Tax risk management: expert opinion. How companies can reduce tax risks What are tax risks

"Finance", 2011, N 1

The uncertainty of both the external and internal environment inevitably causes the presence of risks in the implementation of management. Risk is inherent in any form of human activity, which is associated with many conditions and factors that influence the positive outcome of decisions made by people.

The modern economic dictionary defines risk as the danger of unexpected losses of expected profit, income or property, cash, and other resources due to a random change in the conditions of economic activity or unfavorable circumstances.

Other authors understand risk as the possible danger of losses arising from the specifics of certain natural phenomena and activities of human society. As an economic category, risk is an event that may or may not occur. If such an event occurs, three economic outcomes are possible:

• negative (loss, damage, loss);
• zero (neutral);
• positive (gain, benefit, profit).

The concept of tax risk has not yet been developed. Moreover, even the very formulation of the question of what tax risks represent is new.

Tax risks most often mean uncertainties that can lead to negative consequences.

The term "tax risk" is used quite rarely. More often in scientific circulation and in business practice such concepts as “banking risks”, “audit risks”, “currency risks”, “insurance risks” are heard. If there is a definition of tax risk, it is mainly formulated from the perspective of the taxpayer.

Tax risk, according to V. Narezhny, is the danger of an unexpected alienation of taxpayer funds due to the actions (inaction) of state bodies and (or) local governments.

According to A.Yu. Che, tax risk from the taxpayer’s point of view is the likelihood (threat) of additional taxes (levies), penalties and fines being assessed to him during a tax audit due to disagreements that have arisen between taxpayers and tax authorities in the interpretation of tax legislation, which can result in a real increase in tax liability for an economic entity burden

Obviously, from the position of the state, the definition of tax risk has a completely different content. The paradox of the state’s position lies in the fact that, being the main generator of tax risks in relation to an individual company, it is also the subject of tax risk management in the fiscal sphere. From the point of view of the state, represented by its authorized bodies, tax risk is the probability (threat) of a shortfall in taxes to the budget and state extra-budgetary funds due to the use by taxpayers of tax minimization methods, possible due to certain shortcomings in tax legislation.

Thus, according to V.G. Panskova, tax risks should be characterized as the probability of financial losses for all participants in tax legal relations.

Legal entities, as a rule, assess and predict tax risks. The effectiveness of the assessment organization is largely determined by the risk classification. Based on the nature of possible negative consequences, tax risks are divided as follows.

Risk of tax control. The risk of tax control itself is not critical. But the work of some companies is simply paralyzed by a tax audit, which entails additional financial losses.

The risk of additional accrual of arrears and penalties. In general, this risk is most often predicted: it can be assessed either by internal audit services or based on external audit data.

Risk of sanctions and fines. This is a pretty significant risk. The fine for a tax violation can reach 40% of the amount of arrears - in such a situation, the fine can actually change the financial status of the company.

Risk of increasing tax burden. After the taxpayer, at the request of the tax authorities, adjusted the financial statements, it turns out that he worked in completely different financial conditions. And in the end, the investor understands that the company deliberately deceived him, using a scheme to adjust reporting to the business plan.

Risk of reduction or loss of liquidity. By reducing liquidity, a company can not only go bankrupt, but also lose its investment attractiveness, which entails panic and further deterioration of its financial condition.

Risk of asset seizure. The tax authority has the right, under certain circumstances, to seize the assets of the company, including current accounts.

Risk of suspension of the company's activities. Among the most striking examples of such a risk are false entrepreneurship or the fact that a company is not located at its state registration address.

Risk of criminal prosecution. In accordance with Art. 199 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, tax evasion is a criminal offense. In this regard, the risk of criminal prosecution for a manager is perhaps the most serious risk.

Risk of bankruptcy. Here it is advisable to determine the time frame for the existence of the risk of bankruptcy. According to the departments for combating tax violations, the real life of the risk is 6 years. In his risk assessment, the author uses 5 years as the legally established storage period for accounting documentation.

Classification of risks according to degree of reality, proposed by A.V. Bryzgalin, includes obvious, probable and hidden risks. The obvious ones are that the taxpayer deliberately commits violations of the law in his activities. Possible risks are due to the possibility of double interpretation of the current tax legislation. The tax authorities have their own fiscal interpretation of the rules. In parallel, there is also a judicial interpretation, which is not always uniform in content. There is an unofficial interpretation, which is given by lawyers, representatives of science, and tax experts. Hidden are risks that the taxpayer is not aware of. A typical example is with fly-by-night companies, when during a tax audit the inspector discovers that out of 200 counterparties of the taxpayer being audited, several have the characteristics of fly-by-night companies. The taxpayer under audit could not have known about this, since he received goods from them.

By grouping risks by time, we can distinguish risks of the past, present and future. Risks of the past are limited by the statute of limitations for tax control. Risks of the current period are forecasting the problems that may arise due to decisions made today. Risks of the future - in the Tax Code of the Russian Federation there is a prohibition on giving retroactive force to norms that worsen the situation of taxpayers, but there remains such a risk of the future as a revision of judicial practice. One of the tax risks of the future A.V. Bryzgalin calls the risk of double-checking.

There are several different causes of uncertainty (risk categories): information risks, process risks, environmental risks and reputational risks. I would like to dwell in more detail on the proposed classification, which seems the most interesting, in the author’s opinion.

Firstly, the uncertainties arising from the need to carry out tax assessments (information risks). The risk of ambiguous interpretation of the law by the taxpayer and the tax authority is another typical risk for Russia. Experience shows that tax risks accompany precisely those transactions that are carried out in order to achieve favorable tax consequences. You need to understand: when an enterprise seeks to save on taxes, it is in an area of ​​potential risk and therefore must act with extreme caution. During the legal and tax analysis of planned transactions, as a rule, so-called tax risks are identified - situations when even a specialist finds it difficult to unambiguously answer the question “To pay or not to pay?”

The degree of risk can be assessed on the basis of established judicial practice, and in the absence of such, a legal dispute should be initiated in advance on your own in order to create the necessary precedent and thereby start the tax “time machine”. Strictly speaking, case law in Russia is not officially recognized. But in essence, everything is different: judges do not want their decisions to be overturned, and therefore they try to take into account the position of higher courts.

Due to the existing system of arbitration courts, the decision of the cassation court is final for most legal disputes. Cases reach the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation extremely rarely, only as an exception. Therefore, if on some issue there is no corresponding clarification from the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation, then the practice of “their” district court will be decisive for the courts of first and appellate instances, for taxpayers and tax authorities.

Secondly, a group of risks associated with incorrect fulfillment of tax obligations, errors in tax accounting or tax planning (process risks). Process risks can be divided into several subgroups:

1. Risks associated with a specific transaction. In terms of the risk of tax risks, it is impossible to compare the usual supply of goods with trade within a group, and even when crossing the border. Risks arise when a company enters into a large or unusual transaction (personnel, systems, databases, control procedures are not configured to fully cope with the risk). This category includes the risks of technical or factual errors in the process of calculating taxes and (or) delays in their payment. The danger of such risks is also expressed in the fact that each individual risk may be small, but taken together they can create a threatening situation, especially if the enterprise has an extensive network of branches. Company management must ask what will happen if the risks stack up; are there enough resources to neutralize the consequences; whether the result of development according to such a scenario will be acceptable. You need to be prepared for the worst situation. Such risks are usually called portfolio risks. In this situation, setting up a document flow system, internal control, and a thorough audit by external auditors can help.
2. Risks arise from simple management errors and oversights when tax or accounting services are not involved in the management decision-making process. In practice, this means that the company does not have a clear organizational structure for risk management. Accordingly, the more specialized departments are involved in planning the company's operations, especially the so-called non-standard ones, and do not simply reflect their results, the more justifiably we can talk about risk management.
3. The deal is poorly documented. One of the common reasons for negative tax consequences is insufficient documentary evidence of the transaction carried out by the enterprise. It is no coincidence that tax authorities are increasingly demanding the submission of complete documentation in order to verify that the declared transaction has actually been carried out. Unfortunately, very often this documentation is either insufficient or completely absent.

Documentary evidence of economic feasibility significantly reduces tax risks, but it is not regulated by the current tax legislation: we can only talk about general principles for the preparation of such documents.

Unfortunately, recently we have seen a clearly defined trend related to the peculiarities of tax control. In this regard, it is impossible not to mention the situation with the preparation of invoices. For example, the absence of a decoding of the signature of the person who signed the invoice, or an error in the legal address of the counterparty, serves as grounds for refusal to reimburse the value added tax (VAT) on this invoice, the amount of which can be 100, 200, or 500 million rub. In this case, neither the enterprise’s references to making changes to the invoice, nor counter-checks of counterparties confirming the fact of accrual of tax on revenue and payment of tax to the budget are taken into account. That is, the fact that the buyer pays tax to the seller and the latter transfers this tax to the budget does not mean the former’s right to offset the VAT paid to the budget. Adequate judicial practice is currently called upon to resolve this contradiction, and subsequently, a legislative settlement of this problem.

Thirdly, risks arising from the enforcement of tax legislation by tax authorities and courts (environmental risks). This category also includes risks arising from the uncertainty of the application of tax laws in various circumstances, and the risks of possible changes in tax laws or practices, as well as unexpected court decisions, “changes of power”, ranging from the federal minister to the tax inspector. Company management may face a very difficult task if the company's branches are geographically scattered throughout Russia, since in our country in St. Petersburg the legislation is interpreted differently than in Moscow. If the business crosses the borders of the country, the situation becomes even more complicated. The organization cannot influence the likelihood of these risks occurring, and therefore they can also be designated as external risks.

Fourthly, reputational risks are the risks of damaging the company's reputation.

The classification of tax risks according to various criteria revealed, in our opinion, the main drawback of the definition of tax risk, which was designated as the probability of financial losses. It is obvious that the company's losses if the risk of bankruptcy, the risk of suspension of the company's activities, the risk of damage to the company's reputation, the risk of criminal prosecution of company officials are classified as tax risks cannot be reduced to purely financial losses. Indeed, the bulk of negative consequences one way or another lead to financial losses for the company, but they are by no means limited to them. So, according to A.V. Grachev, tax risks can be expressed not only in the form of real financial losses, but also as negative legal consequences of actions of state and municipal authorities.

In this regard, it would be correct, in our opinion, to define tax risk as the likelihood of negative consequences of any kind for all participants in tax relations.

Literature

1. Raizberg B.A., Lozovsky L.Sh., Starodubtseva E.B. Modern economic dictionary. M.: INFRA-M, 2007. P. 358.
2. Tsyrkunova T.A., Migunova M.I. Tax risks: essence and classification // Finance and credit. 2005. N 33. S. 48 - 53.
3. Narezhny V. M&A without the right to tax risk // Consultant. 2008. N 1.
4. Che A.Yu. About tax risks // Tax Bulletin. 2007. N 10.
5. Pinskaya M.R. Tax risk: essence and manifestations // Finance. 2009. N 2.
6. Panskov V.G. Tax risks: taxpayers and the state // Tax Bulletin. 2009. N 1.
7. Pavlenko N.A. How to classify tax risks // Your tax lawyer. 2008. N 12.
8. Bryzgalin A. Speech at the Second All-Russian Tax Congress 18 - 19.11.2008.
9. Grachev A.V. Tax risks and risks of unfair business practices // Finance. 2009. N 3.

O.V.Gordeeva

Tax consultant

Tax risks of an organization includethose facts and circumstances that may increase its costs in terms of mandatory payments. What are they? We'll talk about this in our article.

Types of tax risks

In the course of its activities, an organization may face the following tax risks:

• the risk of introducing new taxes, increasing existing ones or changing tax rules, leading to an increase in the tax burden on business;
• risk of tax audit;
• risk of additional tax charges.

Regarding the first risk, let us recall that our tax legislation is not stable enough. Thus, thoughts about increasing tax rates are often discussed in various circles, including at the level of legislators - take, for example, the periodically emerging idea of ​​a progressive personal income tax scale. And the expansion of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation was felt by sellers in Moscow as recently as 2015, who were obliged to pay a sales tax.

But the organization cannot do anything about this risk - it can only accept new rules and adapt to them. The same cannot be said about the second and third risks. Let's look at them in more detail.

Tax audit risk

When we talk about the risk of a tax audit, we, of course, mean an on-site audit. After all, desk audits accompany the organization throughout its entire activity simply upon the submission of declarations.

Read about the procedure for desk audits in the material “Procedure for conducting a desk tax audit - 2017” .

An on-site inspection is an unpleasant procedure. Despite the fact that it does not automatically mean additional charges, penalties and fines, going through it always requires at least a minimum of labor costs and nervous tension.

Can the firm do anything to reduce the risk of being targeted by tax audits? Not much, but maybe.

It is within her power to familiarize herself with the list of publicly available criteria for self-assessment of risks used by tax authorities in the process of selecting objects for conducting IRR. There are 12 such criteria, and they are given in Appendix 2 to the order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated May 30, 2007 No. MM-3-06/333@. Among them are low tax burden and profitability, long-term loss-making, a high share of VAT deductions, etc.

Read more about this in the article “Tax audits in 2017 - list of organizations” .

And if not everyone can cope with the situation and go beyond these criteria, then assessing the likelihood of an audit and preparing for it is quite realistic for any organization.

Risk of additional tax charges

Tax risks also include the risk of additional tax charges and payment of penalties and fines. Quite often this is caused by the refusal to deduct VAT or the deduction of income tax expenses. These points form the essence of almost the majority of disputes with inspectors.

At the same time, of all the risks we have identified, this one is more under the organization’s control. It is enough to exercise due diligence, take special care in confirming expenses and deductions, comply with other tax rules and not be afraid to defend your position in a dispute with inspectors. And the risk of additional charges can be reduced or avoided altogether.

You can find materials on any taxation issues on our website. For example, read about deductions in the material "St. 172 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation (2017): questions and answers" , and about expenses - "St. 252 Tax Code of the Russian Federation (2017): questions and answers" .

Results

In the course of its activities, an organization faces several types of tax risks, 2 of which (the risk of unfavorable results of an on-site tax audit and the risk of additional taxes payable) it can reduce independently.

Twenty-five years ago the countdown began for the formation and development of the new tax system in Russia. In 1991, the newly created tax inspectorate was perceived by former cooperators, who overnight became businessmen, not as a source of numerous threats, but as an almost optional dictate of the times. The state's orders to pay taxes, which were insignificant at that time, were perceived quite naturally. Sobering up happened quite quickly, tax risks became part of the main threats to business activity, and since then they have been evolving, continuously improving.

Concept of tax risks

The concept of tax risks, unfortunately, is not disclosed in the legislation. This is strange, since the phenomenon has been clearly manifested for many years both at the state level of the budget structure and at the corporate level of economic activity. Of course, modern challenges (international terrorism, sanctions, economic crisis) are shifting the emphasis in assessing threats and dangers. However, tax risks have been and remain one of the key risks for all subjects of social, financial, legal, fiscal and industrial relations in our society.

Russia is not the only one facing real problems. Civilizational transformations are most likely inevitable. They largely transform the budget structure of national economies. Consequently, tax systems are also expected to change. Take, for example, the issues of social obligations of the state, among which one of the key ones is the issue of retirement age. There are no alternatives to its solution, there is only a delay. All this means that tax risks are most likely on the eve of significant structural changes. And you need to be prepared for this, which means you need a systemic vision and understanding of the probabilities of adverse events in this area.

If we turn to the basic definition of risks and, on its basis, try to define the concept of tax risks, we get the following. Tax risk is the possibility of an unfavorable event, as a result of which the entity that made the decision in the field of taxation loses or receives less resources, loses the expected benefit, or incurs additional financial and image costs. This definition attempts to balance the interests of opposing parties: the state and business organizations.

Taxpayer entities that do not carry out entrepreneurial activities are deliberately excluded from the total scope of the concept presented above. These include individuals, non-profits and other organizations from among government institutions. Business, as is known, is the main donor of budget funds due to the established fiscal burden on its economy. In this issue, the interests of payers and fiscal authorities are in different directions. There is a dialectical contradiction. The state is interested in better filling the budget, and organizations strive to reduce the tax burden in order to maximize profits and business success.

Tax risk as a specific form of risk has the following features:

• lack of probability of a favorable outcome;
• significant distance in time between the decision and the risk event;
• high level of subjectivity in risk assessment;
• the probability composition of factors is not stable over time;
• the possibility of new risks arising that were difficult to foresee at the time the decision was made;
• Fiscal risk refers simultaneously to financial and legal categories.

Classification types of fiscal risks

First of all, the types of fiscal risks are considered from the perspective of two sides of the fiscal process: the state as a legislator and a collector of funds in the form of taxes and organizations that act as taxpayers. For a taxpayer organization, there are three main approaches to making decisions that can predetermine tax consequences.

1. An approach that fully complies with the requirements of financial and tax legislation. This approach cannot 100% eliminate some types of fiscal risks.
2. An approach characterized by the relative legality of the decision being made. The solution is based on contradictions between civil, financial and tax law, on judicial precedent practice, and on “holes” in the legislation. Formally, there are no violations in this approach, and intent is practically unprovable.
3. Use of illegal tax minimization schemes.

Types of various tax risks also accompany the legislative and fiscal functions of the state. The system of tax legal relations is quite complex and multifactorial. It is closely connected with all branches of law and numerous economic mechanisms at the macro and micro levels. These risks arise at the moments of decision-making:

• in the field of changes and development of the tax and fee system;
• to clarify the responsibilities and rights of participants in tax legal relations;
• on the conclusion of international agreements in the field of regulation of taxation issues;
• during the performance of control functions;
• during disputes and litigation with taxpayers.

The classification of tax risks also includes features that separate the interests of the state and the taxpayer. The main criteria for dividing risks into classes consist of seven groups. The classification table is presented to your attention below.

Division of types of tax risks according to main classification criteria

Each of the characteristics indicated in the table deserves separate consideration. We will focus only on the first sign of the level of probability of implementation. Let's consider each of the types designated by it.

1. High tax risk. The criteria for this type include facts: violation of tax laws, the position of the Ministry of Finance and (or) the Federal Tax Service is justified and unfavorable, judicial practice speaks against the organization or is absent.
2. Average tax risk. It includes the following fulfilled criteria: the absence of a formal fact of violation of the tax code, the position of the Federal Tax Service and (or) the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation was formed against the taxpayer’s decision, and there are no judicial precedents, or the position of the courts is not clear.
3. Low risk. The following criteria for this type are satisfied: judicial practice is in favor of taxpayers, the position of the fiscal authorities is unfavorable, there are no violations of the law.

Tax risk management system at the enterprise

Work with fiscal threats is built in the same vein of the corporate risk management system. Tax risk management organizationally refers to the functional composition of the company's financial management department. The algorithm of actions is traditional: identify (identify), evaluate, reduce the likelihood of consequences.

We understand tax risk management at an enterprise as the process of identifying, qualitative and quantitative assessment of fiscal threats, developing a set of measures to neutralize them and reduce the risk of tax and other sanctions. Preventing fiscal threats is one of the main tasks of the chief accountant and financial director, but the burden of responsibility lies with the head of the company.

The process is implemented in several stages.

1. Analysis of the existing tax burden.
2. Internal and external audit.
3. Analysis of current financial and tax legislation and prospects for their development.
4. Analysis of the company's business prospects from the perspective of the tax base.
5. Identification and assessment of the main risk factors.
6. Tax risk analysis.
7. Selection of methods and forms of risk reduction, development of solutions to minimize them.
8. Implementation of the action plan.
9. Changes in relevant policies in the financial sector: accounting, tax, borrowing, credit, etc.
10. Monitoring and control of the implementation of the action plan and compliance with policies, ongoing audit of accounting activities.

Scheme of factors determining fiscal risks

Above is a diagram of the main external and internal factors of tax risks. The basis for identifying factors for the company is clarity in the perception of the position of the Federal Tax Service inspectors in relation to compliance with the risk criteria described above. The tax service has a Concept for planning a system for on-site tax audits. The document formulates criteria for organizations to independently assess possible tax risks. Their composition is presented below.

Composition of criteria for self-assessment of fiscal risks.

1

This article provides the main classifications of tax risks that exist for enterprises and ways to solve them. The consequences of tax risks can be positive, neutral or negative. At the same time, financial risk management should be based on certain principles. Tax risks are of great importance in the financial management system, because tax relations are an important factor determining their outcome. The main techniques for managing tax risks are avoiding risk, reducing risk, and accepting risk. In the financial activities of an enterprise, the tax risk management system should be an independent system. In the financial activities of an enterprise, tax risk management presupposes the possibility of purposefully reducing the likelihood of risks occurring and minimizing the negative consequences associated with the taxation process, and the effectiveness of the organization of risk management largely depends on the classification of risk.

tax risk

minimizing tax risk

consequences of tax risks

financial activity of the enterprise

neutralization mechanisms

1. Kuzmicheva I. A., Flick E. G. Automation of accounting work of tax authorities // Territory of new opportunities. Bulletin of Vladivostok State University of Economics and Service. – 2010. – No. 5. – p.67-72.

2. Tax Code of the Russian Federation: (as of April 21, 2014) / [Electronic resource] / ConsultantPlus. – 2014.

3. Directories of the Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) [Electronic resource] / Access mode: www.kadis.ru/gosorg.

4. Official website of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation [Electronic resource]/Access mode: www.r42.nalog.ru/pv/42_risk/.

5. Official website of the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia [Electronic resource] / Access mode: www.economy.gov.ru/minec/main.

According to the generally accepted classification, tax risks include certain types of financial risks that are elements of the financial and economic activities of an enterprise. In this case, if an organization is engaged in any type of activity, there is always a risk that accompanies its current activities. A definition of tax risk is found in educational, regulatory and regulatory sources. This is an objective opportunity for the taxpayer to incur financial losses associated with the procedure for calculating, paying and optimizing taxes and other non-tax payments.

In the modern realities of a market economy, the role of managing tax risks of an organization is growing, since the consequence of such risks is additional costs in the form of penalties, which reduce the financial result of the enterprise.

The consequences of tax risks can be: positive, negative and neutral.

The consequences of tax risks are considered positive when the taxpayer receives a high result as a result of his activities. The taxpayer can obtain such a result with the help of tax management, managing taxes and anticipating changes in the country’s tax policy, and can calculate and increase their tax risks.

The consequences of tax risks can be negative if the increase in tax risks has a negative side, which can result in harmful economic consequences for society and the state. Reducing tax risks through conscientious economic behavior, the taxpayer tries to compare everything so that the planned results of his activities coincide with those actually obtained.

The goal of entrepreneurship, in a competitive environment, is to obtain maximum income at minimum costs. In order to make this goal a reality, it is necessary to compare the amount of capital invested in production activities with the tax risks and financial results of this activity, then the enterprise will receive maximum income without spending very large amounts of money.

1. disclosure of theoretical and practical foundations of financial risk management;
2. minimizing tax risks of an enterprise and ways to solve it;
3. consideration of general methods and indicators used to assess economic risks.

To achieve these goals, it is necessary to solve the following tasks:

• consider the economic essence and existing classification of financial risks;
• principles of financial and tax risk management;
• policy for managing financial and tax risks of the enterprise;
• mechanisms for neutralizing financial risks.

The relevance of this topic is that at present, an important element of the effectiveness of the financial and economic activity of an enterprise is an understanding of the essence of tax risks, therefore, tax risk management is considered the main component of financial management and financial policy of an enterprise.

The financial activity of an enterprise is accompanied by various types of risks that affect the results of this activity, as well as the level of financial security. These risks play a major role in the “risk portfolio” and form a special group of financial risks of the enterprise. A portfolio is a tool that ensures stability of income with minimal risk.

Financial risks are characterized by great diversity and require a certain classification. In the financial activities of an enterprise, credit risk takes place only when providing commodity or consumer loans to buyers. Such enterprises that conduct foreign economic activity, import raw materials and supplies, and export finished products are subject to currency risks. In this case, there is a shortfall in the expected income due to the foreign exchange rate. Investment risk characterizes the possibility of financial losses that may arise during the investment activities of an enterprise. A decrease in the level of liquidity of current assets reduces the risk of insolvency of the enterprise. Price risk incurs financial losses for an enterprise associated with unfavorable changes in price indices for assets. The risk of reducing the financial stability of an enterprise is characterized by an excessive share of borrowed funds. Deposit risk is associated with an incorrect assessment and unsuccessful choice of a commercial bank to carry out deposit operations of an enterprise.

According to the nature of the financial consequences, all risks are divided into: risk entailing economic losses and risk entailing lost profits. The financial consequences of a risk that entails economic losses will always be only negative; there is the possibility of loss of income or capital. The risk entailing lost profits considers a situation when an enterprise cannot carry out a planned financial transaction for any reason.

According to the characterized object, the following groups of financial risks are distinguished:

1. risk of an individual financial transaction. This risk characterizes all types of financial risks belonging to a certain financial transaction;
2. the risk of various types of financial activities (for example, as the risk of investment or foreign exchange activities of an enterprise);
3. the risk of the financial activities of the entire enterprise in general. This is a complex of various types of risks, which is determined by the specifics of the organizational and legal form of its activities, the composition of assets and the capital structure.

Based on complexity, simple and complex financial risks are distinguished. Simple financial risk characterizes a type of financial risk that is not divided into separate subtypes. An example of such a risk is inflation risk. Complex financial risk defines the type of financial risk, which consists of a set of its subtypes. An example of complex financial risk is investment risk.

Based on the totality of the instruments under study, financial risks are divided into the following groups:

1. individual financial risk;
2. portfolio financial risk.

Individual financial risk characterizes the total risk associated with individual financial instruments. Portfolio financial risk characterizes the risk belonging to the entire complex of single-function financial instruments.

Based on the nature of their manifestation over time, they distinguish between permanent financial risk and temporary financial risk. Constant financial risk is associated with the action of constant factors and is characteristic of the entire period of financial activity. Temporary financial risk arises at individual stages of a financial transaction and is continuous.

Financial risk management is based on certain principles, the main of which are:

1. Awareness of risk taking. An enterprise engaged in a certain type of activity must understand the essence of the work and consciously take risks if it hopes to receive income from its activities.
2. Manageability of accepted risks. Risks need to be managed regardless of the objective and subjective nature of financial risks, therefore the portfolio should include only those risks that are easy to neutralize during the management process, therefore it will be easier to create conditions for ensuring income stability with minimal risk.
3. Commensurability of the level of risks taken with the level of profitability of the operations performed. By comparing the degree of risks with the level of profitability of operations, an enterprise can accept only those risks, the degree of influence of which is considered adequate to the amount of profitability that the enterprise expects.
4. Comparability of the level of accepted risks with the possible losses of the enterprise. The enterprise must compare the level of risks taken with the losses of the enterprise. When an enterprise carries out a certain operation, it is necessary to achieve such a result that the size of the enterprise’s financial losses corresponds to the share of capital that is saved to cover it in a critical situation.
5. Taking into account the time factor in risk management. An enterprise should take into account the degree of time involved in risk management; the longer the operation takes place, the greater will be the size of the financial risks associated with it.
6. Taking into account the enterprise strategy in the risk management process. The financial risk management system should be based on general criteria and approaches that are developed by the entrepreneur himself. If an entrepreneur wants to get a good result from his activities, then he needs to focus and direct all his efforts on certain types of risks that will give him the maximum benefit.
7. Taking into account the possibility of risk transfer. The acceptance of a number of financial risks is incompatible with the enterprise’s ability to mitigate their negative consequences. Thus, the need to carry out any operation that carries risk may be prescribed by the requirements of the strategy and direction of economic activity.

Based on the principles that have been reviewed at the enterprise, a financial risk management policy is created. With the help of this policy, neutralization measures are developed to eliminate the threat of risk and its negative consequences associated with the implementation of various aspects of economic activity.

From the totality of financial risks, tax risks can be distinguished:

1. tax control risks;
2. risks of increased tax burden;
3. risks of criminal prosecution.

Tax control risks depend on the level of activity of the taxpayer in relation to tax reduction. For a law-abiding taxpayer, the risks of tax control are small and lead to the possibility of tax authorities detecting tax accounting errors. For a taxpayer who takes active steps to minimize taxes, these risks increase. The risks of increasing the tax burden belong to economic projects of a long-term nature, for example, new enterprises and real estate investments. Such risks include the abolition of tax benefits and an increase in tax rates.

Taxpayers may experience significant financial losses within the framework of criminal prosecution for committing any offenses. When conducting a tax audit, for managers of the largest enterprises, there is a possibility of being subject to criminal proceedings; this probability is close to 100%.

Tax risks are of great importance in the financial management system, because tax relations are an important factor determining their outcome. Tax risk is understood as the danger for the subject of tax legal relations to incur financial losses that are associated with the taxation process; therefore, for the taxpayer, the increase in tax costs consists of a decrease in property potential and a decrease in the ability to solve problems that face the future. For the state, tax risk represents a decrease in budget revenues as a result of changes in tax rates and tax policy.

The main characteristics of tax risk are:

1. is an integral component of financial risk;
2. associated with inaccuracy of economic and legal information;
3. covers all participants in tax legal relations (taxpayers, tax agents and other entities representing the interests of the state);
4. is negative for all participants in tax legal relations.

Tax risk management is a set of techniques and methods that allow you to predict the occurrence of dangerous events and apply effective actions to minimize negative consequences.

Managing tax risks of an enterprise is a special area of ​​economic activity that requires deep knowledge in the field of tax, administrative, civil and criminal law, methods for optimizing business decisions and analyzing business activities.

The main techniques for managing tax risk can be identified: risk avoidance, risk reduction, risk acceptance.

In the financial activities of an enterprise, risk avoidance is a refusal to carry out a project associated with risk and makes it possible to completely avoid any uncertainties. It must be remembered that this principle presupposes a complete renunciation of profit. The principle of risk reduction means reducing the likelihood and volume of losses. Accepting risk means that all or some part of the risk remains the responsibility of the entrepreneur, and in this situation the entrepreneur must decide to cover possible losses at his own expense.

In addition, there are other classifications of tax risks:

In the financial activities of an enterprise, tax evasion is associated with illegal actions. Methods of tax evasion are divided into criminal and non-criminal. The actions of taxpayers are non-criminal if they are associated with tax evasion through violation of civil and tax laws, and with incorrect writing of transactions in tax and accounting records. Criminal actions are associated with violations of tax and criminal law.

The main role in the system of methods for managing financial risks of an enterprise belongs to internal neutralization mechanisms. Internal mechanisms for neutralizing financial risks represent a system of methods for minimizing negative consequences.

The advantage of using internal mechanisms to neutralize financial risks is the high degree of alternativeness of management decisions made, one of two, independent of other business entities.

Internal neutralization mechanisms include:

1. risk avoidance;
2. limiting risk concentration;
3. hedging;
4. diversification;
5. transferrisk;
6. self-insurance

In the financial activities of an enterprise, risk avoidance is characterized as the development of strategic and tactical decisions of an internal nature, which completely eliminates a specific type of financial risk.

Also, internal neutralization mechanisms include limiting the concentration of risk. Typically, this mechanism applies to those types that go beyond the acceptable level for financial transactions carried out in an area of ​​catastrophic or critical risk.

Hedging is a neutralization mechanism associated with transactions with derivative securities that helps to effectively reduce financial losses.

The operating principle of the diversification mechanism is based on sharing risks, which prevents risks from increasing. In the financial activities of an enterprise, the diversification mechanism is used to mitigate the negative financial consequences of special types of risks.

The financial risk transfer mechanism is based on the transfer or transfer of individual financial transactions to its business partners. Partners are sent exactly that part of the risks for which they have a greater opportunity to mitigate the negative consequences of financial risks.

The enterprise retains part of its financial resources and allows it to overcome the negative financial consequences of those financial transactions in which these risks are associated with the actions of counterparties; this is the mechanism of self-insurance of financial risks.

Currently, tax risk is an objective reality that every subject of economic and legal relations faces. This risk carries a material financial result in the form of income or loss, which must be assessed for the normal operation of the enterprise.

The tax risk management system should be built on the basis of appropriate principles, work in accordance with the available capabilities of modern risk management methods, do everything to develop the infrastructure, create conditions for the normal functioning of production and control risks at all levels of the financial activity of the enterprise.

Understanding the nature of risk helps you make the right decision regarding tax risk management and choose the most effective ways to reduce economic losses.

Increasing the efficiency of tax risk management is an important aspect in the financial activities of an enterprise, since it allows reducing the growth of additional tax charges based on the results of audits, which can become especially painful for companies that have problems with liquidity.

Currently, tax risks greatly influence the development and economic security of the state as a whole, therefore the work of tax authorities must be of better quality in order to ensure the fullness of the federal, regional and local budgets.

In the financial activities of an enterprise, the tax risk management system should be an independent system.

In the financial activities of an enterprise, tax risk management presupposes the possibility of purposefully reducing the likelihood of risks occurring and minimizing the negative consequences associated with the taxation process, and the effectiveness of the organization of risk management largely depends on the classification of risk.

Bibliographic link

Zamula E.V., Kuzmicheva I.A. TAX RISKS OF THE ENTERPRISE AND WAYS TO MINIMIZE THEM // International Journal of Applied and Fundamental Research. – 2014. – No. 8-3. – P. 118-122;
URL: https://applied-research.ru/ru/article/view?id=5762 (access date: 09/18/2019). We bring to your attention magazines published by the publishing house "Academy of Natural Sciences"

In modern economic conditions, when carrying out business activities, the taxation procedure is of significant importance, therefore the tax consequences of management decisions need to be studied and tax risks managed. The following areas of analysis of the impact of taxation on the results of an enterprise’s activities are distinguished:

• 1. Redistribution of taxes (tax burden) between the seller and the buyer. In conditions of market relations between these entities, the nature of the redistribution of taxes plays a significant role, especially when changing the tax administration of the state associated with the introduction of new taxes and changes in tax rates.
• 2. Calculation of taxes when choosing an investment project option, since they increase the amount of required investments with the same return and can make the investment option chosen as effective, but without taking into account the impact of taxation, ineffective.
• 3. Planning of tax payments, their impact on the cash flows of a business entity. These payments are reflected differently in the two accounting subsystems of the enterprise. Financial accounting displays actual data on the amount and structure of tax-related cash flows and the sources of these flows in the reporting period. In management accounting, cash flows due to taxes are involved in the preparation of a consolidated cash estimate, which aims to ensure sufficient funds for the timely implementation of necessary expenses and rational use of cash resources during the reporting period.

As a result, a new management activity has emerged - tax management, which is associated with the management of tax payments, as well as with the development of the optimal option for taxing a business entity.

One should also take into account the impact of taxation on the management of a business entity through the category of tax risk in order to ensure the security of the enterprise, which is significant in the economic conditions existing in Russia. To assess the impact of tax risk on the activities of an enterprise and manage it, it is necessary to understand the economic essence of this type of risk, its specific features, including its functional role in the economy, the causes of the risk and the factors influencing its magnitude, and to determine ways to reduce it.

Tax risk is a type of economic risk that arises from the interaction of two entities (the state and the taxpayer) during the formation of the state budget. The goal of the state is to collect taxes that form the revenue side of the budget, and the enterprise strives to reduce the amount of tax payments by both legal and illegal means.

As a result, a conflict of interests between the two parties arises due to the misappropriation of funds sent to the budget as tax and related payments. The solution to this conflict on the part of the state is to establish a reasonable tax burden, and on the part of the taxpayer - timely and full payment of tax payments to the budget. This will allow the company to make stable tax payments in the foreseeable future, regularly replenishing the state budget. Eliminating this conflict is of great importance, because, despite the contrasting economic interests, the state and the taxpayer have a common goal - to create a stable economic basis within the country.

Tax risks are divided into the following groups:

• 1) tax risks of the state;
• 2) tax risks of the taxpayer.

This manual examines the tax risks of a taxpayer - an economic entity registered as a legal entity.

The reason for the emergence of tax risk is the uncertainty of the financial and economic environment of the taxpayer’s activities in which the taxation process is carried out. The emergence of uncertainty is due to the following factors:

• 1) instability of the political and economic situation in the country, in the industry, in the region of activity of the economic entity;
• 2) instability, instability of tax legislation;
• 3) variability, unpredictability of actions of tax authorities;
• 4) the actions of managers and accountants who make tax-related decisions.

Uncertainty is caused by the action of objective and subjective environmental factors of the enterprise; Accordingly, the causes of tax risk are divided into two groups: objective and subjective.

The objective reasons for the emergence of tax risk are associated with the uncertainty of elements of the external and internal environment of the enterprise, primarily with the uncertainty of tax, accounting and other types of legislation that directly or indirectly affect the taxation process, as well as with the uncertainty of the actions of the tax authorities in relation to the business entity.

Subjective reasons are due to the fact that risk is always realized through a person (i.e. through the decision maker) and depends on his individuality, knowledge, attitude towards risk, etc. The subjective reason for tax risk is the uncertainty of the actions of accountants and managers making tax-related decisions. In accordance with tax legislation, tax amounts are determined by payers independently on the basis of tax and accounting data, therefore responsibility for the status of tax payments lies with the taxpayer.

When choosing a solution, the accountant relies on his knowledge and ideas, i.e. to his characteristic paradigm of views, the stability of which, on the one hand, allows the accountant to quickly navigate the environment, on the other hand, prevents him from making non-standard decisions. This clearly manifested itself during the transition of our country to new economic conditions, when the methodology of accounting and taxation changed significantly. This was a serious test for many experienced accountants; not everyone was able to acquire new knowledge and skills.

Tax decisions are also influenced by the accountant's attitude to risk. As observations show, some enterprises overpay taxes due to the unwillingness of the accountant and manager to take risks (the real reason for this may be a shallow knowledge of tax legislation). Risk appetite is of particular importance in cases of decision-making related to tax risk, since as a result of the accountant's actions, the enterprise is primarily responsible for financial sanctions.

When an accountant makes tax decisions, an important consideration is his willingness to follow the ethical standards of the accounting profession. In the United States, these standards are proclaimed by the Code of Professional Conduct for Members of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, according to which the accountant assumes a commitment to self-discipline that exceeds the requirements established by laws and regulations. The principles call for unswerving adherence to honest behavior even at the cost of sacrificing personal interests. Russia also has a Code of Ethics for Members of the Institute of Professional Accountants of Russia.

Any decision of a business entity in the field of taxation may lead to one of the following situations.

1. Payment of excess tax payments (including penalties) or savings on tax payments compared to the chosen taxation option. Changes in payments are due to a change in the conditions according to which the decision was made, i.e. changes in the state of the financial and economic environment.

An enterprise determines options for possible tax decisions, focusing on the information it has, including the experience of its employees, primarily the accountant. It uses possible benefits, rates, types of activities, payment procedures and terms, etc. In this case, it is considered P options, each of which corresponds to the amount of tax payments (I,), where i = 1, 2,..., P. Of these, the business entity chooses the most profitable (optimal) option that meets the requirements of tax legislation (I c).

By tax payments we mean the amount of taxes, as well as the amount of penalties, which, in accordance with Art. 72 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation is a way to ensure the fulfillment of obligations to pay taxes, and not a penalty.

As a result of implementing the decision, the enterprise may receive an actual amount of tax payments that is less (Yaf), equal (Yaf) or greater (Yaf) than I in (Fig. 5.1).

Rice. 5.1.

If Ni, then the enterprise has savings compared

with the previously selected option; If N f 3 > “c, then the company has additional payments.

2. The assessment of penalties by tax authorities due to violation of the procedure for calculating tax, the deadline for submitting a tax return, as well as the enterprise’s failure to comply with other requirements of tax legislation. The degree of influence of penalties on the financial position of an enterprise can vary: from actual absence of influence to bankruptcy. The first level corresponds to an acceptable tax risk, the second - catastrophic. The composition of enterprise payments related to taxation is presented in Fig. 5.2.

Rice. 5.2.

Tax risk is a possible deviation of the actual amount of tax payments from those tax payments, based on which decisions related to taxation were made, and arising due to the uncertainty of the enterprise’s operating environment. This deviation is either savings or financial losses.

Tax risk actually manifests itself through the risk of a certain tax, since an enterprise acts as a taxpayer or tax agent for a specific tax, therefore, a necessary condition for the occurrence of a tax risk is that the enterprise has an object of taxation for this tax (for example, if the enterprise does not have its own fixed assets, then he does not have a tax risk for corporate property tax).

Tax risk may also arise in cases not related to the fulfillment of the taxpayer’s obligations for a certain type of tax, for example, when registering the taxpayer with the tax authority, when the taxpayer provides information about opening and closing a bank account, etc. In this case, the enterprise may not even conduct business activities (not yet started or not yet operating due to current economic conditions, etc.).

In case of failure to comply with the requirements of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation (TC RF), as a result of incorrect accounting of the tax base, violation of the rules for calculating and paying taxes, in case of untimely payment of tax payments to the budget and submission of tax returns, the enterprise may be subject to financial sanctions in accordance with Chapter 16 of the Tax Code RF. When analyzing the tax risk associated with the accrual of penalties, it is advisable to consider two options.

First option. The taxpayer conscientiously pays taxes in full and on time, which characterizes him as a law-abiding taxpayer. In this case, different relationships are possible between the amount of taxes payable to the budget in accordance with tax legislation and the business transactions performed, reflected in the accounting records of the enterprise (# 3), and the actual amount of taxes reflected in the tax returns of the enterprise (I f) (see. Fig. 5.2).

The deviations that arise are due to errors made by taxpayers, since for objective reasons even experienced specialists make them.

When I f = I 3, the tax base is determined in full in accordance with the law.

When I f > I 3, the tax base is overestimated, as a result of which the taxpayer is charged excessive amounts of tax payments, which indirectly affects the understatement of other tax payments (for example, overestimation of property tax of organizations leads to understatement of income tax), and also diverts the working capital of the enterprise.

Second option. The taxpayer deliberately evades paying taxes, which is interpreted as fraud. In this case, the larger the tax base was hidden, the greater the risk of applying liability standards: from financial to criminal.

The objective process of hiding an ever-increasing part of the tax base in the shadow sphere as the tax rate increases is reflected by the Laffer curve. When the critical value of the tax rate is exceeded, the actual value of tax collections decreases due to a decrease in the actual value of the tax base. This is due to the decline in business activity and increasing tax evasion. As a result, the gross national product moves into the shadow economy. Consequently, despite the increase in the tax rate, budget revenues are reduced, as the base for paying taxes is reduced.

The main task of the legislator in the field of taxation is, on the basis of economically sound proposals, to establish a tax regime that, on the one hand, would not suppress the economic activity of the taxpayer, and on the other, would ensure the required level of tax revenues to the budget.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, the volume of the shadow economy in our country exceeds 40% of the gross domestic product (GDP). Moreover, the process of tax evasion takes place both in Russia and abroad. Shadow capital causes numerous offenses and crimes related to the laundering of “dirty money”. This money undermines the economic law and order in the economy and prevents it from developing further. The share of the shadow economy in the world averages 10% of GDP. In Sweden it is 5% of GDP, in England - 3% of GDP, in the USA - 10% of GDP, in Italy - 25-30% of GDP, including 4% from the Sicilian mafia.

Thus, non-payment of taxes can occur for the following reasons:

• 1) targeted tax evasion;
• 2) errors in accounting for taxable items and in calculating tax amounts for law-abiding taxpayers, as well as late payments to the budget, including due to the lack of available funds from the taxpayer.