Article 49. Fulfillment of to Pay Taxes and Fees in the Event of Liquidation

1. The obligation to pay taxes and fees (interest, fines) of an organisation undergoing liquidation shall be fulfilled by the liquidation commission of such an organisation from the funds of such an organisation, including proceeds from the sale of its assets.

2. Should the funds of an organisation in liquidation, including proceeds from the sale of its assets for the purpose of fulfilling an obligation to pay taxes and fees, due penalties and fines, be insufficient for full discharge of such obligation, the outstanding debt should be paid by the founders (participants) of this organisation in the procedure and to the extent established by the legislation of the Russian Federation.

3. The priority of fulfillment of the obligation to pay taxes and fees in case of liquidation of an organisation vis-ð-vis settlements with other creditors of such organisation shall be specified by civil law of the Russian Federation.

4. If an organisation being liquidated has to its credit the excessively paid taxes or dues and (or) penalties and fines, th said sums of money shall be offset by a tax body on account of the repayment of the debts of the liquidated organisation for taxes and dues (penalties and fines) in the order prescribed by Chapter 12 of this Code within one month since the day of filing the application by the taxpaying organisation.

The amount of the excessively paid tax and dues (penalties and fines) subject to offset shall be distributed among the budgets and/or extra-budgetary funds in proportion to the total amounts of tax and due (penalty and fine) indebtedness to the respective budgets and/or extra-budgetary funds.

If the organisation being liquidated has no indebtedness for the discharge of the duty of paying taxes and dues, and also of paying penalties and fines, the amount of the taxes and dues (penalties and fines), excessively paid by this organisation shall be repaid to this organisation within one month since the day of filing the application by the taxpaying organisation.

If the organisation being liquidated has to its credit the sums of the excessively collected taxes and dues, and also penalties and fines, the said sums of money shall be repaid to the taxpaying organisation in the order prescribed by Chapter 12 of this Code within one month since the day of filing the application by the taxpaying organisation.

Article 50. Fulfillment of Obligations to Pay Taxes and Fees in the Event of Re-Organization of a Legal Entity

1. Obligations to pay taxes and fees of a re-organized legal entity shall be fulfilled by its successor (successors) in accordance with the procedure set out in this Article.

2. Fulfillment of an obligation to pay taxes and fees of a reorganized legal entity shall be the responsibility of its successor (successors) irrespective of whether or not the successor (successors) had been aware before the reorganisation was completed of facts and (or) circumstances of failure to fulfill or improper fulfillment of an obligation to pay taxes and fees by the re-organized legal entity. In this case the legal successor (legal successors) shall pay all the penalties due to the liabilities which have passed to him.

Successor(s) to a reorganized legal entity shall also be liable for all the fines owed by the latter for the tax offenses committed prior to completion of the reorganisation process. The legal successor (legal successors) of a reorganized legal entity shall enjoy all rights and discharge all duties in the order prescribed for taxpayers by this Code, when he performs the duties of the payment of taxes and dues, vested in it by this Article.

3. Re-organisation of a legal entity shall not change the deadline for fulfillment of its obligation to pay taxes and fees by a successor (successors) to such legal entity.

4. In case of merger of several legal entities, the legal entity resulting from such merger shall be recognized as a successor with respect to the obligation to pay taxes and fees of each of such legal entities.

5. In case of accession of one legal entity to another legal entity, the accessing legal entity shall be recognized as a successor to the obligation to pay taxes and fees of the accessed legal entity.

6. In case of division of a legal entity into several legal entities, the legal entities resulting from such division shall be recognized as successors with respect to the obligation to pay taxes of the divided organisation.

7. Should there be several successors, the share of each of them in the fulfillment of the obligation to pay taxes and fees of the re-organized legal entity shall be determined in accordance with the procedure envisaged by the civil legislation.

If the division balance sheet do not make it possible to determine the share of a successor to the reorganized legal entity, or rule out the possibility of complete fulfillment of an obligation to pay taxes and fees by any one of the successors, or if such re-organisation was aimed at failure to fulfill the obligations to pay taxes then, pursuant to a court decision, the newly emerged legal entities may be liable jointly and severally for fulfillment of the obligation to pay taxes of the reorganized legal entity.

8. In case of a separation from a legal entity, no succession to the re-organized legal entity with respect to its obligation to pay taxes and fees shall arise. If as a result of separation from the legal entity of one or more legal entities the taxpayer or payer of fees cannot fulfill the obligation to pay taxes and fees in full, then, pursuant to a court decision, the separated legal entities may jointly and severally fulfill the obligation to pay taxes.

9. In the event of re-organisation of one legal entity into a new one, the legal entity resulting from such re-organisation shall be recognized as a successor to the obligation to pay taxes of the re-organized legal entity.

10. The amount of a tax excessively paid by a legal entity before its re-organisation shall be offset against the fulfillment by a successor (successors) to such legal entity of obligation to pay other taxes, interest and penalties for a tax offense of the re-organized legal entity. Such offset shall be performed by a tax body or a customs body independently in accordance with the procedure set out in Chapter 12 of this Code with due account for the details provided for in this Article and not later than 30 days after the day when such re-organisation was completed.

The amount of excessively paid tax to be offset against the outstanding liability of a re-organized legal entity with respect to other taxes, penalties and fines shall be distributed among budgets and (or) extra-budgetary funds in proportion to the total amounts of outstanding liabilities with respect to other taxes of such legal entity vis-a-vis the corresponding budgets and (or) extra-budgetary funds.

If the reorganized legal entity has no debts for the duty of tax payment, and also of the payment of penalties and fines, the amount of the excessively paid tax (penalty, fine) by this legal entity shall be repaid to its legal successor (legal successors) within one month since the day the legal successor (legal successors) files an application in the order established by Chapter 12 of this Code. In this case the amount of the excessively paid tax (penalty, fine) by the legal entity before its reorganisation shall be repaid to the legal successor (legal successors) of the reorganized legal entity in accordance with the share of each legal successor, which is assessed on the basis of the dividing balance.

If the reorganized legal entity has to its credit the excessively collected taxes, and also penalties and fines, the said amounts shall be repaid to its legal successor or legal successors in the procedure prescribed by Chapter 12 of this Code within one month since the day of filing an application by the legal successor or successors. Before the reorganisation the amount of the excessively collected tax (penalty, fine) of the legal entity shall be returned to the legal successor or successors of the reorganized legal entity in accordance with the share of each legal successor, which is assessed on the basis of the dividing balance.

11. Rules provided for in this Article shall also be applicable to fulfillment of obligations with respect to the fee payable as a legal entity is reorganized.

12. The rules stipulated by this Article shall also apply when it is necessary to determine a legal successor or successors of a foreign organisation reorganized in keeping with the legislation of foreign State.

Article 51. Fulfillment of Obligations to Pay Taxes and Fees of a Missing or Disabled Natural Person

1. The obligation to pay taxes and fees of a natural person recognized missing by court shall be fulfilled by a person authorized by a body of trusteeship and guardianship.

The person authorized by a body of trusteeship and guardianship shall pay the entire amount of taxes and fees unpaid by the taxpayer recognized missing without interest accruing, as well as interest and penalties due from the taxpayer as of the date when he was recognized missing. Such amounts shall be paid from the funds of the natural person recognized missing.

2. The duty of the payment of taxes and dues by a natural person who is recognized by a court of law as legally incompetent shall be discharged by his guardian at the expense of the monetary funds of this legally incompetent person. The guardian of the natural person recognized by a court of law as legally incompetent shall be obliged to pay all the amount of taxes and dues unpaid by the taxpayer or the payer of the duty, and also the due penalties and fines in the day when the person was acknowledged as legally incompetent.

3. Fulfillment of the obligation to pay taxes and fees of natural persons recognized missing or incapable, as well as payment of interest and penalties due from them, shall be stopped by the appropriate tax body in case such natural persons had no sufficient funds (no funds) for fulfillment of these obligations.

In case of absence of a decision passed in the established procedure with regard to the revocation of the decision on recognizing the natural person missing or incapable, the previously stopped fulfillment of the obligation to pay taxes and fees shall be resumed.

4. Persons vested under this Article with the duty of the payment of taxes and dues by natural persons, recognized as missing or legally incompetent, shall enjoy all rights and perform all the duties in the order prescribed by this Code for the taxpayers and payers of dues with an eye to the special features stipulated by this Article. When the said persons discharge the duties vested by this Article and are brought to account for the guilty commission of tax offences shall not have the right to pay the fines stipulated by this Code at the expense of the person recognized as missing or legally incompetent.

Article 52. Procedure of Tax Assessment

The taxpayer himself shall assess the amount of tax due for the tax period on the basis of the tax base, tax rate and tax benefits.

In certain cases envisaged by the legislation of the Russian Federation on taxes and fees, a tax body or a tax agent may be charged with the duty to assess the amount of tax. In these cases prior to 30 days before the maturity of payment the tax body shall send a tax notice to the respective taxpayer. This notice shall indicate the amount of the tax subject to payment, the calculation of the tax base, and also the time of tax payment. The form of tax notice shall be established by the Ministry of Taxation of the Russian Federation. A tax notice may be handed over to the manager of an organisation (its lawful or authorized representative) or a natural person (his legal or authorized representative against receipt or in any other way that confirms the fact and the date of its reception. When said persons evade a tax notice, the latter shall be sent by registered mail. A tax notice shall be deemed to be received upon the expiry of 6 days since the date of sending a registered letter.

Article 53. Tax Base and Tax Rates

1. A tax base represents a value, physical or other parameter of a taxable item. A tax rate represents the amount of tax levied on a unit of measurement of a tax base. A tax base and the procedure for determining it, as well as tax rates with respect to federal taxes shall be established by this Code.

In cases provided for in this Code, federal tax rates may be established by the Government of the Russian Federation in the procedure and amounts specified by this Code.

2. The tax base and the procedure for determining it with regard to regional and local taxes shall be established by this Code. Tax rates for regional and local taxes shall be established by laws of the member territories of the Russian Federation, regulations of local governments within the limits established by this Code.

Article 54. General Issues of Tax Base Assessment

1. Taxpayers-organisations shall assess the tax base according to the results of each tax period on the basis of the data in the accounting books and (or) other documented data concerning the items subject to taxation or associated with taxation.

In case mistakes (distortions) in tax base assessment made in the previous tax (reporting) periods are revealed in the current (reporting) tax period, the tax liabilities shall be reassessed for the period when such mistakes were made. If it impossible to determine the specific period, then the tax liabilities of reporting period when the mistakes (distortions) were revealed shall be corrected.

2. Individual entrepreneurs shall assess the tax base by the results of each tax period on the basis of profit and loss and business operations accounting in the procedure determined by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Taxation of the Russian Federation.

3. Other individual taxpayers shall assess the tax base on the basis of the data on income subject to taxation which are obtained in the qualifying cases from organisations as well as the data of their own records of taxable income kept in any form.

Article 55. Tax Period

1. A tax period shall be a year or any other period of time with regard to a taxpayer's liabilities for individual taxes after the end of which the tax base shall be determined and the due amount of tax assessed. The tax period may consist of one or several reporting periods that are winded up with advance payments.

2. If an organisation was established after the beginning of a calendar year, the first tax period for such organisation shall be the time period from the date of establishment to the end of that year. The date of establishment of the organisation shall be the date of state registration of such organisation.

If an organisation was established between December 1 and December 31, the first tax period for such organisation shall be the time period between the date of its establishment and the end of the year following the year of its establishment.

3. If an organisation was liquidated (reorganized) before the end of a calendar year, the last tax period for such organisation shall be the time period between the beginning of that year and the date when the liquidation (reorganisation) was completed.

If an organisation established after the beginning of a calendar year was liquidated (reorganized) before the end of this year, its tax period shall be the period of time between the date of its establishment and the date of liquidation (reorganisation).

If an organisation was established during the period of time between December 1 and December 31 and liquidated (reorganized) before the end of the calendar year following the year of its establishment, its tax period shall be the period of time between the date of establishment and the date of liquidation (reorganisation).

The rules set out in this part shall not apply to organisations from which one or several organisations are separated, or which access one or several organisations.

4. Rules set out in parts 1-3 of this Article shall not apply to those taxes and fees for which the tax period is established for a calendar month or quarter. In such cases, when an organisations is established, liquidated, reorganized, individual tax periods shall be changed with approval of the tax body at the place of registration of the taxpayer.

5. If property subject to taxation was purchased, sold (alienated or destroyed) after the beginning of a calendar year, the tax period for such property for the purpose of the tax on such property in the given calendar year shall be defined as the time period during which the property was actually owned by the taxpayer.

Article 56. Establishment and Use of Benefits Regarding Taxes and Fees

1. Benefits with regard to taxes and fees shall be construed as privileges granted to individual categories of taxpayers and payers of fees and envisaged by the tax and fee legislation as compared with other taxpayers and payers of fees; such privilege includes the possibility not to pay a tax or a fee or to pay a smaller amount thereof.

Norms of law on taxes and fees which define grounds, procedure for and terms of application of benefits with regard to taxes and fees shall not be of individual nature.

2. A taxpayer may refuse to use a benefit, or stop using it for one or more tax periods, unless otherwise provided by this Code.