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Fictitious union: faces criminal charges for registering sole proprietors through front persons
The State Duma Committee recommended that the lower house of parliament adopt a bill to criminalize the illegal registration of an individual as an individual entrepreneur. The new initiative should stop cases when fraudsters ask other citizens to open sole proprietors for a fee in order to further use imaginary registration for crimes, including for withdrawing funds and making fictitious transactions. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
Opening an individual entrepreneur through front persons
The Lower House of the Federal Assembly may soon adopt in the first reading a draft law (Izvestia has it) providing for criminal liability for the illegal registration of an individual as an individual entrepreneur and the use of documents for this purpose, a source in the State Duma apparatus told Izvestia. So far, these violations have not been criminalized.
Andrey Klishas, Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Building, told Izvestia that after the bill was approved, "both the organizers of the crimes in question and the front men themselves (if their actions were unlawful) will be held accountable." However, the document makes it possible to release a figurehead from criminal liability if it was the first time he committed such a crime and actively assisted the investigation, the senator added.
— The maximum penalty for opening an individual entrepreneur through front persons will be imprisonment for up to three years (qualified personnel — up to five years), — says Klishas. — For the transfer of an identity card to another person, correctional labor may be imposed for up to two years, and for the acquisition of such a document or the use of illegally obtained personal data, imprisonment for up to three years.
The minimum penalty for opening a fictitious sole proprietor thanks to an accomplice will be a fine from 100,000 to 300,000 rubles, added Sardana Avksentieva, deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on State Construction and Legislation. She noted at the same time that so far, in its current form, the bill carries risks, so clarifications are needed.
— As a former mayor, I read bills through the eyes of a law enforcement officer, — says the ex-head of Yakutsk. — Firstly, bona fide sole proprietors will face additional barriers due to increased control. Any tightening of the requirements for documents for the creation of sole proprietors will inevitably slow down the development of small businesses. This can have a negative impact on the economy.
The MP believes that there is currently no clear definition of "front men." She's talking: what exactly is meant by "misleading them"? This will create risks of abuse by law enforcement agencies, as it can be difficult to prove awareness or lack of it, the ex-mayor and parliamentarian warns.
For your information, companies often use sole proprietors to cash out funds. For example, fictitious contracts are concluded, while in fact no one delivers the goods.
The SME Corporation told Izvestia that the new bill is not so much about business fragmentation as about crime suppression.
Without the entrepreneur's knowledge
In 2024, the direct line of the President of Russia received complaints from citizens that they were registered as individual entrepreneurs without their knowledge, the Popular Front told Izvestia. Analytics".
— The problem is that, as a rule, citizens find out about this after a few years, when bailiffs come to them and report tax and loan arrears, — says the head of the Popular Front. Analytics" by Olga Pozdnyakova. — At the same time, people write that automatic repayment of contributions for sole proprietors is equivalent to recognizing that they recognize the opening of sole proprietors.
According to those who applied, complaints to the authorities, the prosecutor's office and the tax service did not solve the problem, because it is quite difficult to prove that they did not open the sole proprietor themselves. As a result, the property and bank accounts of citizens are seized, and debts are collected from incoming funds. Such complaints were received, for example, from Saratov, Samara, Sochi, Rostov-on-Don and other cities, Narodny Front clarified.
Evgeny Rubinstein, Adviser to the Federal Chamber of Lawyers of the Russian Federation, said that recently the status of an individual entrepreneur has become frequently used in the commission of various tax offenses or economic crimes.
As explained by Sergey Katyrin, President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, the draft law does not raise conceptual objections from bona fide businesses, since crimes related to illegal banking activities, tax evasion and concealment of property, tax deductions, bankruptcy, money laundering, etc. are often committed using the banking details of individual entrepreneurs.
— At the same time, some questions are raised by the proposed concept of "front persons", which includes individual entrepreneurs themselves, — he says. — If you literally read Article 173.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Illegal formation (creation, reorganization) of a legal entity" — Izvestia), it turns out that criminal liability will arise for registering an individual as an individual entrepreneur through front persons, that is, through the same individual entrepreneur.
Sergey Katyrin believes that the proposed formulations may lead to incorrect application of the law and unjustified criminal prosecution.
How can you avoid becoming a victim of crimes related to the illegal registration of sole proprietors and protect your personal data? Alexander Usov, a member of the Expert Council under the Federal Tax Service of Russia on improving the practice of applying insolvency law, advises not to look for easy money, consult with tax consultants on potential tax and criminal risks, register a legal entity only for the purpose of real entrepreneurial, financial and economic activities and not transfer your access keys to third parties.
MP Sardana Avksentieva warns that in no case should you agree to formally open an individual entrepreneur at the request of third parties who promise remuneration for "funneling funds through your company." "Open an individual entrepreneur only when you really plan to conduct legitimate business work," the politician summarizes.
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