided a declaration, so there is no possibility of data comparison.

• Discrepancies between sections 2 and 3 of the declaration are classified by code “2”.
• If the Federal Tax Service has identified a discrepancy between the data specified in sections 10 and 11 of the declaration, a request with code “3” will be sent to the payer. As a rule, errors with code “3” are associated with the reflection of intermediary transactions.
• If the Federal Tax Service has identified another error that is not subject to the above classification, then the request will be sent with code “4”. In this case, the number of the line in which the discrepancy was detected will be indicated in parentheses.

Step 3. Study of documents and calculations related to the requirement.

After accepting the request and sending the receipt, study the text of the request, and then proceed to analyze the documents and calculations that led to errors and discrepancies. Depending on the text of the request and the specified code, the following actions are possible on the part of the taxpayer:

1. If the Federal Tax Service has identified arithmetic errors in determining the amount of tax, it is necessary to conduct an additional recalculation of the amounts in order to confirm the error.
2. Let’s say tax authorities have identified discrepancies with counterparties. In this case, the first step will be to request a reconciliation report, the data of which must be compared with the primary documents issued by the counterparty and received from it. Based on the reconciliation, you can either identify your own errors or detect inaccuracies of your partner (the invoice was issued incorrectly, the amount of the transaction in the accounting does not correspond to the primary documents, etc.).
3. One of the most common grounds for a request is a discrepancy in the declaration data (information from the purchase book and sales book). To clarify the reasons for the discrepancies, you will need to review the primary documentation and check the correctness of the data entered. The reason for the discrepancies may be an incorrectly entered amount on the document (the amount on the account does not correspond to the data specified in the declaration) or a lack of information on any transaction (the invoice data is not included in the declaration).

Step 4. Compiling a response to the requirement.

After the cause of the error has been identified, write a response to the request in free form, indicating mandatory details(data from the Federal Tax Service, name and address of the payer). In the explanatory text, provide a clear and concise answer regarding the reasons for the discrepancies. Support the facts specified in the explanation with documents (it is advisable to indicate in the text the numbers of invoices, reconciliation reports, etc.).

Below is an example of a completed explanation.

To the Head of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation No. 34
Tula Sviridov S.D.
from Carnival LLC
TIN 8574123654
Gearbox 412536874
Legal address:
Tula, st. Sadovaya, 4
account number 741368451284125
at Stolichny Bank
c/s 854168451284133
BIC 884411856.

Ref. No. 18-5 from 07.17.17
at the input No. 74/5-15 from 07.12.17

RESPONSE TO DEMAND
about providing explanations

In response to the request for clarification on the VAT return for the 2nd quarter. 2017, we announce the following:
the discrepancy identified in the amount of 124,330 rubles is due to non-operating income received by Carnival LLC in the 2nd quarter. 2017, including:

• 000 rub. – overdue accounts payable including VAT;
• 330 rub. – interest on loans issued.

The amount of non-operating income (RUB 124,330) is reflected in the income tax return for the 2nd quarter. 2017 (Appendix 1 to sheet 02, line 100). According to the Tax Code (clause 3 of Article 149, clause 1 of Article 146), this amount is not taken into account when calculating the VAT tax base, therefore the amount is not reflected in the VAT return.

General Director of Carnival LLC ______________ Serpukhov D.K.

Step 5. Submitting an explanation to the Federal Tax Service.

After the explanation has been drawn up, the response should be submitted to the Federal Tax Service. Due to changes in legislation, from 01/01/17 the response to the request is transmitted only electronically via telecommunication networks. That is, if you received a request after 01/01/17, then you can submit the answer to it only in electronic format through a special communications operator. You must send an explanation no later than 5 days from the date you sent the receipt of its receipt.

Responsibility for failure to provide an explanation

Changes in legislation affected not only the format for providing explanations of discrepancies discovered during a desk audit, but also the liability provided for violating the procedure for providing a response. So, if you violated the deadline for submitting a response (5 days from the date of sending the receipt), then in this situation a fine of 5,000 rubles is provided. If the procedure is violated again within a year, the amount of the fine increases to 20,000 rubles.

A fine will be charged both in case of delay in submitting an explanation, and in a situation where an answer is not provided at all.

Common mistakes when compiling

Below we will look at the most common mistakes made when preparing an explanation for the VAT return.

Mistake #1. The answer is provided on paper.

Before the legislative changes came into force, that is, before 01/01/17, the payer could choose the form of providing a response to the request - electronic or paper. After 01/01/17, the Federal Tax Service accepts only electronic responses; explanations provided on paper are considered invalid.

Mistake #2. The deadline for providing a response expires 5 days after it is sent by the Federal Tax Service.

The reporting point for the response deadline is the day the request was accepted (the day the receipt was sent). That is, from the moment the Federal Tax Service sends the request, the payer is given a maximum of 11 working days to accept it, as well as to draw up and send a response: 6 days - acceptance of the request plus 5 days - sending an explanation.

Mistake #3. The Federal Tax Service sends requests within 30 days from the date of filing the declaration.

Rubric “Question and answer”

Question No. 1. Satellite LLC received a request to explain the errors that led to the understatement tax base VAT. After reconciliation of documents and recalculations carried out by Satellite, the presence of an error was confirmed, that is, the company had indeed underestimated the amount of tax payable. How does Satellite need to adjust the tax amount? How to write a correct response to a requirement?

In this case, Satellite must submit an updated tax return indicating the correct amount of tax to be paid. There is no need to provide an explanation for the request. The deadline for submitting a “clarification” is 5 days from the date of sending the receipt of acceptance of the request.

Question No. 2. During the inspection of the Federal Tax Service, discrepancies were identified between the data in the declaration of Kurs LLC and the information provided by the counterparty. 07/12/17 A demand was sent to the “Course”. During the examination of the documents by the Kurs accountant, it was revealed that the invoice specified in the counterparty’s declaration was not actually issued by the Kurs (there is no transaction). How can a Kurs accountant correctly respond to a requirement?

The fact of an unconfirmed transaction must be reflected in the table, the form of which was approved by order of the Federal Tax Service (MMV-7-2/189 dated 05/08/15). The table should indicate the amount of the transaction that is not confirmed, the details of the counterparty (TIN), the date and invoice number.

What has changed since 2017 in the procedure for submitting clarifications on the VAT return to the tax office? How can I submit explanations during a desk audit now? Is it now necessary to transmit explanations electronically? You will find answers to these and other questions, as well as a sample explanation, in this article.

When asked for clarification

After receiving the VAT return, the tax inspectorate can find out about it (clause 3 of article 88 Tax Code RF):

• errors;
• contradictions with documents;
• inconsistencies with the information available to tax office.

In such a situation, the tax office has the right to request clarification from the organization or individual entrepreneur that submitted the VAT return. For these purposes, tax authorities send a request for clarification (Appendix No. 1 to the order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated May 8, 2015 No. ММВ-7-2/189).

How to submit explanations: step-by-step instructions 2017

Let's assume that in 2017 you received a request from tax authorities to provide explanations on your VAT return. Let’s assume that the tax authorities discovered some contradictions in the declaration. How to proceed? We will explain in the instructions and provide a sample explanation.

Step 1. Submit your claim receipt

First, send the tax authorities an electronic receipt of the request for explanations (clause 14 of the Appendix to the Order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated April 15, 2015 No. ММВ-7-2/149).
Submit the receipt within six working days from the date of sending the request (Clause 5.1 Article 23, Clause 6 Article 6.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). If the receipt is not submitted within the specified period, then within 10 working days from the date of expiration of the six-day period, tax authorities will have the right to block bank accounts, as well as electronic money transfers (clause 6 of article 6.1, clause 5.1 of article 23, clause 2 clause 3, clause 2 of clause 11 of article 76 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

Step 2. Deal with the identified contradictions

Find out which of the operations reflected in the declaration the inspection found contradictions (inconsistencies). A list of such operations must be attached to the received request (Appendix to the Letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated November 6, 2015 No. ED-4-15/19395). For each entry in this list, the tax inspectorate indicates one of four codes for reference possible error, the transcript of which is given in the Appendix to the Letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated November 6, 2015 No. ED-4-15/19395.

Step 3: Double-check your VAT return

Double-check the correctness of filling out the VAT tax return for identified inconsistencies. Thus, in particular, it may be necessary to reconcile declaration entries with invoices. Moreover, pay attention to correctly filling in the details of records for which discrepancies have been established: dates, numbers, totals, correct calculation of the amount of VAT depending on the tax rate and the cost of purchases (sales).

Step 4. Submit clarifications or updated declaration

Once you have double-checked your VAT return you have two options further actions, namely:

• submit to the Federal Tax Service an updated tax return with correct information (if errors are identified and they lead to an understatement of the amount of VAT payable);
• provide explanations to the Federal Tax Service (if the identified errors or contradictions did not affect the VAT amount or if, in your opinion, there were no errors at all).

Explanations or an updated VAT return must be submitted to the tax authorities within five working days from the date of receipt of the request.

Since 2017, explanations are only in electronic form

Since 2017, explanations on the VAT return can be submitted exclusively in electronic form via telecommunication channels through an operator electronic document management. When providing explanations on paper, such explanations are not considered submitted since 2017. That is, submitting explanations “on paper” completely loses all meaning. This is provided for by the new paragraph 4 of paragraph 3 of Article 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

Note that until 2017, the Federal Tax Service of Russia believed that explanations on the VAT return can be submitted in free form on paper or in a formalized form via telecommunication channels through an electronic document management operator (Appendix to the Letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated November 6, 2015 No. ED-4 -15/19395). Since 2017, the “paper” option is completely eliminated.

The format of the explanations, which will be intended for the transmission of explanations in 2017, was approved by order of the Federal Tax Service dated December 16, 2016 No. ММВ-7-15/682. (paragraph 4 of paragraph 3 of Article 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). The Ministry of Justice registered the order on January 13. It came into force 10 days later – January 24, 2017. In this regard, when creating explanations using this format, there may be some peculiarities. However, in general, a sample of explanations on the VAT return, which may need to be submitted to the Federal Tax Service in 2017, may look like this:

New fine from 2017

If, as part of a desk audit of the VAT return, the tax authorities requested clarifications (clause 3 of Article 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation), then they must be submitted within five days. However, previously tax legislation did not contain any liability for failure to comply with the requirement to provide explanations. And some taxpayers simply ignored requests from tax inspectors.

From January 1, 2017 the situation will change. For failure to provide (untimely submission) explanations, a fine of 5,000 rubles was introduced, and for a repeated violation within a calendar year - 20,000 rubles. This is provided new edition Article 129.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, which was introduced by paragraph 13 of Article 1 Federal Law dated 05/01/2016 No. 130-FZ.

Taxpayers submitting a tax return in electronic form, from January 24, 2017, must also submit explanations to the VAT return only in electronic form in a format approved by the tax authorities. In addition, tax authorities have developed an algorithm for determining the volume of documents required from a taxpayer when conducting a desk tax audit of a VAT return.

If a desk tax audit reveals errors in the tax return (calculation) and (or) contradictions between the information contained in the submitted documents, or reveals inconsistencies between the information provided by the taxpayer, the information contained in the documents available to the tax authority, and received by it during the tax control, the taxpayer is informed about this with the requirement to provide the necessary explanations within five days or make appropriate corrections within the prescribed period. (Clause 3 of Article 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

New format of explanations for VAT returns

One of the cases of requesting documents as part of an ongoing desk audit (clause 8.1 of Article 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation) is the identification in the submitted VAT return of a discrepancy between the information about transactions and the information contained in the declaration of another taxpayer. If a company is required to submit a VAT return in electronic form, then explanations to the declaration must also be submitted in electronic form in the format approved by Order of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation dated December 16, 2016 No. ММВ-7-15/682@ (entered effective January 24, 2017).

This means that, effective January 24, 2017, “paper” explanations for taxpayers reporting electronically, are considered unrepresented with all the ensuing consequences (a fine of 5 thousand rubles - clause 1 of Article 129.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, and in case of repeated violation a fine of 20 thousand rubles will be charged - clause 2 of Article 129.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

What is the electronic format? Essentially this is a set technical requirements to the sent file, which must be provided by the corresponding electronic document management operator.

Algorithm for determining the volume of documents required during a desk audit

During a desk audit, the tax authority has the right to request from the taxpayer additional information or documents if the amount of VAT to be refunded is declared or tax benefits are claimed.

Often, during an audit, tax authorities request a large volume of documents from the taxpayer.

If the inspected person is unable to submit the requested documents within ten days, he, within the day following the day of receipt of the request for the submission of documents, notifies in writing the inspecting officials of the tax authority about the impossibility of submitting documents within the specified time frame, indicating the reasons why the requested documents cannot be submitted to established deadlines and about the time period during which the person being inspected can submit the requested documents (clause 3 of Article 93 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

But what if the tax authorities request copies of documents amounting to thousands or millions of sheets?

Let us note that tax legislation is based on the inadmissibility of causing unlawful harm during tax control measures (Article 35 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and Article 103 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

And if, when exercising tax control, tax authorities are guided by unreasonable or inappropriate goals and motives, tax control in such cases can turn into the necessary tool tax policy into a tool for suppressing economic independence and initiative, excessive restrictions on freedom of entrepreneurship and property rights, which, by virtue of Articles 34, 35 and 55 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, is unacceptable. The actions of tax authorities must not violate the rights and freedoms of others. This approach is formulated in the resolution of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation dated July 16, 2004 No. 14-P. And a clear indication of this is the dispute considered in the ruling of the Court of Justice Northwestern district dated 06/02/2015 No. A13-5629/2014, when, as part of an on-site tax audit, copies of documents were requested from the bank (assignment agreements (assignment agreements) with appendices, additional agreements, etc.; credit files on borrowers; collateral agreements , guarantees, on the opening of a letter of credit and others; analyzes of the financial condition of borrowers; information on the assessment of collateral and accounting registers; tax accounting(account statements) confirming the issuance of the loan and payment of the loan, interest, penalties on loans issued, etc.).

The taxpayer estimates that the documents requested represent more than 6,260,000 sheets; this number of copies can be produced on 100 printing devices within more than two months; to make such a number of copies, 12,520 reams of paper will be required with a total cost of 1,800,000 rubles, as well as 1,400,000 rubles. for purchase consumables(cartridges, rollers, photodrums) and related costs associated with full or partial replacement of copying devices due to their accelerated wear, payment of costs for delivery of copies of documents from separate divisions bank and with double pay for employees involved in working overtime and on weekends; the weight of the requested copies will be about 30 tons, and 20 Gazelle cars will be required to transport them.

However, the tax inspectorate refused the bank the opportunity not to submit documents confirming the legality of including in expenses the amounts of the reserve for possible losses on loans for loan agreements to provide borrowers with funds. The pre-trial appeal of the tax inspectorate's decision did not lead to positive results.

To successfully appeal the decision to refuse to provide documents in court, the bank made the following calculations: the persons conducting the tax audit (four people) do not have the physical ability to study such a volume of documents within the time frame established for the audit: four tax inspectors will need about 90 months to study the required volume of documents (if one employee reads 100 pages per hour, documents can be read within 15,650 hours (6,260,000: 4: 100), which corresponds to more than 1,950 days (8 hours each)).

The judges sided with the taxpayer, noting that the tax audit was carried out on the territory of the bank (clause 1 of Article 89 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). The persons conducting the inspection, having familiarized themselves with the originals of the documents submitted for verification, could not have been unaware of the volume of the bank’s document flow.

Also, these persons could not have been unaware of the number of documents requested from the bank.

Taking into account the possible material and time costs of the bank for making copies of documents, which the inspectors could not help but understand, the court considers the requirements to be inconsistent with the goals and objectives of the tax authorities and violating the rights of the applicant (Resolution of the Arbitration Court of the North-Western District dated 02.06.2015 No. A13-5629 /2014).

One of the most frequent requests from tax authorities carried out during a desk tax audit is the request for documents on preferential transactions, which are reflected in the VAT return in section 7 “Transactions not subject to taxation”.

Let us recall that the right to request documents within the framework of a desk tax audit regarding preferential transactions can be exercised by tax authorities in a situation where the applied benefit is intended only for a certain category of persons (clause 14 of the Plenum of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation dated May 30, 2014 No. 33, Resolutions of the AS of the Ural District dated 02/24/2015 No. A71-6132/2014, dated 02/17/2015 No. A60-21098/2014, dated 05/23/2014 No. A60-32962/2011, decision of the AS of the Primorsky Territory dated 27.01. 2015 No. A51-30238/2014).

Tax officials have proposed an algorithm for determining the volume of documents required from a taxpayer when conducting a desk tax audit of a VAT return (Letter of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation dated January 26, 2017 No. ED-4-15/1281@).

When conducting desk tax audits, tax authorities must take into account a combination of the following factors:

• the level of tax risk assigned by the Risk Management System of JSC NDS-2;
• the result of previous desk tax audits of VAT tax returns on the issue of the legality of taxpayers using tax benefits (Letter of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation dated January 26, 2017 No. ED-4-15/1281@).

The taxpayer being audited is required to provide the tax authority with explanations of the transactions (for each transaction code) for which tax benefits are applied. The taxpayer has the right to submit Explanations in the form of a register of supporting documents (hereinafter referred to as the Register), as well as a list and forms standard contracts used by the taxpayer when carrying out transactions using the corresponding codes.

Register of documents confirming validity

applications ___________________________________

(name of taxpayer)

tax benefits by transaction codes,

to the Value Added Tax Declaration

for ___ quarter ____ year

Based on the information contained in the Register submitted by the taxpayer, the tax authority will request documents confirming the validity of the application of tax benefits (Article 93 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

The volume of documents to be requested is determined for each transaction code in accordance with the algorithm set out in Appendix No. 2 to the letter from the tax authorities. The number of documents required depends on the level of tax risk assigned to the taxpayer according to the RMS ASK “VAT-2”.

For example, with a high tax risk, the volume of documents to be requested from the taxpayer, broken down by transaction codes, is 40% in mandatory for each operation code.

At the same time, at least 50% of the volume of documents subject to request must confirm the most large sums transactions for which tax benefits are applied.

Please note that taxpayers are not required to fill out the above Register.

However, if the company does not submit the Register in the recommended form, then the tax authorities will not be able to implement the algorithm proposed in the letter of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation. This means that if the taxpayer fails to submit the Register or if the Register is not submitted in the recommended form, the documents will be requested without using a risk-based approach (i.e. in a continuous manner).

Therefore, companies that have repeatedly submitted “preferential” documents during desk tax audits and have a low level of tax risk, it makes sense to prepare a Register recommended by tax authorities. Indeed, in this case, when conducting a desk audit, fewer documents will need to be submitted to the tax office.

An updated VAT return must be submitted when errors are identified that lead to an understatement of the tax or an overestimation of its amount accrued for reimbursement. Filing an updated VAT return in other cases is the right of the taxpayer, and not his obligation. We'll tell you how to make and submit a clarification.

Submitting an updated or corrective VAT return to the Federal Tax Service allows the taxpayer to correct errors made in the previously submitted version of this document. If an underestimation of the accrued tax amount is detected, filing an updated VAT return is mandatory (Clause 1, Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). The legislation does not oblige the VAT return to be adjusted, in which the amount of tax was overestimated, but the taxpayer is interested in it himself.

The tax inspectorate, when conducting a desk audit initiated due to the filing of an updated VAT return that reduces the amount of tax payable, has the right to request an explanation from the taxpayer (clause 3 of Article 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). The explanations (or calculation) must contain the justification for the changes made to the updated VAT return, and the taxpayer must provide them within 5 days after receiving such a request.

If an adjustment VAT return is submitted 2 years after the end of the reporting period in order to make corrections, then in accordance with clause 8.3 of Art. 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, the tax office may request from the taxpayer not only an explanation of the updated VAT return, but also primary documents and analytical registers.

Filing an updated VAT return, as a rule, entails a request for clarification (or, conversely, the update itself serves as a response to the tax authorities’ request). Since 2017, the Federal Tax Service Inspectorate has accepted such explanations only in electronic form (clause 3 of Article 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). Therefore, the established electronic format of such a submission can also serve as a model for an explanation of the updated VAT return, compiled on a voluntary basis and submitted at the initiative of the taxpayer simultaneously with the updated return.

Read about the consequences of submitting explanations in non-electronic form in the material “VAT clarifications are accepted only in electronic form” .

How to correct a VAT return? How to make an adjustment VAT return? If the question arises of how to make a VAT declaration that clarifies the values ​​already filed, then the answer is simple: you need to draw up a new declaration with the correct amounts. How to fill out an updated VAT return? It is necessary to enter all the values ​​​​into it completely, and not display only the difference between the incorrectly submitted ones and the correct ones. Thus, a sample of an updated VAT declaration is a regular declaration, only containing the correct (updated in comparison with the previously submitted document) numbers.

As for tax agents, in the clarification they display information only for those taxpayers for whom errors were discovered.

A sign of an updated document is a special code (adjustment number), which must be indicated in the VAT return title page in a separate field. The correction number corresponds to the serial number of the clarification submitted for the tax period in which the errors were discovered.

Another point that distinguishes the updated VAT return is the indication of relevance in sections 8 and 9. The relevance code in the updated VAT return has 2 meanings (clauses 46.2, 48.2 of the Filling Out Procedure, approved by Order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated October 29, 2014 No. ММВ-7-3/558@):

• 0 - if in the original version of the declaration sections 8, 9 were not filled out or changes are made to them;
• 1 - if these sections do not require data correction.

Making changes requires filling out appendices to sections 8, 9. The design features of these sections and appendices to them are described in the letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated March 21, 2016 No. SD-4-3/4581@.

Read about common errors in filling out declarations in the article “Tax officers generalize mistakes: check your VAT return” .

IMPORTANT! The updated declaration is filled out on the form that was in force during the period for which changes are made (clause 5 of Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). It should also be taken into account when submitting a clarification, by which it will be possible to judge the overpayment of tax, that the tax office reimburses the overpaid amount of tax (or makes a credit) only if three years have not yet passed from the date of payment of the “excess” tax (clause 7 Article 78 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

You can submit an update to receive a VAT deduction within 3 years after goods (work, services, property rights) are registered or imported into the territory of Russia (clause 1.1 of Article 172 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

If clarifications are submitted for the period in which a single (simplified) declaration form was submitted, you should submit the usual (full) declaration form, but indicate on it that this is a clarification. This is done if taxable transactions are indicated for which information about their absence was previously provided (in the reporting period). This norm was clarified by the Russian Ministry of Finance in its letter dated October 8, 2012 No. 03-02-07-1-243.

If the taxpayer has changed the registration address and switched to service in another Federal Tax Service, then the clarification is submitted to the new tax office, but the form itself indicates the OKTMO (OKATO) code of the previous territorial tax service (letter of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation for Moscow dated October 30, 2008 No. 20-12 /101962).

Procedure for submitting an update in 2019

How to submit an updated VAT return? Are there deadlines for filing an updated VAT return? Currently, taxpayers have an obligation to submit tax returns in electronic form. In accordance with paragraph 5 of Art. 174 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, declarations submitted on paper instead of the mandatory electronic format are considered unfiled.

These rules also apply to updated declarations (letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated March 20, 2015 No. GD-4-3/4440@). Therefore, in 2019 they are also submitted in electronic format.

But there are no specific deadlines for submitting clarifications. In this case, it is better to submit it immediately after independently identifying the error, since detection of this error by the tax authority can lead to a fine.

Consequences of submitting a clarification

If an update is submitted during the period when the deadline for filing the reporting declaration has not yet expired, then it is considered not updated, but submitted on time (clause 2 of Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). If a clarifying return is submitted after the end of the period allotted for filing the report, but before the end of the tax payment, then the taxpayer can avoid liability if this error was not discovered earlier by the tax authority.

You can avoid being held accountable when submitting an update after the end of the tax payment period if:

• before filing such an amended declaration, the arrears of tax and penalties on the amended VAT declaration were paid;
• the tax authority did not detect this error if an audit was carried out before the clarification was submitted.

A payment order for additional payment of VAT on an updated declaration is drawn up in the usual form, indicating in it the period for which the additional payment is made and the type of payment corresponding to the repayment of the debt (ZD instead of TP).

If an updated declaration is submitted at the time of a desk audit of the previous declaration, then the tax office must stop the ongoing audit (clause 9.1 of Article 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). Now a desk audit can begin after the clarification has been submitted.

Read about whether violation of the deadline for a desk inspection by the inspectorate may have consequences in the following publications:

• “How to punish a tax inspector for violating audit deadlines”;
• “The inspection delayed the camera room. Is there a chance to reverse the decision? .

If an amendment is submitted and the arrears are paid, but the penalty is not paid, a fine is imposed on the taxpayer (Resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation dated April 26, 2011 No. 11185/10).

The tax inspectorate may schedule a second on-site inspection when the taxpayer submits an updated return that reduces the amount of VAT, after completing the previous on-site inspection and drawing up a report on its results (subclause 2, paragraph 10, article 89 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated December 21, 2009 No. 03 -02-07/2-209 and Resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court dated March 16, 2010 No. 8163/09).

In relation to taxpayers whose control is carried out in the form of tax monitoring, when they submit an updated declaration with a reduction in the amount of tax payable, an on-site audit may also be assigned (subclause 4, clause 5.1, article 89 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

Read about how an on-site inspection is carried out in the material “Procedure for conducting an on-site tax audit (nuances)” .

Results

The taxpayer submits an updated return if errors are discovered after the end of the tax period, which led to a decrease/increase in the tax amount. The update is drawn up on the form that was in effect in the adjusted period and submitted to the Federal Tax Service in electronic format. If, as a result of correcting an error, a tax arrear has arisen, it must be repaid along with the payment of a penalty until the time of filing the updated declaration. And if, when submitting an update, an overpayment of tax occurs, the possibility of an on-site audit cannot be ruled out. Since 2017, a letter to an updated VAT return (explanation) can only be submitted electronically in the established format.

Based on the results of a desk audit, the taxpayer may receive a request from the inspectorate to clarify any information specified in the VAT return. From January 1, 2017, it is necessary to respond to such a requirement only electronically. For example, such an opportunity is available in the service for sending reports

To date, the Federal Tax Service has approved electronic formats for three types of requirements for the provision of explanations on VAT (letter of the Federal Tax Service dated 04/07/2015 No. ED-4-15/5752). These are requirements for control ratios, for discrepancies with counterparties and requirements for information not included in the sales book.

Let's look at what each of them includes and what a taxpayer should do if he receives such a demand.

The requirement for clarification of discrepancies has several implications. important features. Thus, it may contain erroneous invoices from several sections of the VAT return. As part of a desk audit of one declaration, several requirements of this type may be received. Finally, a request for clarification regarding a particular invoice is sent to both the buyer and the seller at the same time.

Explanation of information not included in the sales book

The procedure for responding to requirements of this type has not been officially approved, so we have included expert recommendations in this table.

If you receive a request...

...then you must send a receipt within six business days to accept the claim, after which you have five business days to respond to the claim (weekends and public holidays do not count).

Sanctions

For failure to provide or untimely provision of explanations, a fine of 5,000 rubles is provided. Please note that a response to a request sent to the inspection in paper form is considered not submitted (Article 88 of Federal Law No. 130-FZ dated May 1, 2016).

Report and respond to demands for 1,500 rubles per year!

Submitting reports to the Federal Tax Service and the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation is very simple. Prepare a report in your program, upload it to a service that will check the file for compliance with the law, then sign and send. If you have received a request for clarification on VAT from the tax office, fill out the clarification and send it to the inspectorate electronically. All service features start from 1,500 rubles * per year. Zero reporting- even cheaper. Submit zero reports to the Federal Tax Service, Pension Fund, Social Insurance Fund and Rosstat for 500 rubles per year!

Elizaveta Bulavina, expert of the Report.ru service of SKB Kontur.

*check the price for your region on the website