Preferential living: the self-employed have become the majority of recipients of state business support for the first time

For the first time, the self—employed made up the absolute majority of recipients of direct state support - 53.5%, according to a study by the Rodionoff Group. The share of legal entities was 18.6%, and individual entrepreneurs — 27.9%. Experts believe that against the background of stricter control by the Federal Tax Service and banks, the number of self-employed will grow. Following this, budget expenditures on their support will increase, while the volume of assistance to small and medium-sized enterprises is decreasing. What this could threaten the economy is in the Izvestia article.

What kind of government support do the self-employed receive

In 2025, the state allocated 16.5 billion rubles in support to the self-employed, according to a study by the Rodionoff Group, a consulting agency for business information in the field of financial support from the authorities (Izvestia has it). For the first time, self—employed Russians became the largest category of direct aid recipients, with their share reaching 53.5%. Sole proprietors occupied 27.9%, and legal entities — 18.6%.

According to the Federal Tax Service, by the end of 2025, there were 15.27 million professional income tax payers in the register, which is 25% more than a year earlier. Their total income exceeded 3 trillion rubles.

The Professional Income Tax (NAP) is a special regime for the self—employed that allows them to legally work for themselves. It provides for an annual income limit of 2.4 million rubles. State support includes a number of tools: up to 500 thousand rubles for business development, a 10 thousand tax bonus, access to preferential credit programs, as well as free training and consultations at the My Business centers.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Yulia Mayorova

Self—employment has become a convenient way for many to legalize their business - quick and easy registration, no reporting and minimal tax burden, said Elsa Perepelkina, VAT expert and founder of the Accounting House project. Therefore, there are more and more registered under this regime. It is also important to remember about indirect support, for example, they do not need to pay insurance premiums.

— It is easier for the state to work with them than with legal entities or sole proprietors. The self—employed operate through government services or through banks, which simplifies control and increases the transparency of mutual settlements," she added.

How will it fit on the map: 10 million Russians will have to report to the Federal Tax Service for transfers

Who is more at risk of attracting the attention of the tax service and which schemes can be covered up

Given the demand for this regime, it is natural that it is the self-employed who statistically "outweigh" individual entrepreneurs and legal entities in terms of the number of recipients of support, although in monetary terms the picture is reversed, said Ahmed Yusupov, an economist and partner at the Goldman Energy communications agency. 62.5 billion rubles of state aid were allocated to companies, and 22.4 billion rubles to individual entrepreneurs, according to a study by Rodionoff Group.

The trend is also explained by the fact that investments are required to launch even a small business, said Elena Chirkina, a lawyer at the Prilepskaya and Partners Moscow Bar Association. According to the expert, not all self-employed people have sufficient funds to start a business, so government support is becoming a key factor for them.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Sergey Lantyukhov

There is a high proportion of young people among NAP payers, for whom assistance is essential when starting a business, added Mikhail Kosov, Associate Professor, Head of the Department of State and Municipal Finance at Plekhanov Russian University of Economics. Support is becoming more targeted and focuses on individual industries and innovative projects.

According to him, this approach encourages entrepreneurs to come out of the shadows, and therefore provides additional revenue to the budget. Izvestia sent a request to the Ministry of Energy on the distribution of state support.

Contract boom: government purchases from the self-employed set a record in 2025

How did you manage to achieve such indicators and what will happen next?

Will there be more self-employed people

The upcoming tightening of tax control is also likely to encourage people to legalize their income, Akhmed Yusupov believes.

At the end of March, the government submitted to the State Duma a bill obliging the Central Bank to transfer data on individuals with signs of undeclared entrepreneurial activity to the Federal Tax Service. Full-fledged automated transfer control is planned from 2027. Citizens with unconfirmed non-cash incomes of over 2.4 million rubles per year will fall under it. As Izvestia wrote, according to experts, we can talk about 7-10 million people.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Pavel Volkov

Most people will prefer self-employment as the least expensive way to legalize it, and their numbers will grow accordingly, Akhmed Yusupov believes.

This year, the number of self-employed is projected to grow by 10%, and very soon a third of entrepreneurs will have this status, said financial adviser and founder Rodin.Capital Alexey Rodin. He also pointed out that about 25% of sole proprietors are thinking about changing the regime to a simpler one in terms of document management.

Price benefits: support for SMEs and the self-employed has almost halved

What is the reason for this and what is the threat to the economy in a high-stakes environment

Why is support for SMEs declining?

In 2025, the number of companies that received state support fell by 11.1%, and the volume of assistance by 6%, the study notes.

— Benefits for SMEs are not disappearing, but they are becoming less widespread and more targeted. Some companies are dropping out of the support program due to stricter requirements," explained Elsa Perepelkina from the Accounting House project.

However, self-employment does not involve hiring employees, so it does not create jobs to the same extent as a traditional business, she pointed out. As a result, the economy becomes more transparent and flexible in the short term, but less stable in terms of long-term growth, the expert noted. The decline in support affects the sustainability of small companies.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Pavel Volkov

The system is gradually shifting from spreading funds to the maximum number of recipients to concentrating resources on those who are able to actually earn this money, says Ahmed Yusupov from Goldman Energy.

The situation for business is becoming more complicated, and a reduction in state support can only worsen the situation, Elena Chirkina believes. According to her, this directly affects the segment of small and medium-sized businesses.: The number of taxpayers is decreasing, the risks of non-repayment of bank loans are increasing, and the number of jobs is decreasing, which ultimately has an impact on the economy as a whole.

An increase in the number of self-employed people does not mean a multiple increase in their role in the economy, says Dmitry Zemlyansky, director of the IPEI Research Center for Spatial Analysis and Regional Diagnostics at the Presidential Academy. But we must not forget that the NAP is an experimental model, he added. It is assumed that the regime will be in effect until the end of 2028.