Digitalization of Tax Administration in Russia: Opportunities and Risks[Цифровизация Налогового Администрирования В России: Возможности И Риски]

An active policy of digitalization of the tax administration system in Russia is carried out with special attention to the automation of calculation and payment of taxes. The article summarizes the domestic experience in this area, analyzes the features of tax legislation and regulation under which these reforms are implemented, and identifies relevant trends and their prospects. The results of the analysis make it possible to identify the opportunities and risks of development of the Russian tax system in the context of its digitalization. Further automation of certain taxes (first of all, corporate and personal income taxes) will be associated with the need to overcome a large number of legal imprecisions, whereas simplifying the design of taxes, in many cases, leads to economic distortions. The digital innovations that have already been introduced are intended for small or large legal entities, thereby creating a significant bias in the complexity of tax regulation for other taxpayers. The article concludes that it is advisable to use the tool of preliminary filling and verification of tax returns by tax authorities as a direction for improving the system of tax administration in Russia. The transition to providing taxpayers with motivated opinions of the tax authorities (tax rulings) on certain types of economic transactions is promising as well. The authors also recommend implementing measures aimed at disclosing information about transactions that have signs of aggressive tax planning, according to the recommendations of the OECD. It is noted that the existing mechanisms for resolving tax disputes and legal standards for the protection of taxpayers’ rights will require transformation under increased transparency of business transactions for tax authorities