Criteria of small and medium-sized enterprises in Russia

According to the Law on the Development of Entrepreneurship in Russia of July 24, 2007, the following business entities are classified as small businesses (hereinafter referred to as SMPs): private entrepreneurs, farms, business associations and partnerships, production and consumer cooperatives. All of the above categories must comply with the standards stipulated by federal law. To be included in the NSR, it is necessary to meet such fundamental criteria of small and medium-sized enterprises as the number of employees, authorized capital and income. Below we consider a more detailed description of the criteria for the NSR.

Since 2016, the Government of Russia has decided to use the criterion of the marginal value of income when defining a subject as a “small business entity”. That is, to consider the issue of income broader than the calculation of revenue from the sale of goods and services. The profitability limit of small enterprises in 2017 remained unchanged at 800 million rubles.

Due to the publication of the aforementioned resolution, some enterprises run the risk of losing the status of small ones, which means that they will lose quotas for simplified accounting, personnel document management and cash discipline, as well as a simplified taxation system. The remaining criteria for small and medium-sized enterprises remained the same as in previous years.

Fundamental criteria

In addition to profitability, the definition of an enterprise as small is based on the average number of employees for the last year. Small enterprises include organizations with a staff of not more than one hundred people. The average composition is determined by personnel having full and part-time employment.

Additional criteria for small and medium-sized businesses include the total percentage of membership of other business enterprises in the authorized capital of the organization in question. In relation to equal NSR, this indicator should not exceed 25 percent. In relation to other legal entities or foreign companies - 49 percent.

Another criterion for the NSR is an activity of an intellectual nature, for example, the development of databases. Joint-stock companies can also receive the status of SMP, but only if the shares belong to the innovation sphere of the economy. An exception is also made by enterprises participating in the Skolkovo project, as well as those enterprises that provide state support for activities in the field of innovation.

The criteria for classifying small and medium enterprises are very relevant now.

Features of small business

If a small business meets the criteria updated in 2017, it is included in a special list of SMEs, which was established in mid-2016. The organization itself does not need to do anything specifically to get on this list, it happens automatically. The Federal Tax Service relies on information provided by entrepreneurs, namely the average number of employees, an extract from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities and the Unified State Register of Taxes and Entrepreneurship, as well as a tax return.

An important point is the benefits for enterprises that have received the status of SMEs, especially in accounting:

1. It is not necessary to set a limit on the cash balance at the checkout.
2. Conducting accounting in a simplified form.
3. A simplified form of taxation, regulated by each region separately.
4. Reducing the number of hours of monitoring the NSR by regulatory authorities to 50 per year.
5. Some individual entrepreneurs are exempt from taxes for two years.

The criteria of small and medium-sized businesses are of interest to many.

Transition to a medium or large enterprise

Sometimes circumstances develop in such a way that the company loses the status of the NSR. That is, it ceases to meet all the necessary criteria. The conditions for exiting the NSR list are:

1. When the participation of third parties in the authorized capital of an enterprise exceeds the established limit. The transition to a medium or large enterprise is carried out immediately after making changes to the USRLE.
2. When the staff increases above the norm or the income limit from entrepreneurial activity is exceeded, the organization retains the status of a small enterprise for three years. After this period, the organization will be classified as medium or large.

However, sometimes an enterprise may not transfer to a larger status, but rather, reduce the number of employees and income and become a microenterprise, with up to 15 employees and an income of not more than 120 million rubles. The criteria for small and medium-sized enterprises in the Russian Federation must be followed.

Prospects for the NSR

Small business is a very flexible and widespread form of business and is an indicator of the financial benefits of the country in the market economy. In developed countries, small business forms the gross portion of national wealth.

The main representative of any small enterprise is its immediate supervisor, who needs to resolve issues at many levels and in many areas. And, unfortunately, often enterprises are faced with incompetent management. Quite often, managers of small businesses do not have knowledge in such aspects as finance, management, marketing, supply, etc. To avoid the disappearance of small businesses, it is necessary to raise people with an entrepreneurial spirit, able to make innovative, creative decisions, and show extraordinary abilities in areas of entrepreneurship. But it is necessary to take into account the criteria for determining small and medium-sized enterprises.

Success factors

However, success is influenced not only by an educated and entrepreneurial leadership, but also by other factors:

1. Start-up capital. In Russia, there is virtually no such thing as investing in a small business. The future entrepreneur must find the necessary funds for the startup.
2. The timing of the first profit. This indicator is directly related to the type of activity of the enterprise. The service industry is rapidly reaching profit. In the field of production, this period may drag on for years.
3. Taxes and employee benefits. These are the biggest expense items in a small business.
4. Business development loans. As in the case of investments, in our country with loans everything is quite difficult. Such loans are issued for a short period and at a large percentage, which means that they are inaccessible to beginning entrepreneurs.

Conclusion

Thus, the prospects for the development of small business in Russia are vague. However, our country is moving along the path of progress, and hope for a successful future in this area cannot be ruled out.

We examined the criteria for small and medium-sized enterprises.