Sample letter for an updated VAT declaration. In what cases is an updated VAT return submitted? An example of filling out an updated VAT return
An updated VAT return is a document by which the taxpayer informs the tax inspectorate that he independently discovered an error in the calculations, which led to an understatement of the tax amount, and made changes to the accounting data.
The clarification is submitted in the manner prescribed Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Its form and procedure for filling out VAT 2019 are regulated in the order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated October 29, 2014 N ММВ-7-3/558@. The taxpayer has the right to make adjustments to the submitted tax return independently upon detection of errors and inaccuracies for any reporting period. Let's look at how to make an updated VAT return; We will present the procedure for correcting errors in the form of an algorithm.
Errors can be corrected
If, while keeping records or conducting an audit, the taxpayer suddenly discovered that in accounting for VAT for previous reporting periods, and therefore in the already submitted tax return, he missed important information or made errors that affected the amount of tax, then he:
- must immediately make the necessary changes and submit a corrected tax return to the Federal Tax Service. Filing an updated VAT return is especially important if an error has led to an understatement of the amount of tax payable to the budget. After all, if the Federal Tax Service reveals such an error before the taxpayer, he will face a fine and penalty for the entire period of arrears;
- has the right to submit an amendment if the error did not lead to an understatement of the amount of VAT payable to the budget.
You do not need to submit an update if:
- you used an adjustment invoice (issued yourself or received from a counterparty);
- The Federal Tax Service discovered an error during the audit and assessed additional tax.
It is very important to remember that the updated VAT return in 2019 must be submitted only in the form that was in force during the tax period in which errors were identified and changes were made. This is defined in paragraph 5 of Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Therefore, according to the form approved by order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated October 29, 2014 No. ММВ-7-3/558@, corrected data can be submitted only starting from the 1st quarter of 2015. To correct errors identified in earlier periods, declaration forms approved by earlier orders of the Federal Tax Service should be used.
The clarification with the increased amount payable is submitted exclusively in electronic form.
Filling out an updated tax return
The procedure for filling out the clarification is regulated by an appendix to the order of the Federal Tax Service, which approves the reporting form for the corresponding tax period. Thus, by virtue of paragraph 2 of the Completion Procedure given in Appendix No. 2 to Order No. 558, the value added tax clarification is filled out taking into account only those pages of the primary report that the taxpayer previously sent to the Federal Tax Service. All other pages and appendices to them must be completed only if changes or additions have been made to tax accounting that affect the information to be displayed in them.
For sections 8-12 of the VAT tax return, there is even a special line 001. In its column 3, it is necessary to indicate the relevance of the information that the taxpayer shows in the corresponding section:
- if the previously submitted report did not contain information on the corresponding section or such information is being replaced, if errors were identified in the information submitted earlier, or the information was not fully reflected, the number “0” must be entered;
- if the taxpayer previously provided information under the section and it is current, reliable and cannot be changed, then it is necessary to put the number “1” and put dashes in lines 005, 010-190;
- if the report is primary for the reporting period, then a dash must be added.
A similar line is provided in the appendices to sections 8 and 9 of the tax return. It should also indicate the relevance indicator “0” or “1” if this is a VAT clarification. However, there is no need to put a dash, since the page data is only available as part of the updated report.
Formation of sections
The primary report must have a title page and section 1. The remaining sections 2-12, as well as appendices to 3, 8 and 9 must be completed and included in the report only if the corresponding transactions were carried out during the tax period. Therefore, if the primary report contained, for example, sections 1, 2, 3, 7 and 9, then the updated VAT return filed as part of the same transactions performed must contain them.
If a taxpayer is thinking about how to submit an update with a correction to the purchase book, for example, to cancel an entry on an invoice, then he needs to be guided by the requirements of the Government of the Russian Federation of December 26, 2011 No. 1137. It follows from it that all changes and amendments in the sales and purchase book that need to be done after the end of the tax period should be entered by inserting additional sheets. As follows from the legislation, the report adjustments in Appendix 1 to Section 8 and Appendix 1 to Section 9 are intended specifically to reflect information from additional sheets of the sales book and purchase book. Therefore, the question of how to submit an update on value added tax if there is an error in the purchase book can be resolved by filling them out.
If the taxpayer made such amendments, then as part of the clarification, in addition to the main sections 1, 2, 3, 7 and 9, previously presented as part of the primary reporting form, it will be necessary to submit Appendix 1 to Section 8 with additional sheets from the books of purchases and sales.
In order to save taxpayers from duplicating data when correcting it, the Federal Tax Service allows the use of the relevance indicator. This permission is due to the huge volume of data transferred under sections 8-12. If there are no changes or clarifications, the taxpayer can leave it blank. With it, an updated VAT return is a sign of relevance “1”. This will mean that the Federal Tax Service will automatically save the data from the previous reporting form for the same period. At the same time, if there is a need to make changes to all sections, then you can set the relevance flag to “0” for all sections, and then the updated data will be uploaded, which will be used for tax control purposes.
Using the relevance indicator allows taxpayers to independently generate the number of sections of the update, information on which will be changed in the Federal Tax Service database. This applies even to interrelated sections, provided that an error was made in only one of them in the previous tax period. In addition, the Federal Tax Service allows the taxpayer the right to refuse to correct the appendices to sections 8 and 9, even if they were marked as “0” and the information was re-uploaded.
However, such permission from the tax authorities contradicts the rules for maintaining a purchase book and a sales book approved by the Government of the Russian Federation. Considering this approach of officials to the procedure for reflecting changes in tax accounting documents, it is better to completely unload corrections from the books than to receive a punishment if suddenly, after an inspection by the Federal Tax Service, the case is considered in court.
It should be noted that it is almost impossible to find an example of filling out a clarification that is suitable for all situations, since everyone’s errors are different. Therefore, if explanations are needed for the updated VAT return, the sample can only be found in the instructions for the regular report form, by analogy. The deadline for filing an updated VAT return is not regulated by law; it can be submitted when the need arises.
Errors that do not affect the tax amount
If a taxpayer discovers errors in tax accounting that do not affect the amount of tax payable, he may not submit a corrected report. But, if errors were made in the invoice journal, which from January 1, 2015 organizations are required to keep when issuing and receiving invoices in cases of carrying out business activities in the interests of other persons on the basis of agency agreements or commission agreements, as well as when performing the functions of a developer, it is better to submit a clarification. The procedure for maintaining accounting journals is defined in Article 169 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. At the same time, it should be remembered that no fine for an updated VAT return is provided for by law, but its absence can lead the taxpayer to large fines for mistakes made and not corrected in a timely manner.
If the tax agent decides to clarify the information from sections 10 and 11 of the declaration, then the sign of relevance cannot be applied to it. It is necessary to re-upload all information from the section being changed. The possibility of changing the data of the invoice journal itself provided to the Federal Tax Service is not provided for in Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 1137. Providing updated data that does not affect the amount of tax is necessary in order to avoid a possible dispute with the Federal Tax Service if inconsistencies in accounting and reporting data are identified during an audit.
VAT taxpayers must submit a tax return each reporting period. But sometimes accountants make mistakes, so the reporting has to be clarified. Otherwise, the tax office will consider that the tax has not been fully paid. Therefore, it is necessary to clearly know how to correctly draw up an updated VAT return.
Accountant errors are often considered the main reason for filing an amended VAT return. A clarification declaration is created only when errors are identified independently. The tax officer enters all data into the taxpayer’s card.
The form and procedure are established by tax legislation; it cannot be drawn up arbitrarily. But the deadlines are not regulated, which means that it must be submitted immediately after identifying an error.
It is advisable to fill out the “clarification” during the reporting period. But it is quite possible to submit such a document after the expiration of the reporting period. It is important to know that you only need to submit new data, there is no need to repeat old ones.
Each case must be considered specifically, because a corrected error does not always require clarification of the declaration:
- There is a situation where a company has filed a return with an excessive amount of tax. In this case, the company has the right to file an adjustment return to reduce tax, or not to file anything at all. But then you won’t be able to simply make adjustments in the subsequent period.
- There may be a situation when a mistake made cannot affect the amount of tax, then you do not need to submit the document, you just have to explain everything to the inspectors.
- There is a situation in which accountants submit data when they identify a decrease or increase in tax after an audit. There is no need to perform such actions.
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When a “clarification” is submitted during an audit by tax officials, such an audit is interrupted. Then tax officials begin an audit using the updated data. But for VAT, according to the law, tax authorities will have to complete the first audit, issue a document confirming its completion, and begin a new one. All inaccuracies and errors that a tax officer independently identifies will bear consequences. The taxman will definitely impose a fine.
An important point is the fact that it is impossible to carry out more than one check on the same declaration.
A cover letter is attached to the “clarification”. Here you need to indicate the reasons for the corrections. It is compiled in any form. If necessary, additional documentation is provided.
An interesting point is that a cover letter is not considered legally required. But every tax officer asks to send such a document along with the declaration. Because it is there that all the reasons for the errors made are indicated:
The consequences of introducing clarifications will be expressed in desk audits. Therefore, it is advisable for taxpayers to learn how to correctly submit the necessary data in order to avoid unpleasant situations.
How to fill out an updated VAT return
You need to know how to fill out such a document correctly. This is a completely separate form in which only the correct indicators are entered that were not there last time.
The updated declaration consists of the same sheets that were submitted for the first time. Here you need to replace incorrect data with correct ones, or add something that was not previously indicated.
On the title page there is a column No. of the correction, it is required to be filled out:
Sections 8 to 12 are filled out only in case of clarifications in Appendix 001. When changes are made to the book of purchases or sales after the reporting period, Appendix 1 to Sections 8 and 9 must be completed.
You need to know what parameters are included in the relevance indicator. The fields are filled in with numbers 0 and 1 only:
- The number 0 is always given when the data in sections 8 and 9 was not previously provided. Another case is replacing old information.
- A unit is set when the information provided by the taxpayer is considered relevant and reliable:
The relevance sign was invented in order to prevent taxpayers from duplicating data. If there are a lot of errors, you can set 0 in all sections, then the data will be completely unloaded.
“Updated” with an increased amount to be paid
It is important to know that when clarifying the tax return in case of an increase in tax, you must first pay the tax and then submit the document. If this is not done, tax officials will impose a fine for late taxes. The declaration is submitted the next day after all debts are paid:
"Refined"with a reduced amount payable
As soon as a taxpayer submits a tax reduction return, tax officials schedule a desk audit. Or an on-site inspection may be scheduled.
Once it is determined that the taxpayer is owed, the overpayment will be refunded to their account. But in order for this to happen, you need to write a statement.
The clarification must be submitted as early as possible if the reporting period has not yet expired. Then the tax office will accept the corrected return. If the deadline has expired, but a return is filed before the tax payment deadline, no fine or penalty will be imposed. But if the information is late, a fine is imposed according to the law.
A letter to clarify the purpose of payment is drawn up when employees of organizations discover an error or inaccuracy in an already executed payment order. This letter is not just part of business correspondence, it refers to the primary documentation of the company.
FILES
When and what errors occur
Errors in payments between counterparties are made by the compilers, i.e. employees of accounting departments. In this case, incorrect data can be in a variety of points in the document: for example, the number of the agreement under which funds are transferred is incorrectly indicated, the purpose of the payment is incorrectly written, or, sometimes, VAT is allocated where it is not necessary, etc.
This can be corrected unilaterally by sending a letter to the partner to clarify the purpose of the payment.
In this case, the other party is not obliged to send a notification of receipt of this message, but it will not be superfluous to make sure that the letter has been received.
Is it possible to challenge a new payment assignment?
Typically, changing the “Payment purpose” parameter occurs by mutual agreement and without any special consequences. But in some cases complications are possible. For example, if the tax inspectorate during an audit discovers such a correction and considers it a way to evade taxes, sanctions from the regulatory authority can be considered inevitable. It happens that friction regarding the purpose of payment arises between counterparties, especially in terms of payments on debts and interest. In most cases, in order to challenge the correction, the party protesting it will have to go to court, and no one will give guarantees of winning the case, since such stories always have many nuances.
An important condition necessary in order to avoid possible problems is that information about changes in the purpose of the payment must be transmitted to the banks through which the payment was made. To do this, you just need to write similar letters in a simple notification form.
Who writes a letter to clarify the purpose of payment?
This letter is drawn up by the company that transferred the funds.
Usually the text itself is written by a specialist in the accounting department or another employee authorized to create this type of correspondence and who has access to the generated payments.
In this case, the document must be signed by the head of the company.
How to write a letter correctly
A letter to clarify the purpose of payment does not have a unified template that is mandatory for use; accordingly, it can be written in any form or according to a template approved in the company’s accounting policy. At the same time, there is a number of information that must be indicated in it. This:
- name of the sending company,
- his legal address,
- information about the addressee: company name and position, full name of the manager.
- a link to the payment order in which the error was made (its number and date of preparation),
- the essence of the admitted inaccuracy
- corrected version.
If there is several incorrectly entered information, then they must be entered in separate paragraphs.
All amounts must be entered on the form in both numbers and words.
When writing a letter, it is important to adhere to a business style. This means that the wording of the message should be extremely clear and correct, and the content should be quite brief - strictly to the point.
How to format a letter
The law makes absolutely no requirements for both the informational part of the letter and its design, so you can write it on a simple blank sheet or on the organization’s letterhead, and both printed and handwritten versions are acceptable.
The only rule that must be strictly followed: the letter must be signed by the director of the company or a person authorized to endorse such documentation.
It is not necessary to stamp the message, since since 2016 legal entities have been exempted by law from the need to do this (provided that this requirement is not specified in the company’s internal regulations).
The letter must be written as a minimum in four copies:
- you should keep one for yourself,
- transfer the second to the counterparty,
- the third to the payer's bank,
- the fourth to the recipient's bank.
All copies must be identical and properly certified.
How to send a letter
There are several ways to send such a letter.
- personally from hand to hand,
- courier delivery,
- via Russian Post by registered mail with acknowledgment of delivery,
- through the Internet.
When sending via the Internet, it is important that the company has an officially registered electronic digital signature, although even this does not guarantee that the recipient will read the letter.
How and for how long to store a letter
After sending, all letters about clarification of the purpose of payment must be registered in the journal of outgoing documentation, and one copy must be placed in the folder of the current “primary” company. Here it should be for the period established for such documents by law or internal regulations of the company, but at least three years. After losing its relevance and expiration of the storage period, the letter can be transferred to the archive of the enterprise or disposed of in the manner prescribed by law.
Order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated May 30, 2007 N MM-3-06/333@ approved the Concept of a planning system for on-site tax audits, and Order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated October 14, 2008 N MM-3-2/467@ approved the twelfth criterion for self-assessment of risks for taxpayers - Conducting financial and economic activities with high tax risk. Another innovation is the form of a “letter of repentance” - an explanatory note to the updated tax return. What kind of document this is and in what cases it must be filled out, you will learn from our article.
According to the provisions of Order N MM-3-06/333@, taxpayers who have studied this document and believe that their activities involve transactions that may raise doubts and suspicion among tax authorities, as well as those who wish to avoid such excessive attention from the Federal Tax Service, must do following:
- exclude questionable transactions when calculating tax liabilities for the corresponding period;
- notify the tax authorities about the measures they have taken to reduce these risks (clarification of tax obligations), in order to be able to timely take into account the adjusted tax obligations of these taxpayers when selecting objects for on-site tax audits.
How can I notify the tax office? Very simple. To do this, you must submit an updated tax return for those periods in which transactions that fall under the definition of activities with a high tax risk took place. In order for the Federal Tax Service to understand that the clarification is not due to a technical or accounting error, but precisely in order to reduce tax risks (according to the twelfth criterion), taxpayers are invited to submit, simultaneously with the updated declaration, an explanatory note in the form recommended by the Federal Tax Service (Appendix 5 to Order N MM-3-06/333@).
Appendix No. 5
"__" ___________ 20__
N______________
Explanatory note
to the updated tax return(s)
(tax returns)
Taxpayer
(LLC "Trading House "Medea")
————————————
5263036528 526301001
TIN ———- Checkpoint ————
presented (presented) in connection with the discovery of facts
conducting financial and economic activities with high
tax risk
January 01 September 30, 2008
I hereby inform you that for the period from “—” —— to “—” —————-
wholesale and retail trade
the organization carried out ——————————
(actual type of activity)
When independently assessing risks, facts of insufficient
documentary evidence of due diligence in selecting certain
counterparties for a number of transactions carried out by our organization for
the above period.
In order to eliminate tax risks regarding the possibility of qualification
tax authorities of such transactions as corresponding (identical,
similar in content) methods of conducting activities with high
LLC "Trading House"
tax risk posted on the website of the Federal Tax Service of Russia ————————
"Medea" (title
—————— tax liabilities were recalculated taking into account
taxpayer)
identified facts and presented the following clarified
tax return(s):
Taking into account that these facts are not systemic in nature and
are not related to the intent to obtain an unjustified tax benefit, and also that
LLC "Trading House "Medea"
that ————————————— other methods appropriate
(name of taxpayer)
information posted on the website of the Federal Tax Service of Russia were not used, please take into account
voluntary measures taken to reduce tax risks during selection
facilities for conducting on-site tax audits.
Head of the organization Petrov E.S.
In a similar manner, you can declare updated tax liabilities that arose as a result of taking measures to reduce tax risks when carrying out financial and economic activities using methods aimed at obtaining unjustified tax benefits, but not presented on the Federal Tax Service website.
The tax authority, which has received the updated tax returns, as well as the explanatory note submitted with them, conducts a desk tax audit in accordance with Art. 88 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Order No. MM-3-06/333@ notes that when conducting desk tax audits of such updated declarations with an explanatory note submitted to them, additional documents are not required from the taxpayer.
In return, tax authorities promise taxpayers to take into account the fact of filing an updated declaration in order to reduce (eliminate) risks under clause 12 of the Criteria in the process of selecting organizations for conducting on-site tax audits (or adjusting already approved plans for on-site tax audits), however, in combination with other eleven criteria.
At the same time, taxpayers should remember that they do not fall out of the field of view of the Federal Tax Service: if the tax authority has information about the conduct of activities with signs of violations of tax legislation in relation to the taxpayer who declared the measures taken by him to reduce risks under clause 12 of the Criteria, the decision appointment of an on-site tax audit is accepted only after prior approval from the Federal Tax Service of Russia.
In our opinion, it is doubtful that taxpayers’ actions to reduce risks and submit updated declarations will be widespread. While promising certain “benefits” in exchange for submitting an updated declaration, the Federal Tax Service still does not guarantee the taxpayer that there will be no on-site audit.
However, the Federal Tax Service is actively encouraging taxpayers to analyze their activities and clarify their obligations, naturally counting on an increase in the tax base and, as a result, an increase in tax collection. Almost all departments for working with taxpayers of the regional Federal Tax Service brought similar messages to the attention of organizations. At the same time, the Federal Tax Service for the Omsk Region provided some statistical data: in just 9 months of this year, taxpayers in the Omsk Region clarified tax liabilities in the amount of about 400 million rubles. On-site inspections were carried out in relation to 859 business entities that fell into the risk zone, and based on their results, an additional amount of 2 billion 259 million rubles was accrued. The Federal Tax Service of Russia for the Chelyabinsk region informed that this year the amount of additionally declared taxes amounted to almost two billion rubles.
In practice, taxpayers are faced with the following situation: Federal Tax Service employees require the submission of an explanatory note when submitting any revised declaration, that is, regardless of the reasons that caused the clarification. Meanwhile, it should be noted that taxpayers submit updated declarations not only after identifying suspicious transactions in their activities. There can be many reasons for filing an updated declaration: a counting error, a technical error, a data failure in the program, a delay in receiving documents, etc. And this is not a complete list. Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation confirms what has been said: if the taxpayer discovers in the tax return submitted by him to the tax authority the fact of non-reflection or incomplete reflection of information, as well as errors leading to an underestimation of the amount of tax payable, the taxpayer is obliged to make the necessary changes to the tax return and submit it to the tax office. body an updated tax return in the manner prescribed by this article. Also, an updated declaration can be filed if the error did not lead to an understatement of the amount of tax payable. There are no official clarifications on this issue. In our opinion, it is still necessary to separate the cases of submitting updated declarations and in some cases - submit an explanatory note, and in others - a covering letter explaining the reasons for making changes to the declaration (calculation).
A.K.Popov
Journal expert
"Tax audit"
For any organization, an extract from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities is a kind of “calling card” and, at the same time, an indicator of its own business reputation. Today, when the practice of checking counterparties before concluding an agreement is becoming more and more widespread, it is the current extract from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities that in many cases is the decisive factor in choosing a partner. Therefore, it is so important that the information contained in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities corresponds to reality.
Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for cases when, during initial registration, re-registration, or when making changes to data about the organization and participants, errors in the unified state register of legal entities. These errors can be made:
— registration authority (tax office);
- the applicant;
- a notary.
Unfortunately, when receiving documents from the tax authority, managers do not always compare the actual data with the data of the Unified State Register of Legal Entities. By the way, the sooner an error is noticed, the more opportunities there will be to correct it. Errors are often found in information about the sole executive body, founders, address of the legal entity, passport data, size of the authorized capital or shares of participants. An error in an extract from the register containing information about a legal entity that differs from the information in the charter of the legal entity, as well as data on participants, shares, can cause problems in the implementation of notarial actions, become an obstacle to opening a current account, obtaining a loan, or participating in competitions ( tenders). Concluding transactions with counterparties can also cause serious difficulties.
“Letter of repentance”, or we present an updated declaration
In order to avoid such problems, it is recommended to immediately check all data on site immediately after receiving the documents.
The procedure for correcting an error made by an employee of the Federal Tax Service or resulting from a software failure
If you find an error, immediately go to the window where you received the documents and tell the inspector the essence of the error. Having entered the mentioned comments into a special card, the inspector will give it to you. The corrected document will be issued to you according to the date indicated on the card (as a rule, it takes no more than five working days to correct an error in such a situation), after which the head of the company or an authorized representative will be able to come to the tax authority and receive the corrected document - an extract from Unified State Register of Legal Entities
If for some reason the head of the company did not have time to contact the registration authority on the day of receipt of the documents, it is necessary to submit application to the tax authority at the location of the legal entity. The application indicates the error to be corrected, and the necessary documents are also attached. The application is submitted in free form either by the sole executive body or by a person acting by proxy. After corrections are made by the registering authority, the corrected extract from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities will be sent to the registration address of the legal entity. Until recently, this procedure was not limited by law in terms of time and could drag on for a long time. However, after the entry into force of Order of the Ministry of Finance of Russia No. 25n dated February 18, 2015 (hereinafter referred to as the Order), which approved the procedure for maintaining registers of legal entities and entrepreneurs, this problem was solved. The response time to a request to correct an error in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities or Unified State Register of Individual Entrepreneurs is now five working days (clause 9 of the Order).
Both of the above methods are conciliatory only if the mistake was made by the registering authority. We will discuss below what to do if a mistake was made by the applicant himself when filling out the documentation.
The procedure for correcting an error made by the applicant
If a mistake was made by the applicant, a special document must be submitted to the authority where the documents were registered. statement , not related to entering information into the constituent documents ( form No. 14001), properly formatted:
1. Form P14001 is filled in application for amendments to information about a legal entity contained in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities(first sheet). IN paragraph 2 is put value 2 and indicates state registration number (GRN) of the record, where the mistake was made (the number can be found from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities).
2. Next, fill in form sheets, in which an error was made during registration (making changes). When making a correction to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, in form p14001 You only need to fill in the data that needs to be corrected.
For example, if during the initial registration an error was made in the name of the legal entity (form P11001), then it is this form that needs to be filed with form P14001.
Since form P14001 allows you to enter only one state registration number of the record, then For each error, a separate form is filled out.
In addition to the completed forms, you should submit to the Federal Tax Service covering letter , which indicates the error made and explains its reason. Being a separate document, this letter does not require filing with the form. The letter is drawn up in free form and signed by the sole executive body (CEO).
So, the applicant submits to the tax office:
✓ covering letter;
✓ form P14001;
✓forms in which an error was made during registration or making changes (only those sheets in which an error was made are filled out).
If all forms are filled out correctly, correcting a technical error in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities takes five working days. When the registration authority corrects the error in the register, the applicant will be issued certificate of changes made indicating the State Registration Register entry to which the change was made and new extract from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities.
Based on materials from: www.garant.ru, www.fiokan.ru, regforum.ru, www.eregistrator.ru
Covering letter
First, inspectors usually insist that the letter state the reasons why the company is adjusting the amount of tax liabilities. It can be specified (income under a contract for the sale of polymer products is not included in revenue). We can limit ourselves to a more general formulation - the amount of income tax is underestimated due to the fact that the sales revenue indicator is underestimated. Sometimes they are written simply because of a technical or arithmetic error. The rule is this: the more serious the error, the more details are needed.
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Ref. No. 117 of 09/07/2011
Covering letter
Any “clarification” arouses increased interest among inspectors. The logic here is simple - since there is an error in reporting, there may be other violations. You can find them during a desk check of the updated declaration. Or during an unscheduled on-site audit, the formal grounds for which are provided by the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.
Corrected declaration lines. That is, you need to indicate which indicators have been changed - give their previous and new values. This will make it easier for inspectors to process data.
Sample cover letter for the declaration
It is advisable to write down each line separately, and not limit yourself only to the total amount of tax and debt that is additionally paid. Or the amount by which the tax is reduced. By the way, if an overpayment has occurred, then simultaneously with the updated declaration, you can submit an application for a tax offset or refund and refer to it in the same covering letter.
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Covering letter
A cover letter is a letter used to send documents that do not have an address part. The cover letter is accompanied by a document for which the letter itself is sent.
The cover letter must contain an indication of the availability of the application.
The covering letter indicates the purpose for which the main document is being sent, as well as what is proposed (expected) to be done with it and within what time frame. The cover letter may also contain additional information, clarifications and requests.
The cover letter begins with certain phrases, which is determined by the address to which the attached document is sent:
— in case of referral to a higher organization, the phrase We present to you is used
— in the case of a referral to a subordinate organization, the phrase We are sending to you is used
— in case of sending to a third (third-party) organization, the phrase Sent to you is used
Common questions and solutions
Covering letter for the updated declaration
As a rule, accompanying letters are attached to updated declarations. True, the Tax Code does not oblige this. But in practice, inspectors strongly recommend drawing up these letters, and it even happens that without them they refuse to accept clarifications.
The cover letter can be written on company letterhead in any form. But inspectors usually want to see in the letter information that they themselves need to make their work easier.
First, inspectors usually insist that the letter state the reasons why the company is adjusting the amount of tax liabilities.
It can be specified (income under a contract for the sale of polymer products is not included in revenue). We can limit ourselves to a more general formulation - the amount of income tax is underestimated due to the fact that the sales revenue indicator is underestimated. Sometimes they are written simply because of a technical or arithmetic error. The rule is this: the more serious the error, the more details are needed.
Secondly, the letter should mention those lines of the declaration that have been corrected. Inspectors need this to enter reporting into the database and for the camera room. But if the number of specified indicators is significant, then you can limit yourself to only the total amount of calculated tax and the debt that is paid additionally.
Or the amount by which the tax is reduced. In the latter case, together with the updated declaration, you can submit an application for credit or refund.
Finally, if in the clarification the amount of tax payable is greater than in the initial declaration, then in the covering letter it makes sense to indicate the details of the payment slips for the transfer of tax (advance) and penalties. Better yet, attach copies of these payments to the letter. Then the question of a fine will immediately disappear (clause 4 of Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).
It is safer to sign a cover letter from the head of the company and certify it with a seal. True, some inspectorates only need the signature of the chief accountant.
Download the cover letter for the updated income tax return &rarr
Covering letter to the tax office
Sample cover letter to the tax office
A covering letter to the tax office is an explanatory note to the updated VAT return, as well as other documents sent to the tax office.
How to write a cover letter to the tax office
A covering letter to the tax office is drawn up according to the general structure of a business letter.
The header of the letter indicates the position, Federal Tax Service No., city and full name of the recipient.
This is followed by the date, document number, and letter title.
The address to the recipient is written as needed.
The text of a cover letter to the tax office with a list of documents usually begins with the words:
This is followed by a list of attached documents indicating their name, number of sheets and copies of each document.
The final part of the cover letter to the tax office contains the position, signature and full name of the sender.
Sample cover letter to the tax office
Business portal Paths to success
from LLC "Ways of Success"
INN/KPP 7715122333/771501001.
OGRN 107774612322 2
Address: Moscow, per. Kalashny,
Ref. No. 117 of 09/07/2011
Covering letter
to the updated VAT return for the second quarter of 2011
In accordance with paragraph 1 of Art. 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, Paths of Success LLC presents an updated VAT tax return for the second quarter of 2011.
In the declaration that we initially submitted, the amount of VAT payable was overestimated by 5,720 rubles. due to the inclusion in the tax base of revenue from the sale of services under Act No. 114 dated June 30, 2011, which the customer signed only on September 6, 2011. The amount of erroneously recorded revenue is RUB 37,500. including VAT - 5720 rub.
The following corrections were made to the VAT return for the second quarter of 2011.
Column 3 of line 010 of section 3 was reduced by 31,780 rubles. (37500 - 5720).
VAT in column 5 of line 010, lines 120 and 230 of section 3, line 040 of section 1 is reduced by 5,720 rubles.
The correct amount of VAT payable based on the results of the second quarter of 2011 was 419,000 rubles.
Director ____________________ I. I. Petrov
Chief Accountant ____________________ S. F. Belousova
The law does not oblige companies to attach a covering letter to the updated declaration. But local tax officials insist on this. If there is no letter or you draw it up without checking the expectations of the inspectors, then questions and proceedings cannot be avoided. Our material will help you prepare the perfect letter for the capital’s tax authorities.
Why do you need a cover letter?
Any “clarification” arouses increased interest among inspectors. The logic here is simple - since there is an error in reporting, there may be other violations. You can find them during a desk check of the updated declaration.
What do the capital’s tax authorities want to see in the cover letter for the “clarification”?
Or during an unscheduled on-site audit, the formal grounds for which are provided by the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.
Inspectors often refuse to accept repeated declarations without a letter. Of course, this is illegal, but we recommend not arguing with officials in this case.
Irina Sidorova. financial consultant of the legal company "Nalogovik":
Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation is devoted to the updated declaration and the rules for submitting it to the tax office.
Fortunately, legal norms do not require companies to accompany the indicators of the updated declaration with additional written explanations.
But, in my opinion, the demands of tax inspectors to attach a cover letter to the “clarification” make common sense.
A written explanation of all corrections made to a previously filed declaration will protect the organization from tax authorities’ suspicion of dishonesty. And accordingly, it will save the company from additional questions during a desk audit.
Which capital tax inspectorates require a cover letter?
We called the capital's inspectorates and found out whether it is necessary to attach a covering letter with explanations to the repeated declaration.
In Moscow Federal Tax Service No. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 25, 26, 27, 32, 34, 35, 36, 37, 43 believe that a cover letter must be attached to the “clarification”. They recommended writing it to the head of the inspection, indicating your details - company name, INN/KPP, contact phone number. If the documents will be delivered by a courier, a power of attorney must be issued for him.
The Federal Tax Service No. 7, 9, 15, 16 emphasized that only the general director has the right to sign the letter. The signature of the chief accountant will not be enough.
In the Federal Tax Service No. 8, 35, if an additional amount of taxes is transferred, they asked to make a list of attachments: copies of payment orders for the transfer of tax and penalties. As well as calculation of the amount of arrears and penalties
Only in inspections No. 10, 23, 24 and 30 we were told that a covering letter was desirable, but an updated declaration would be accepted without it.
How to write an explanation for a “clarification”
There is no approved form for a cover letter, so you can compose it in any form (see sample below). The main thing is that it contains the information necessary for tax authorities to work with declarations.
So, let's list what should be indicated in the cover letter.
The tax for which an organization submits a “clarification”. As well as the reporting or tax period for which the organization makes adjustments.
Reasons why a company submits an updated declaration. In principle, we can limit ourselves to general formulations - arithmetic or technical errors were made. But we still recommend specifying the reason. For example, like this: “The amount of VAT was overestimated, since the company did not deduct the tax accrued from the advance received at the time of shipment.”
Or: “Income under a contract for the sale of engineering products is not included in revenue.” Focus on the situation: the more serious the error, the more details are needed. It is worth mentioning here that the error was discovered by the organization itself, and not by inspectors.
Corrected declaration lines. That is, you need to indicate which indicators have been changed - give their previous and new values. This will make it easier for inspectors to process data. It is advisable to write down each line separately, and not limit yourself only to the total amount of tax and debt that is additionally paid. Or the amount by which the tax is reduced. By the way, if an overpayment has occurred, then simultaneously with the updated declaration, you can submit an application for a tax offset or refund and refer to it in the same covering letter.
Details of the payment slips used to transfer the missing amount and penalties. This is necessary if there is arrears. Better yet, attach copies of these payments to the letter. Then the question of a possible fine will immediately disappear (clause 4 of Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).
Signature of the head of the company and seal. In addition to the general director, the chief accountant can also sign.
When asked, please indicate: 1) you are an organization, individual entrepreneur or individual. person 2) tax (STS/OSNO, UTII).
Answer for us if you can. Any knowledge and experience can be helpful. Administration
A corrective VAT return is submitted based on the request of the tax authorities or in the event of independent discovery of errors made in the initially submitted report.
Are there errors for which “clarification” is not needed?
Yes, filing a corrective return must be considered on a case-by-case basis.
An updated VAT return must be filed in 2018 if an error or inaccuracy led to an underestimation of the amount of tax payable (clause 1 of Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).
There is no need for a corrective return if tax has been additionally assessed or reduced as a result of a tax audit. Tax authorities independently reflect the results of audits in accruals on the taxpayer’s personal account; the latter will only have to reflect the discrepancy in the accounting accounts - if we are talking about a company.
An updated VAT tax return is not needed if there are typos in the data that are not significant for the declaration as a whole, such as, for example, an erroneous buyer’s TIN or an incorrect invoice date. Such information does not directly affect the tax amount.
The issue of filing corrective returns remains entirely at the discretion of the taxpayer if errors identified in the originally filed return led to an overpayment of VAT. But it should be remembered that, having received such a correction, which involves the return of a certain amount of tax paid from the budget, the Federal Tax Service will not limit itself to an ordinary desk audit. The declarant must be prepared for the fact that he will at least be additionally asked for all documents from suppliers confirming his right to the deduction. In some cases, it may even go as far as an on-site inspection.
Filling out an updated VAT return
An important nuance: the corrective declaration is filled out in the form that was valid during the period for which the corresponding changes are made (clause 5 of Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).
The corrected amounts are displayed in full in the adjustment declaration; it is not enough to indicate only the difference between the erroneous and correct information. In general, filling out the report is carried out according to the same rules as when submitting the primary declaration, and the values are indicated without errors. The main distinguishing feature of the primary declaration from the updated one is the mark on the title page “Adjustment number”. The primary declaration is marked with code “0”, and the updated one “1” (or “2”, “3”, in case of repeated changes within one tax period).
Clarifying VAT declaration: example of filling out the title page
Another nuance of the updated declaration: in sections 8 to 12 it is necessary to indicate the code of relevance of the information. There is a similar line in Appendix I to sections 8 and 9. The relevance code in the “clarification” has two parameters “0” and “1”:
“0” – if the data was not provided in the previous version of the declaration or if replacement is required;
“1” – if the previously provided information remains relevant and does not require changes.
The relevance sign allows you to avoid duplicating a large amount of data. If the relevance indicator is “1”, information from the previous declaration will be automatically saved. Otherwise, updated data will be downloaded for those sections indicated by the clarifying VAT return.
Let us remind you that the updated declaration, just like the original one, is submitted to the Federal Tax Service in electronic format (letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated March 20, 2015 No. ГД-4-3/4440@). Submission of VAT reporting in paper form is currently not provided for by law.
Explanatory letter to the corrective declaration
In addition to the adjusted declaration form, it is worth attaching a covering letter. Formally, the law does not require this, but practice shows the need for this step.
The form of the explanatory letter has not been officially approved, therefore submission in any form is allowed. The letter must include:
- Information about the taxpayer;
- The period for which the recalculation occurred;
- The reason why the corrective VAT return was filed;
- Declaration lines that have been changed;
- New values of changed indicators;
- Details of payment documents confirming the transfer of the missing amount;
- Manager's signature.
Deadlines for submitting clarifications
There are no deadlines for submission. It is recommended to submit corrections to the Federal Tax Service immediately upon finding an error. Ideally, the submission of an updated VAT return occurs within the standard deadline for submitting returns - no later than the 25th day of the month following the tax period (quarter). Submitted to the inspectorate so promptly, the declaration will be considered by the tax service as correctly filed.
If the filing period has passed but there is time before the tax is actually paid, it is important not only to file an adjustment, but also to pay the correct amount of tax on time. In this case, the taxpayer will avoid both fines and late fees.
When the clarification goes beyond the deadline for tax payments or relates to previous tax periods, liability arises under Article 122 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation in the form of a fine for late payment of tax. It can be avoided if an updated VAT return is filed before the tax inspector discovers the error (clause 4 of Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). It is also recommended to pay off the arrears arising as a result of tax recalculation before submitting the adjustment. As in the situations described above, the taxpayer in this case will only be charged a penalty for the difference between the erroneous and correct VAT amount.