Since the days of the USSR, the church lived its own life, separate from the state. What taxes does the church pay in Russia, if it is by itself, and does it make any contributions to the state budget?
For about ten years, the issue of taxation of income of religious organizations has been resolved. Most people believe that the church should pay taxes, like all citizens, because it collects very large amounts of donations from people and spends this money on their needs. To answer this question, you need to familiarize yourself with the profit information of this organization.
Profit of Religious Organizations
Since the church is a non-profit organization, according to the law, it must provide for itself. The purpose of a nonprofit organization is not to make a profit. The main income of the church:
- sale of church supplies;
- donations from parishioners;
- payment for memorials and weddings, baptisms and other rites;
- circle fees.
In addition, the Orthodox Church in Russia owns several commercial enterprises, with income which fully provides about 19 thousand parishes. According to the laws of the Russian Federation, this type of activity is not prohibited for religious organizations. The Russian Orthodox Church owns 10 candle manufacturing workshops. The cost of candles and the price of products in the church vary significantly. Retail cost exceeds many times the cost of manufacturing.
Patriarch Kirill at the last meeting announced that the Russian Orthodox Church contains 34.5 thousand churches and 293 dioceses. Every month, donations to the church are transferred to the diocese. Only objects that are in the process of restoration or construction are exempted from such contributions (for a while). Donation collections are made by the head bishop of each church. In turn, he personally maintains a report for the patriarchy.
About three million rubles is the monthly income of churches in Russia. The accounting of the Russian Orthodox Church is conducted according to this principle: after the service, a box with donations from parishioners, which are transferred to the church treasury, is opened. Each month, accounting reports are transmitted to the diocese, where the number of services, baptisms, weddings, etc., is clearly described and what percentage was transferred to the diocese. This percentage can range from 10 to 50%.
Salaries of priests in Russia for 2016-2017
In the Russian Federation, everything happens not quite like in other countries. In 2009, the Financial and Economic Department was established to conduct economic management of church organizations. Today, priests in Russia have the following documents:
- employment record, where the position is indicated;
- medical insurance;
- number in the Pension Fund.
Salaries of ministers of the church are set by the abbot in the form of a fixed amount. It is equal to the average salary of a public sector employee (teachers, doctors, psychologists, etc.). In 2013, a law was passed, on the basis of which priests in need of financial assistance can apply for help to the diocese. Also, this law stipulates that clergy have the right to social protection, so a commission was established to take care of those who need it.
Russian legislation in relation to the Russian Orthodox Church
Does the church pay taxes in Russia? Since the church is a non-profit organization, in accordance with the law adopted in April 2006, it must submit monthly financial statements to the Federal Registration Service (FRS).During the year, the patriarchs sought to simplify reporting conditions, and in April 2007 the law was amended. The purpose of this action was to facilitate church financial reporting. In accordance with the amendments, reporting should be carried out under four articles:
- According to the charter, there should be reports of the main activities.
- Ministers should note the receipt of funds from both Russian and foreign legal entities.
- It is also necessary to indicate the funds from the use of other property.
- It is necessary to keep records of expenditures of money that were received from citizens of the Russian Federation (organizations registered in the territory of the Russian Federation), from stateless persons and from foreign organizations.
What taxes does the church pay in Russia?
For religious organizations, the legislation of the Russian Federation provides for tax benefits. Churches were exempted from the following payments (tax exemptions of Article 381 of the Tax Code):
- land tax;
- tax on property that is used for religious purposes (according to Article 381 of the Tax Code);
- tax on church rites and the sale of church items (the law states that the church does not pay value added taxes on the sale of religious items).
Church Tax Sales Tax Benefits
In 2001, the Government of the Russian Federation established a complete list of religious items that are not subject to taxation. The list contains five exceptions:
- Items of religious worship, including icons, icon frames, thrones, altars, conical images, vestments, and so on.
- The decoration of temples and elements of architecture.
- Church attributes, including crosses, incense, medallions, orders, commemorative signs and more.
- Items for worship and for rituals.
- Clothing for religious purposes: mantles, felon, crib, handrails, belts and so on.
Property tax benefits
In the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, the Russian Orthodox Church is exempt from paying taxes on property that is used for religious purposes. Property tax benefits are not taken into account if the objects are not subject to religious use (for example, dormitories or fraternal buildings). In accordance with the law of Art. 372 of the Tax Code, property tax is a regional tax, therefore, the authorities of individual constituent entities of the Russian Federation have the right to establish their own benefits on the territory for some non-profit organizations. As a result, religious organizations pay zero percent taxation.
Land taxes
What taxes does the church pay in Russia for land ownership? According to the law of the Russian Federation, churches are exempt from taxes on land plots if religious buildings are located on these plots. These include:
- objects for worship (chapels, temples and other religious buildings);
- objects of religious veneration (pilgrimage centers that belong to the Orthodox Church);
- spiritual objects of education (seminaries, clergy schools, schools and dormitories);
- buildings that serve other activities of the church (buildings for charitable purposes).
Does the church pay taxes in Russia for structures on its territory that are not religious sites? The Russian Orthodox Church uses such land benefits and builds buildings on its territories that are not intended for religious purposes. For such buildings, the tax in the state treasury is also not paid.
Income Taxes
What other taxes does the church pay in Russia? The Russian Orthodox Church is a profit taxpayer. But this does not apply to such types of income:
- income from property;
- earmarked income, which includes money for the maintenance of non-profit organizations (contributions, charity income, funds received from individuals, financing from the budget of the Russian Federation, inherited property).
These cash receipts should be used to carry out the main activities of the temples. In order to legally use such funds, they must meet the requirements of:
- the funds are intended only for the maintenance of churches, temples and religious sites;
- full financial accounting of income and expenses should be kept;
- at the end of the tax period, the church must provide its tax report to the tax office, where the intended use of the funds received will be described.
If the above requirements are not met, then the cash proceeds will be regarded as unrealized income.
Transport taxes
Of great interest to citizens is the following question: “What taxes does a religious organization pay for using cars?” In accordance with Law 357 of the Tax Code, the vehicle tax is paid by the person for whom the car is registered. In this case, the authorities of the Russian Federation do not provide benefits. Therefore, with vehicles that belong to spiritual organizations, the tax must be paid in full. But in fact, benefits for cars are introduced by the laws of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.
Opinion of citizens on the payment of taxes by the Russian Orthodox Church
Many believe that payment to the state budget is not made by the Orthodox Church. In the accounts of such organizations are billions of fortunes that are not controlled by anyone. Citizens are outraged not only by tax benefits, but also state bonuses from the Russian government:
- getting rid of all utility bills;
- free use of electricity.
Not only the economic issue, but also the policy of the Orthodox Church worries the inhabitants of the country. For example, parishioners complain about such announcements in the church: “You can only put candles in the church of your own production, it is forbidden to put other people's candles.”
Activists believe that the Russian Orthodox Church should conduct its activities on the basis of the laws of the country. But there are those who claim that the church is not obliged to pay taxes to the state treasury, since it is on its own security, is not financed by the state budget.
