In 2026, the Russian business will continue to operate in an increasingly complex regulatory environment. Companies will face a higher tax burden, tightening control over labeled products, changes in the rules of tax audits and strengthening the sanctions regime.
Companies will have to adapt to new requirements, create stricter processes for screening counterparties and increase resistance to regulatory, sanctions and operational risks.
We have collected key innovations that come into force in 2026.
Tax reform
- increase in VAT rate to 22%
From January 1, 2026, the basic VAT rate increases from 20% to 22%.
The reduced rates remain unchanged.
- reducing the income limit for simplified tax system and patent tax system
The changes affect organizations and individual entrepreneurs using simplified tax system. Income limits, the excess of which leads to the obligation to pay VAT, will be gradually reduced.
| Year | Limit | VAT liability arises |
| 2026 | RUB 20 million | If income for 2025 exceeded the limit - from January 1, 2026. If income exceeds the limit during 2026 - from the 1st day of the next month. From the 1st day of the month following the month when income exceeded the established limit |
| 2027 | RUB 15 million | Analogous |
| 2028 | RUB 10 million | Analogous |
Significant changes also affected the patent tax system (PTS).
From January 1, 2026, the maximum income that allows an individual entrepreneur to apply a patent is reduced from the current 60 million RUB to 20 million RUB per year.
If from the beginning of the calendar year the income of the individual entrepreneur exceeds the established limit, the right to apply the patent is automatically lost, and the entrepreneur is obliged to switch to another tax regime from the month following the month of excess.
- social insurance premiums: cancellation of benefits for SMEs
Since 2026, for most SMEs, the reduced premium rate (15%) has been canceled.
Now SMEs are required to apply general tariffs:
• 30% - within the limit (RUB 2,979,000 per employee);
• 15.1% - over the limit.
The reduced tariffs in 2026 will remain for IT companies and priority industries (the list will be approved by the Government of the Russian Federation):
• IT companies: the rate is 15% within the marginal base and 7.6% above it;
• manufacturing enterprises: a rate of 7.6% over payments of 1.5 minimum wages (as in 2025);
• enterprises of the radio-electronic industry: 0% tariff from 2026.
The benefit is retained only for companies from the list of priority industries (if the corresponding OKVED code is the main one, and the share of income for this type of activity is at least 70%).
- social insurance premiums for individual entrepreneurs:
- fixed contributions: RUB 57,390
- 1% of additional payments on income over RUB 300,000; limit: RUB 321,818.
Globas provides the opportunity to obtain complete information about the counterparty's taxes and fees, analyze the application of special tax regimes, track changes in the tax burden over the years, and conduct a comprehensive assessment of its financial stability.
Tax registration: a new order
From January 1, 2026, the procedure for confirming the registration of an organization with the tax authorities is changing.
The following will be cancelled:
- certificate of tax registration;
- notification of tax registration;
The supporting documents will be as follows:
- extract from the Unified State Register of Taxpayers (EGRN) - contains information on tax registration (or deregistration)
- extract from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities (EGRUL) - contains information on registration at the place of location of the organization or its divisions.
All documents issued before January 1, 2026 continue to be valid. If the registration process was initiated, but not completed before January 1, 2026, the tax authority will issue an extract from the EGRN.
In the company's profile in
Globas, there is a Registration history section, which allows you to track all changes in registration data. If necessary, you can order an extract on submitted applications to the EGRUL according to forms P11001-P18001.
Tax audits: new rules
Since 2026, the Federal Tax Service will get the expanded powers.
What changes from January 1, 2026:
- the tax authorities will be able to inspect the premises and seize documents as part of additional measures
- the reporting periods of the current year can be checked during the field inspection, if they are completed at the decision date
- any authorized Federal Tax Service will be able to conduct a desk audit
What changes from September 1, 2026:
- verification materials can be considered by video conference
- a new procedure for filing objections is introduced: in person, by mail, by telecommunication channels or through the personal account (FTS/Gosuslugi)
- an upper limit is introduced to reduce the fine under extenuating circumstances - no more than 10 times.
A new section for analyzing the risks of field tax inspections has been developed in
Globas.
This tool is based on the Concept of the system for planning field tax inspections developed by the Federal Tax Service and allows:
• check the tax burden, profitability and financial status of the company;
• learn about frequent changes in tax authorities and about reaching the maximum values for special tax regimes;
• identify deviations in wages from industry averages;
• identify the discrepancy between the growth rates of expenses and income;
• identify tax risk in the nature of financial and economic activities;
• receive information about account blocking indicating the reason for the suspension.
If your counterparty is at risk, you may also be subject to field tax inspection.
In
Globas you can timely identify such links and avoid the consequences.
Marking and strengthening of control in the "Honest SIGN" system
The reasons for refusal to register goods have been expanded:
- non-conformity of USAIS/VIS data
- excess of production volume by more than 5%
New product groups under the label:
- hygienic products,
- instant drinks,
- baby products,
- a number of building materials.
In
Globas you can check the organization for its entry into the register of participants in the turnover of goods subject to mandatory labeling.
Turnover of precious metals and stones
Liability for repeated violations related to the turnover of precious metals and stones has been tightened.
Penalties are as follows:
- up to RUB 160,000 for individual entrepreneurs,
- up to RUB 300,000 for the legal entities.
In
Globas you can check the organization for its entry into the Register of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs engaged in operations with precious metals and precious stones. The register is maintained by the territorial bodies of the Federal Assay Office in order to carry out targeted control over the compliance of controlled objects with the requirements of the legislation on PMPS and AML/CFT.
Sanctions and counter-sanctions
The government extended the Special Economic Measures (SEM, Counter sanctions). The restrictions on the import and export of certain types of goods have been extended until December 31, 2027.
A wide group of goods falls under the export ban: industrial and medical equipment, electrical equipment, agricultural machinery, as well as a number of high-tech installations, including turbines and reactor equipment.
Increased duties will continue to apply to the import of certain types of food products and drinks. Such categories include meat and fish products, canned goods, pasta, coffee, beer and other goods.
The list of items allowed for parallel imports has been additionally expanded: it includes sanitary and hygienic goods, certain types of medical equipment, as well as equipment used for testing metals.
The Sanctions Compliance module in
Globas provides the ability to check Russian and foreign entities, persons, water and air transport. Persons associated with the companies are also checked: beneficiaries, owners, managers, affiliated companies and subsidiaries. The module contains extensive information about the imposed sanctions and restrictions, including the 50 Percent Rule, screening of goods by code or product name, additional sources and deeper analytics on companies, persons and objects that have fallen under restrictions and in various risk registries.
