- Статьи
- Economy
- Checkers and don't go: taxi drivers threatened to go to the gray zone because of taxes
Checkers and don't go: taxi drivers threatened to go to the gray zone because of taxes
Taxi drivers threaten the authorities with going into a gray zone and increasing accident rates. The industry has found itself on the verge of survival — new cars have doubled in price in three years, leasing rates exceed 30% per annum, credit resources for taxis are practically unavailable, and the new procedure for calculating VAT has become an additional burden. The Public Council for Taxi Development, in its appeal to the Ministry of Economic Development and the Ministry of Finance, asked for a 50% reduction in VAT, as is done in the catering sector. Otherwise, the industry will face bankruptcy, fragmentation of enterprises into small firms and retreat into the shadows.
Why taxi costs are rising
Taxi companies found themselves in a difficult situation due to a number of economic factors, including the new procedure for calculating value added tax (VAT). This is stated in the letters of the Public Council for Taxi Development (OCRT) sent to the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economic Development. Carriers call the current situation in the passenger taxi industry cumulative financial stress.
"In three years, the average price of a new car has almost doubled; the recycling fee for a car with an engine up to 2 liters reaches 667,400 rubles and actually falls on the shoulders of the carrier," said Irina Zaripova, chairman of the OCRT, in her letter to Finance Minister Anton Siluanov. — In conditions of high key interest rates, leasing contracts are issued at 30% per annum and above, and bank lending is economically impractical for this business.
As a result, the purchase of rolling stock in the first quarter of 2025 decreased by more than seven times, companies are forced to extend the operation of machines, which increases maintenance costs and threatens to increase accidents, she notes.
"The situation in the taxi industry has been worsened by the introduction of a new procedure for calculating VAT for businesses on the simplified taxation system (STS) from January 1, 2025," Valery Korneev, chairman of the Digital World Union, told Izvestia. — Moreover, they cannot apply a "deduction" for incoming VAT.
The cost structure of carriers does not allow to reimburse part of the tax, since the main expenses — salary, fuel, insurance, commissions, maintenance — do not form the "input" VAT, Irina Zaripova explained.
— Enterprises operating with negative cash flow are forced to transfer up to 10% of turnover to the budget. In fact, the industry pays tax on losses, which undermines the ability to service already concluded leasing and credit agreements," she noted.
The law allows you to deduct part of the incoming VAT, that is, the one that is paid from costly items of expenses, the press service of the Maxim taxi aggregator told Izvestia.
— These are fuels and lubricants, auto parts, leasing, and more. But taxi companies in the classical sense of the term can do this, owning a fleet, with employed drivers and providing a full cycle of passenger transportation services," they noted.
However, there are no such enterprises in the country. Existing companies only rent cars to sole proprietors or self—employed drivers. In this case, the current taxation system does not allow deducting incoming VAT, the aggregator noted.
According to the OCRT, this may lead to an increase in the number of illegal shipments and, as a result, to a decrease in budget revenues at all levels. Carriers will begin to move into a gray area where control over the safety and quality of transportation is minimal. Without targeted support measures, the market risks losing the legal segment of passenger taxis, the letter from the NGO says.
The OSRT sees a way out of the situation in reducing VAT by 50% for companies whose annual revenue does not exceed 2 billion rubles, provided that at least 80% of income is generated by taxi services.
"A similar model has successfully proven itself in the field of catering, saving jobs and the tax base,— Irina Zaripova believes.
Izvestia sent requests to the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Economic Development, taxi aggregators and large taxi companies.
Is it possible to introduce tax incentives for taxis
"The taxi market is going through a difficult period," Ruslan Satretdinov, head of the Ritm taxi company, told Izvestia.
According to him, in 2022-2024, under the conditions of sanctions pressure, the industry faced an increase in lease payment rates, disruptions in the supply of spare parts and a sharp increase in their cost (up to 120%). Since September 1, 2024, mandatory carrier's civil liability insurance (CTP) for taxis has been introduced. In addition to the existing CTP insurance, not only affordable vehicles have disappeared from the market, but also foreign-made vehicles in principle, with the exception of Chinese cars, the price of which has increased significantly. And the introduction of VAT at 5%, 7% and up to 20% since the beginning of the year has had an even greater impact on profitability, he said.
According to the Avenue Group taxi company, car companies with more than 50 cars, which have revenue of over 60 million rubles a year, found themselves in a problematic situation.
"The increase in the actual tax burden is up to 30-40% of net profit, which has already led to a sharp decrease in profitability," Omar Bahamaev, CEO of this company, told Izvestia.
Without government support, most of the industry may wallow in losses, be on the verge of closure or bankruptcy, or go into a gray area for optimization, which, in turn, will affect transportation safety, a market participant believes.
According to Omar Bahamaev, these changes will be followed by a rapid increase in fares, which will reduce the availability of taxis for passengers.
If support measures in the form of VAT benefits for the taxi industry are not taken, then taxi companies will be forced to save on maintenance, consumables and spare parts, and reduce staff, which may negatively affect the safety of passenger transportation, he believes.
— Previously, the simplified taxation regime was applied to an annual revenue of 600 million, and the taxi business model in large cities worked with it. Now the threshold has been lowered to 60 million per year. But for restaurants, the USN threshold, on the contrary, has been raised to 2 billion per year," Spartak Zabolotsky, an investor in Chocolate taxi, told Izvestia. — We are asking either to reduce VAT by half, or to make the same tax conditions for passenger carriers as for restaurants.
According to Omar Bagamaev, preferential conditions in public catering are recognized as a necessary measure for the social sphere. A taxi also performs an important social function, as it is an integral part of the transport infrastructure, he believes.
— For taxi companies, the issue of state support is even more relevant than for the catering sector, since taxi companies do not directly affect pricing, and tariffs are set by passenger taxi ordering services (aggregators), — Ruslan Satretdinov said. — But catering companies themselves set prices for their products based on cost.
A 50% reduction in VAT will help maintain the legality of business and curb the rise in transportation prices, Omar Bahamaev summed up.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
