Monitoring of the Federal Legislation dated 18.06.2010

Federal Law No. 121-FZ of June 17, 2010 on Amending Article 29 of the Law of the Russian Federation on Education

The federal law specifies a procedure for financing pupils| catering at general education institutions. According to the amendments made, regions are entitled to allocate assets for catering pupils of accredited non-governmental general education institutions. Earlier catering has been only provided for municipal education institutions.

Federal Law No. 120-FZ of June 17, 2010 on Amending Article 184 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

The federal law specifies some provisions of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation which concern bribing of participants and organizers of professional tournaments and spectacular commercial tenders. According to the amendments made, persons who have committed the crime because of extortion on the part of participants and organizers shall be released from liability. They also concern citizens who have voluntarily reported on bribery to the body authorized to initiate criminal proceedings.

Federal Law No. 119-FZ of June 17, 2010 on Amending the Federal law on the State Registration of Rights to Immovable Property and Transactions Therewith, as Well as Some Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation

The purpose of the amendments lies in increasing protection of participants in share construction. They consolidate the list of outlays to be made on account of shareholders. The latters are entitled to dissolve an agreement judicially in the event of spending assets by the builder for a wrong purpose. Earlier a shareholder could deny execution of an agreement, if the builder had not transferred the construction object within the time period fixed by the former. Now such right arises in two months after the expiry of this time period. The minimum warranty period of the technological and engineering equipment forming part of the construction object to be transferred to shareholders has been reduced from 5 to 3 years. A share construction object shall be in a shareholder|s pledge as from the date when a permit is obtained to put it in operation (earlier as from the time of the state registration of the builder|s right of ownership). The builder|s guarantor shall bear subsidiary liability with respect to the builder|s commitments, rather than joint one. Now shareholders| assets may not be attracted on the basis of the Law on Investment Activities in the form of capital investments. Administrative liability has been established for non-presentation of documents (data) to the body exercising control and supervision over share construction. Not only the agreements of participation in share construction but also the rights of their participants to an appropriate construction object shall be subject to the state registration. The builder|s services within the framework of an agreement of participation in share construction (except for those which are rendered while building a construction object of industrial purpose) shall be exempted from value-added tax.

Decision of the Presidium of the Higher Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation No. 17933/09 of May 11, 2010

The reason for a company|s taking a legal action was the refusal to reimburse value-added tax out of the budget. In the opinion of a tax authority, the company had no right to apply the zero rate of value-added tax when exporting repair technical documentation for sale (because the latter is not a commodity). The Presidium of the Higher Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation has found the refusal unlawful and has given the following explanations. By virtue of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, when selling commodities exported under the customs treatment of export, the 0% rate of value-added tax shall apply. A taxpayer is entitled to reduce the total amount of the tax subject to deductions from it. The tax amounts drawn against a taxpayer when acquiring commodities (works, services) on the Russian territory shall be subject to deduction. The Tax Code of the Russian Federation recognizes as a commodity any property sold or intended for sale and as a service any activity whose results, not being material ones, are sold and consumed in the course of exercising it. In the case under consideration the company under a contract of commission made with an enterprise was obliged to supply thereto repair technical documentation. To discharge this obligation it addressed Russian contractors which are developers thereof. Neither the enterpriser, nor the company have developed this documentation and have not registered it as an intangible asset. It has been acquired by the company and itemized solely as a commodity for its exporting. Hence, the documentation exported for sale is a commodity

Letter of the Department of Tax and Customs Tariff Policy of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation No. 03-02-07/1-276 of June 11, 2010 on Execution by a Bank of the Decision of a Tax Authority on Suspending Operations on Taxpayer|s Accounts Pending the Receipt of the Decision on the Reversal of Suspending Operations on Accounts of This Taxpayer

A bank is obliged to execute the decision of a tax authority on suspending operations on a taxpayer|s accounts. It shall be done pending the receipt of a report on reversing it. Such suspension shall be reversed at latest within one day following the date when a tax authority receives the documents (copies thereof) proving the recovery of a tax, penalty or fine. Thus, a bank is not entitled to make operations on a taxpayer|s accounts pending the receipt of the decision on the suspension|s reversal.