Personal income tax deadlines for payment by tax agents

In 2016, numerous amendments to the Tax Code came into force. Thus, the procedure for submitting the service was changed, as well as the procedure for submitting the LLC report. The changes also affected the deadlines for paying personal income tax (personal income tax), the tax agents of which are organizations and individual entrepreneurs.

Basic rules for paying personal income tax

When it comes to personal income tax, an enterprise accountant must correctly determine three dates:

  • the employee’s receipt of income (salary, vacation pay, sick leave, etc.);
  • tax withholding;
  • tax transfers to the budget.

It is these deadlines that tax officials will pay attention to, and failure to comply with them will become the basis for imposing penalties on the company.

List of basic rules for paying personal income tax in 2016:

  • the date of calculation of personal income tax coincides with the actual date of its receipt;
  • tax is withheld on the day the income is paid to an individual;
  • The tax agent is obliged to transfer personal income tax to the budget no later than the next day after it was withheld, with the exception of vacation and sick leave payments;
  • Since 2016, the deadline for transferring tax to the budget directly depends on the type of income (salary, vacation pay, dividends, etc.), and not on the method of receiving it by an individual (cash, bank payment), as was previously the case.

Personal income tax from salary in 2016

Regardless of the taxation regime and type of activity (anyone can obtain this information), all organizations and individual enterprises are payers of personal income tax on employee salaries.

date of receiving

According to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, employees must be paid salaries at least once every half month. Issue days are established at each individual enterprise on the basis of a collective or labor agreement.

Most domestic companies pay staff exactly twice a month. The first payment is called an advance payment, and the second payment is called final payment. The date of actual receipt of wages is considered to be the last day of the month for which wages are accrued. Thus, in tax reporting for personal income tax, the last day of each month must be indicated as the date of receipt of the employee’s income in the form of wages.

Hold date

The date of deduction is taken to be the day of payment of the second half of the salary (final payment). When calculating the personal income tax amount, payments for both halves of the month are added up.

Until the employee receives his salary in full, personal income tax does not need to be withheld and transferred to the budget, but this does not in any way affect the date of receipt in the reporting.

Date of transfer to the budget

Since 2016, the tax agent is obliged to transfer personal income tax from the salary no later than the next day after its issuance (and, accordingly, withholding) to the employee. On the day of retention, this is also acceptable.

Is it possible to pay personal income tax in advance?

The Tax Code prohibits such actions. The fiscal service will regard the payment as “unexplained receipt.” Exceptions are possible, but the tax agent will have to go through a court procedure to establish the correctness of the calculation of personal income tax if the transfer to the budget was made ahead of schedule.

Also, accountants often make a mistake when paying tax on advance payments. But according to the current legislation, the salary cannot be considered received until the end of the month, which means that the personal income tax on the advance will not be summed up with the personal income tax on the final salary, and a shortage will be recorded. In such a situation, the tax agent will face penalties in the amount of 20% of the missing amount.

Advice: One cannot ignore another common mistake of entrepreneurs, which concerns the incorrect interpretation - exemption from using a cash register does not exempt from compliance with cash discipline.

An example of the correct indication of terms and transactions with personal income tax from salary

On May 20, 2016, the employee was paid an advance for the first half of the current month, and on June 10, the rest of the salary for the second half of May. The day of receipt of income in the form of wages will be considered May 31, the day of personal income tax withholding will be June 10. The tax must be transferred to the budget on June 10 or 13 (the 11th and 12th are days off).

Despite the fact that it is quite simple to determine and indicate the correct dates (as well as the site), errors in reporting are still common.

Changes in the procedure for paying tax on sick leave and vacation pay in 2016

Vacation and sick leave are not related to salary. The tax is withheld from them on the day the income is received in cash or on a bank card. Since 2016, the deadline for paying personal income tax on vacation and sick pay to the budget has been changed. Now it can be transferred no later than the last day of the month in which the issue was made. Previously, this had to be done directly on the day sick leave or vacation pay was accrued to the employee.

The deadlines for paying personal income tax in 2016 have changed. A table with tips will help you quickly figure out when and what to pay. Now it will be easier for an accountant to pay personal income tax from employee income. Look at the table to see how to pay tax on different types of income.

How to pay personal income tax on salary in 2016

Deadline for personal income tax payment in 2016 (table below) for legal entities it now depends on whether the employee received the money or not. If a company pays salaries in cash, then personal income tax must be withheld on the day the employee actually received the salary. And the tax is transferred no later than the next day. If an employee does not receive his salary on time, personal income tax is not paid.

According to the old standards, the company paid personal income tax on the same day when the company withdrew money from the bank for payments or transferred it to the accounts of employees.

When to pay personal income tax on vacation and sick pay in 2016

According to the new rules, it has changed from fate of personal income tax payment in 2016 from vacation and sick leave. Now the tax is paid no later than the last day of the month in which the employee received vacation pay.

If the last day of the month falls on a weekend, then the deadline for personal income tax payments in 2016 is postponed to the next working day.

Example : You paid your employee vacation pay on February 15th. Accordingly, personal income tax from them must be paid to the budget no later than February 29.

Let us remember that the old rules obligated the company to pay personal income tax on the day you received cash for vacation pay from the bank. Or personal income tax had to be paid on the day you transferred the amounts to your employees’ cards.

So you don't get confused, we've collected everything deadlines for personal income tax payment in 2016 in the table below.

Deadlines for paying personal income tax in 2016. Table.

Documents on personal income tax

Here are some useful materials on personal income tax.

Deadlines for payment of personal income tax by tax agents. Deadlines for transferring personal income tax upon dismissal. Responsibility for violation of deadlines for personal income tax payment.

In 2015, amendments were made to paragraph 6 of Article 226 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation regarding the timing of the transfer of withheld personal income tax by tax agents (legal entities, individual entrepreneurs), coming into force on January 1, 2016.

Deadlines for payment of personal income tax by tax agents

* Personal income tax is calculated and withheld from the fully accrued salary for the month (personal income tax is not withheld separately from advances and is not transferred to the budget) - Letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated April 10, 2015 No. 03-04-06/20406.

**If vacation pay, compensation for vacation, benefits (taxable with personal income tax) are paid as part of the calculation for dismissal, personal income tax is paid no later than the day following the day the income is paid to the taxpayer (calculation upon dismissal).

If after the end of the month the salary is paid in several parts, personal income tax is withheld and transferred when each part is paid.

Responsibility for violation of deadlines

For violation of the deadlines for payment of personal income tax, tax agents pay a fine under Article 123 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and penalties under Article 75 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

Article 123 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Failure of a tax agent to fulfill the obligation to withhold and (or) transfer taxes

Unlawful failure to withhold and (or) transfer (incomplete withholding and (or) transfer) within the period established by this Code of tax amounts subject to withholding and transfer by a tax agent entails a fine in the amount of 20 percent of the amount subject to withholding and (or) transfer.

Article 75 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Penya

3. A fine is accrued for each calendar day of delay in fulfilling the obligation to pay a tax or fee, starting from the day following the tax or fee payment established by the legislation on taxes and fees, unless otherwise provided by Chapters 25 and 26.1 of this Code.

4. The penalty for each day of delay is determined as a percentage of the unpaid amount of tax or fee.

The interest rate of the penalty is assumed to be equal to one three hundredth of the refinancing rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation in force at that time.

Personal Income Tax – Personal Income Tax. This type of fee is paid from the total amount of all income of an individual, called the main taxpayer (PT). By law, not only Russian citizens who are tax residents are required to pay it, but also foreign citizens who earn money in the Russian Federation. In this article we will talk about the deadlines for paying personal income tax for individuals, legal entities and individual entrepreneurs, and consider the main mistakes.

A special category of taxpayers is tax agents (TA), who can become a legal entity or individual entrepreneur. Agents mediate between the state and the government, calculating, withholding and paying taxes if the individual receives their income from them. In this case, personal income tax must be paid on the same day on which the employee was given the earned funds: in cash or by bank transfer.

Taxation of the NA itself occurs by recalculating the cumulative total from the beginning of the year to the end of each month. Taxes are paid at the place of registration of the agent, not HE. It is worthwhile to provide an explanation regarding the actual tax receipt date mentioned in the requirements for payment of tax and filing of a declaration:

Important! From January 1, 2016, personal income tax will have to be transferred no later than the following date. after the day of actual payment.

Deadlines for personal income tax payment for individuals, entrepreneurs and tax agents

For each category of personal income tax taxpayers, there are special conditions for paying this tax and filing a declaration. For those categories of taxpayers who are required to make advance payments, the tax office itself sends out notifications. The amount of the advance payment is determined by the tax office based on the figures provided by the tax authority in the declaration for the past year (or the tax authorities calculate it based on the amount of expected income).

Taxpayer From what income Personal income tax payment deadline Advance payments Deadline for filing a declaration
Individual (not engaged in business)According to the profit recorded in the 3-NDFL declaration;

For profit not subject to taxation, recorded by NA (valid until 2016)

Until July 15 of the next calendar year. for past NPNoUntil 30.04 of the year following the reporting year
For income not subject to taxation, recorded by NA (since 2016)Until December 1 of the calendar year following the previous NPNo
For income independently calculated and transferred by the taxpayer only for the purpose of obtaining tax deductions Any day after the end of the calendar year
A foreign citizen who periodically travels to his homeland and is not engaged in businessFor income recorded in 3-NDFL, sent ahead of scheduleWithin 15 calendar days from the date of sending the early declarationNoA month before the next departure home
IPBy business incomeUntil July 15 of the year following the reporting yearFor January-June: until July 15 (1/2 of advance payments for the entire reporting year)Until April 30 of the year following the reporting year
Representatives of private practice (including notaries and lawyers who have opened their own office)By income from core activitiesUntil April 30 of the year following the reporting year Until July 15 of the year following the reporting year

Note: when profits from private practice appear during the year, a 4-NDFL declaration is drawn up within 5 days after the expiration of a month from the date such income appeared

If the day of filing the declaration is a weekend, the deadline is postponed to the next working day.

Important! A 2-NDFL certificate is submitted for each employee. Read also the article: → “. The employee must have worked during the reporting period for which the returns are submitted. The requirement is met even if the employee ultimately quits.

Penalties:

  • 5% of the amount of personal income tax that was not transferred, for each partial/full month, starting from the date when it should have been paid. Limitation: the fine should not exceed 30% of this amount, but will not be less than a thousand rubles.
  • a penalty equal to 1/300 of the refinancing rate in effect on the date of the late payment.

Deadlines for payment of personal income tax by individuals

Personal income tax must be transferred no later than one day following the day of actual payment of income, including wages (including deposited and late paid). This rule came into force on January 1, 2016. Previously, personal income tax was paid on the very day when the organization withdrew cash from a bank branch for salaries or made a transfer to an employee’s account.

If cash balances from the company’s cash register were used, personal income tax was deducted no later than the next day. day. But a problem arose with deposited pay, since no actual payment occurred, and according to the law, tax is not calculated from invoices not posted to employees.

In the case of self-payment of personal income tax, he indicates the source of his income in the 3-NDFL declaration and submits it by April 30 of the calendar year following the reporting NP. Read also the article: → “. The tax itself is paid until July 15 of the same year. Declarations must be sent to the tax office at your place of residence. If cash deductions for personal income tax are not expected due to tax deductions, the declaration can be submitted on any day before the end of the year (calendar).

The procedure for transferring personal income tax from various payments

Features of tax payments are indicated in the table:

Income Tax withholding period Deadline for transferring taxes to the budget A comment
Salary and various benefitsPayday, bonuses, etc. (cash withdrawal or money transfer)Same or trace. day after himSalaries for the first 2 weeks of the month are issued without deductions, personal income tax is deducted from the second half of the salary (for the 3rd and 4th weeks of the month)
Compensation for unused vacation to a dismissed employeeDay of actual issuance of money (last working day for settlement)Same or next day
Prepaid expensePayday for the second 1/2 month (cash or transfer)Same or trace. dayTax on the full amount of salary (together with the advance payment) is calculated last. day of the month, you need to withhold it on the day the money is issued, and transfer it to the budget until the next day. after payday
Sickness benefits (including care for a sick family member)Day of actual disbursement of fundsUntil last day of the month in which the money was issuedYou don’t have to wait until the end of the month, you can pay earlier
Vacation payDay of issue of fundsUntil last day of the month of paymentYou can pay money to the budget earlier than at the end of the month, but not later
DividendsDividend payment dayIf LLC: until the day, next. after the dividend day

If JSC: no later than the month in which one of the following dates occurs faster than others:

– day of the end of the NP,

– the day on which the last term of the agreement with the JSC for the payment of income from shares expires;

– day of issue of money or transfer of shares

Deadlines for payment through a tax agent (TA)

ON can be:

  • Russian companies,
  • A separate division of a foreign company in the Russian Federation,
  • Lawyers who opened their own office
  • Notaries in private practice.

Payment of personal income tax through the NA is possible in relation to the income of an individual that was received from working for the NA. The exceptions are:

  • proceeds from repo;
  • securities lending transactions;
  • income from participation in an investment partnership;
  • profits paid by foreign firms from the state. and municipal securities, issue-grade securities that were issued by Russian companies;
  • actions with securities and derivative financial instruments, payments on securities grew. issuers;
  • payments to certain categories of citizens listed in Art. 227 Tax Code of the Russian Federation;
  • payments for certain other types of income specified in Art. 228 Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

For income to which a different rate is applied, and for profit from equity participation in a company, the tax is calculated for each amount paid to the taxpayer separately. If within the specified time frame, for good reason, it is not possible to withhold the required amount of personal income tax from the OH, the NA informs the individual and the tax office about this no later than March 1 next. for the past tax period of the year.

If it was not possible to deduct personal income tax on the same day on which the taxpayer received earnings, the tax authority has a chance to make a deduction on the next day. day, but not later, is the deadline.

There is also a separate accepted deadline for the deduction of personal income tax for the tax for one taxpayer, which will be less than one hundred rubles: the amount is added to the tax that must be paid next. month, but, in any case, the money will have to be transferred to the budget no later than December of the current year.

An example of calculating personal income tax from wages

  • The salary of an employee of the enterprise is 60 thousand rubles.
  • On January 18, 2016, he received an advance of 24 thousand rubles (at this stage there is no need to withhold personal income tax).
  • The employee has 3 daughters, one of whom has a disability. The employee has the right to a standard children's personal income tax deduction for each of his daughters (its amount will be 17,800 rubles).
  • The organization pays the second half of the salary until the 2nd.
  • We withhold 70 rubles from the employee (personal income tax on material benefits);
  • We calculate the amount of personal income tax to be withheld from the employee’s pay for the month of January:

(60 thousand – 17800) * 13% (personal income tax rate) = 5486 rubles.

  • Let's calculate how much the employee will be paid on February 2, 2016:

(60 thousand – 24 thousand – 5486 – 70) = 30444 rubles.

An example of calculating personal income tax from vacation pay

Employee A of the enterprise must go on vacation on February 20, 2016. The amount of vacation pay was 16,500 rubles. Employee B of the same company goes on vacation on February 24, 2016. His vacation pay amounted to 22,500 rubles. Personal income tax on vacation contributions must be withheld on the day the employee receives them. That is, from employee A he will be withheld on February 16, 2016 in the amount of 2145 rubles. And from employee B, personal income tax will be withheld on the day of pay in the amount of 2925 rubles. At the end of the current month, 02/29/2016, the enterprise sent to the budget the total amount of personal income tax accrued on vacation pay in the amount of 5,070 rubles.

Regulatory acts on the topic

The following documents should be taken into account:

Typical mistakes in paying personal income tax

Mistake #1. The accountant transferred personal income tax from the salary along with contributions to social funds on a date on which the employee of the enterprise had not yet actually received the money.

This can happen, especially since the amount of personal income tax is known in advance, since it is calculated using the amount accrued last. day of the month of salary. It is impossible to deduct personal income tax before the due date, as this will be regarded as payment of personal income tax at the expense of the tax authority.

Mistake #2. The accountant’s secondary deduction is at the same time as the main personal income tax payment in the current month for the previously paid personal income tax from vacation pay last month.

Deduction of personal income tax in advance is unacceptable; this is regarded as payment of tax from personal income tax funds.

Mistake #3. Withholding personal income tax from the first half of the salary, that is, from the advance payment.

Personal income tax on wages is withheld from the employee in the second half of the month, from the remaining amount to be paid.

Answers to frequently asked questions

Question No. 1. What to do if you have already mistakenly paid personal income tax on an employee’s vacation pay ahead of time?

The tax office will not be able to take into account the money you sent against future personal income tax payments, so all you have to do is send them an application for the return of the erroneously sent money and pay in full all appropriate personal income tax deductions. This must be done without waiting for a response from the tax authority, otherwise there will be a delay, which will entail a fine and penalties.

Question No. 2. Personal income tax per employee, taking into account all deductions due to personal income tax, is on average only 60 rubles per month. When should an accountant make personal income tax deductions from his salary?

For personal income tax deductions of less than 100 rubles, the rule applies: you need to add this amount to the amount of personal income tax payable next. month, but transfer all the money together to the tax office no later than December of this year.

Question No. 3. An individual receives profit from transactions with securities, how should personal income tax be transferred for it?

In the case of receiving income from securities, the amount of personal income tax is calculated for each individual transaction that results in the receipt of income.

Question No. 4. When is the deadline for transferring personal income tax for financial benefits from savings on interest, if the RA did not make deductions for this income?

No later than next 1st. month.

Question No. 5. When to transfer personal income tax on income during offset?

The next day after the test.

Question No. 6. When to pay personal income tax on the income of a posted worker?

First day of next month.

If the salary is issued from the cash register, then personal income tax must be paid to the budget no later than the day the cash is received from the bank for its issuance, i.e. on the same day that cash is withdrawn from the check. But what should an accountant do if an employee fails to show up to collect his salary?? In this case, is it not necessary to write any applications to the INFS for a personal income tax refund, and subsequently pay it again (on the day the employee receives the money)?

This is a general rule for personal income tax on wages (clause 6). At the moment when the salary is accrued, there is no need to withhold tax and transfer it to the budget. There was no payment of income (clause 4 of Article 226 of the Tax Code). The tax must be transferred to the budget only the next day after the employee receives the money. When an organization withdraws money from a bank account to pay salaries, it needs to transfer personal income tax withheld from employee income. If one of the employees cannot receive a salary from the cash register within the time period established by the organization - for example, due to illness, it is deposited (that is, it is considered received with a deferment). At the same time, there is no need to return personal income tax from the budget - it does not contain such a procedure. Upon returning to work after illness, the employee will receive the amount of salary minus personal income tax from the cash register.

Therefore, the fact that the employee received his salary later does not in any way affect the organization’s calculations with the budget. Transfer the tax on the day following the date of actual payment of your salary.

If the deadline for paying personal income tax on deposited wages is not important for the organization, it does not need to be postponed until the employee receives the money.

It is more convenient for an accountant to transfer taxes for all employees in one payment order. Therefore, an organization can pay personal income tax on the entire salary - both paid and deposited - in one payment. This option can be justified by the fact that the deposited salary has already been accrued. You withhold and pay personal income tax at the expense of the employee’s income, and not at the expense of the tax agent, which is prohibited (clause 9 of Article 226 of the Tax Code).


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When to transfer personal income tax?

When should a tax agent transfer personal income tax?

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Payment terms: salary, advance, bonuses, benefits, compensation

When calculating salaries, bonuses, benefits. It provides tips using real examples on when to pay. If you are late with the calculation and pay the money later, the organization faces administrative and financial liability (parts 6 and 7). And the head of the organization faces criminal liability (Article 145.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).

Personal income tax on bonuses, tax payment deadlines for monthly payments

When paying bonuses based on the results of work for the month, which are part of the salary, the date of actual receipt of income is recognized as the last day of the month for which the bonus was accrued. In this case, personal income tax on premiums paid after the end of the month must be transferred no later than the date following the day the income was paid. Such clarifications are contained in the letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated March 26, 2018 No. 03-04-06/18932.

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What act can establish the terms of payment of wages?

The salary payment day can be established by one of three documents: internal labor regulations, a collective agreement or an employment contract. There is no need to specify payment terms in all of these documents at once. This is stated in the letter of the Ministry of Labor dated September 23, 2016 No. 14-1/OOG-8532.

In addition, you can complain about delayed payments to. Yours. He will suggest the right solution.


In the article, we will consider the new procedure for settlements with employees, and analyze the possible liability of organizations for violation of payment deadlines. Should an employer, in the event of a delay in payment of wages, pay it taking into account monetary compensation...

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Date of actual receipt of income for personal income tax payment from 2019

In order to transfer personal income tax to the budget on time, you need to determine:

  • income date();
  • day on which the organization must withhold personal income tax ();
  • deadline for payment of personal income tax (depending on the method of payment of income) (clause 6 of article 226 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

Date of receipt of income– this is the day when the object of personal income tax taxation arises. Determine it depending on the type of income. Conventionally, income from which personal income tax must be withheld by tax agents can be divided into two groups:

  1. income related to wages;
  2. income not related to wages.

The first type of income, in particular, includes:

  • salary;
  • bonuses;
  • remuneration based on work results for the year;
  • additional payments for performing work of various qualifications, when combining professions, when working overtime (night), on holidays, etc.

A complete list of payments that can be classified as income related to wages is given in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

The second type includes all other income, for example:

  • dividends;
  • income by ;
  • material benefit;
  • financial assistance, etc.

The dates of receipt of income for personal income tax purposes are shown in the table below.


Type of incomeIncome formDate of actual receipt of incomeBase
Income in the form of wages In cash or in kind The last day of the month for which the employee is paid
If the employee is fired before the end of the calendar month - the last working day for which the employee was paid
Non-salary income Cash income 1. Day of payment of money from the cash register
2. The day the money is transferred to the bank account
3. Day of transfer of money on behalf of the recipient of income to third party accounts
subp. 1 clause 1 art. 223 Tax Code of the Russian Federation
Income in kind 1. Day of transfer of inventory items
2. The day of completion of work (services) in the interests of a person
3. The day of payment (in whole or in part) per person for goods, works, services or property rights
subp. 2 p. 1 art. 223 Tax Code of the Russian Federation
Income in the form of material benefits 1. When using borrowed funds:
the last day of each month during the period for which the loan (credit) was provided, if the interest rate on it is less than:
– 2/3 of the refinancing rate when receiving money in rubles;
– 9 percent per annum when receiving money in foreign currency
2. When purchasing securities:
– or the day of acquisition of securities at prices below market prices;
– or the day of receipt of securities free of charge;
– or the day of payment for securities (if payment occurs after the transfer of ownership of securities)
3. When purchasing goods (works, services) from interdependent persons:
day of purchase of goods (works, services)
subp. 3 and 7 paragraph 1 art. 223 Tax Code of the Russian Federation
Income arising from the offset of similar counterclaims Day of offset of counter homogeneous claims subp. 4 paragraphs 1 art. 223 Tax Code of the Russian Federation
Income as a result of writing off a citizen’s bad debt from the organization’s balance sheet The day this debt is written off subp. 5 p. 1 art. 223 Tax Code of the Russian Federation
Income arising in connection with reimbursement of travel expenses (for example, if expenses are not confirmed or are reimbursed in excess of current standards) The last day of the month in which the advance report is approved after the employee returns from a business trip subp. 6 clause 1 art. 223 Tax Code of the Russian Federation
Income in the form of budget funds received for the implementation of activities related to reducing tensions in the labor market 1. Date of recognition of expenses for the implementation of measures related to reducing tensions in the labor market (in terms of income spent in accordance with their intended purpose during three tax periods (starting from the tax period in which the income was received))
2. The last day of the tax period in which the conditions for disbursing income were violated (if such a violation was committed)
3. Last day of the third tax period (in terms of income that was not used in accordance with its intended purpose)

Personal income tax is withheld from wages at the time of the final calculation of the employee’s income at the end of the month, and not on the last day of the month

The tax agent withholds and transfers personal income tax to the budget from wages once a month. This is done when the income is actually paid after the end of the month for which this tax amount was calculated. Letter of the Ministry of Finance dated July 10, 2014 No. 03-04-06/33737.


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If an employer transfers personal income tax before paying wages, the tax will not be considered paid, and will there be a fine?

The obligation to transfer personal income tax to the budget arises from the tax agent only after the tax has actually been withheld from the funds paid to the taxpayer. Therefore, if an employer paid personal income tax before paying wages, he will have to pay the tax again, despite the presence of an overpayment. This conclusion follows from the decision of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated 05.05.16 No. SA-4-9/8116@.

Why is there a fine for personal income tax on an advance?

The advance payment to employees must be paid on the day established by the internal labor regulations and the employment contract (). But on this date there is no need to accrue contributions, calculate and withhold personal income tax.

Insurance premiums are calculated on the last day of the month, based on all payments to employees for this period (clause 1). This also applies to contributions for injuries (clause 4 of article 22 of the Law of July 24, 1998 No. 125-FZ).

When calculating personal income tax, the date of receipt of income in the form of salary is recognized (clause 2):

  • the last day of the month for which it was accrued;
  • the employee’s last day of work in the company if he quits before the end of the month.

Until one of these dates has arrived, the company cannot determine the amount of income subject to personal income tax. Therefore, when paying an advance, personal income tax is not withheld.

What if you hold it? Tax authorities believe that amounts withheld prematurely are not taxable. This means that it must be paid again - on the day the employee receives income in the form of salary.

If the company did not do this, it means that it underpaid personal income tax to the budget. The fine for this violation is 20 percent of the underpaid amount. True, the tax withheld from the advance payment can be returned from the budget as an erroneous payment.


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The court decided that personal income tax can be transferred before the salary is paid!

The fact that personal income tax was transferred before the employee received wages does not mean that the tax was not paid, and, accordingly, is not the basis for a fine under Article 123 of the Tax Code for non-payment of personal income tax. This conclusion was reached by the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the North-Western District in its resolution dated December 10, 2013 No. A56-16143/2013.

Personal income tax can be transferred to the budget even before the payment of wages!!!

Paying personal income tax before paying employees salaries does not indicate the presence of arrears for this tax. Therefore, in the case of early tax transfer, inspectors do not have the right to fine the tax agent on the basis of Article 123 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. This conclusion, favorable for companies, follows from the letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated September 29, 2014 No. BS-4-11/19716. Thus, officials revised their position on this issue, which is given above.

New position of the tax department

In a new letter, tax officials came to the opposite conclusion. Federal Tax Service specialists reminded that the fine provided for is levied in case of failure to withhold or transfer the tax amount within the prescribed period.

At the same time, payment of tax before the date of payment of income does not indicate non-transfer of personal income tax and the presence of arrears. Consequently, it is impossible to fine under Article 123 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation in case of early payment of tax.

At the same time, to support their position, the authors of the letter referred to the resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court dated July 23, 2013 No. 784/13. It explains: the duty of the tax agent to transfer the tax is considered fulfilled from the moment of presentation to the bank of an order to transfer funds from the bank account to the appropriate Federal Treasury account if there is a sufficient cash balance on it on the day of payment. Let us note that this resolution dealt with the transfer of personal income tax through an erroneous OKATO. However, the main tax department believes that in case of payment of tax before the date of payment of income, inspectors should take into account precisely this resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court. Thus, if the payment slip indicates the correct account of the Federal Treasury and the money went to the budget, then, based on the meaning, the tax is considered paid, and the enterprise has no personal income tax debt. Accordingly, there are no grounds for a fine.

Examples of court decisions that are positive for companies are also contained in the decisions of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the North-Western District dated 12/10/13 No. A56-16143/2013, dated 02/04/14 No. A26-3109/2013.

The courts justify their position as follows. Despite the fact that tax legislation indeed prohibits paying personal income tax at the expense of tax agents, Article 45 of the Tax Code allows the taxpayer to fulfill the obligation to pay tax ahead of schedule. The rule on early payment of taxes also applies to tax agents (clause 8, article 45, clause 2).

The Resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court dated July 27, 2011 No. 2105/11 clarifies that early payment means the transfer of tax if there is such an obligation after the end of the tax (reporting) period, when the tax base is formed and the amount of tax is determined, but before the payment deadline.

There is another letter from the Federal Tax Service from the same date (Letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated September 29, 2014 N BS-4-11/19714@), in which the Tax Service directly states that the transfer of personal income tax by an organization in advance is prohibited.

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Personal income tax can be transferred to the budget a few days before the payment of salaries

Tax officials assessed additional personal income tax and penalties in the amount of 1.5 million rubles to the company, and also held them accountable on the basis of. The reason was that personal income tax was transferred to the budget one or two days before salaries were paid. And according to the law, personal income tax must be withheld directly from the taxpayer’s income upon their actual payment (clause 4). In addition, payment of tax at the expense of tax agents is not allowed (clause 9). Since the company transfers tax before the payment of wages, it turns out that personal income tax is not withheld from the employee’s income, but is paid from the organization’s funds.

The court's decision

The courts decided that there were no grounds to hold the company liable. Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation in the determination dated January 22, 2004 No. 41-O, he explained: the independence of tax agents in fulfilling the obligation to transfer taxes withheld by them consists in paying taxes on their own behalf and at the expense of the funds that they withheld from the amounts of payments made. In the situation under consideration, the company calculated and withheld personal income tax from the income of employees. The amount of tax transferred to the budget corresponds to the amount withheld as personal income tax. This means that the organization has fulfilled its obligation to withhold tax from funds paid to the taxpayer and transfer the tax to the budget. The fact that an enterprise transferred tax in advance (one or two days before the payment of wages) cannot be a reason either to bring it to justice on the basis of Article 123 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, or to re-collect the amount of tax and accrue penalties (resolution of the AS North Western District dated September 17, 2014 No. A56-1667/2014).