What is the first thing a customer looks at when they enter a store? Of course, the price of the goods. 84% of online shoppers buy a product with a better price attractive price. Do you want to earn more? Know how to work with the price!

Depositphotos

To make the price yours competitive advantage there are three important steps to go through. Let's get started!

Learn to influence the factors that determine the price

There are 2 factors that affect the final price of a product:

1 factor - the cost of goods.These are the costs of the enterprise for the production and sale of products, expressed in monetary terms.

Underwater rock: h Often owners of online stores believe that the cost price is the purchase price of the goods. But there are also employee salaries, hosting and platform costs for the store, time costs, rent, depreciation, etc.

What to do:include all additional costs in the cost price to ensure the profitability of the business. Avoid so as not to inflate the cost - this is especially true for a start-up business.

2nd factor - The size of the desired profit.The profit of the business is formed by the markup on the sale of each unit of goods. The higher the markup, the higher the profit.

Underwater rock:It's always interesting to increase the markup on a product. But here the seller faces two constraints: competitors' prices and buyers' expectations.

What to do: Firstly, monitor prices regularly. Remember that online prices of competitors greatly affect your business: a buyer can compare the entire range of offers on the market with one click, marketplaces and price aggregators allow you to instantly see prices for different products from different suppliers and manufacturers.Use these resources to regularly check the competitiveness of your products. You can also use specialized paid services price monitoring: metacommerce.ru , competera.ru , drprice.ru , apishops.com , z-price.ru , wiser.com , onwebchange.com , getpentagon.com.au .

Secondly, study customer expectations.The buyer always strives for his money and time spent to get benefits.

What price will the buyer consider profitable for himself?

1. The price doesn't always have to be low. For many goods on the market, the price is one of the indicators of the quality of the goods. Cheap goods can be perceived as low-grade, low-quality. And when a person buys an unfamiliar product and does not know how to choose, a high price acts as a guarantee of quality.

1. The price should not be unreasonably high.

This is the issuance of goods in the catalog of the Ukrainian marketplace Prom. Why different prices are set for absolutely identical products, it is not clear.

Choose a pricing strategy

What pricing strategies are there?

Dumping, or lowering prices in the market.The advantage of this strategy is an increase in sales volumes. Difficulties - decrease in profit from a single sale. This strategy is suitable for direct manufacturers of goods with a high margin of the product. If you buy a product, then lowering prices for you may mean working in the red without profit, it can only be justified under certain conditions, as part of

Niche retreat.We focus products or services on specialists and connoisseurs who carefully study the product and will be able to evaluate the advantages of your product in the context of other competitors in the market (for example, the market for goods for specialized sports). The advantages of this strategy are that consumers are willing to overpay for added value, low level of competitors. Restrictions - a small market of potential buyers.

Increase in prices in the market segment.You receive dividends in the form of a high mark-up on the sale, which means higher profits. But this strategy requires you

Learn to raise prices without losing customers

What actions will help you earn more?

• Build a brand. Each of us overpays for brands every day, buying a certain set of goods and services. The presence of the brand allows you to set a high margin. For example, in the sunglasses market, some brands charge a markup of 1329%. Designer lingerie is sold at a markup of 1100% above cost, and jeans at 650%. We overpay 354% for branded shoes, and 300% and more for cosmetics.

• Build a reputation in the eyes of customers. The reliability of an online store is the second most important thing for online shoppers (after price). For you, the main tool for building a reputation is reviews. Stimulate buyers (positive and negative).With an approximately equal price for the product, the consumer will make a purchase decision based on the volume of reviews, percentage positive feedback and the way you

For people who want to constantly improve, learn something and constantly learn something new, we have specially made this category. It contains exclusively educational, useful content that you will definitely enjoy. A large number of videos, perhaps, can even compete with the education that we are given at school, college or university. The biggest advantage of instructional videos is that they try to give the latest, most up-to-date information. The world around us in the era of technology is constantly changing, and printed educational publications simply do not have time to give out fresh information.

Among the videos you can also find educational videos for children. preschool age. There your child will be taught letters, numbers, counting, reading, etc. Agree, a very good alternative to cartoons. For students primary school you can also find tutorials English language, assistance in studying school subjects. For older students, training videos have been created that will help prepare for tests, exams, or simply deepen their knowledge in a particular subject. The acquired knowledge can qualitatively affect their mental potential, as well as please you with excellent grades.

For young people who are out of school, in university or not, there are plenty of entertaining educational videos available. They can help them deepen their knowledge of the profession for which they are studying. Or get a profession, such as a programmer, web designer, SEO optimizer, and so on. Universities do not teach such a profession yet, so you can become a specialist in this advanced and relevant area only by self-education, which is what we try to help by collecting the most useful videos.

For adults, this topic is also relevant, since it often happens that after working in the profession for years, it comes to the understanding that this is not yours and you want to learn something more suitable for yourself and at the same time profitable. Also among this category of people there are often videos on the type of self-improvement, saving time and money, optimizing their lives, in which they find ways to live much better and happier. Even for adults, the topic of creating and developing your own business is very well suited.

Also among the educational videos there are videos with a general focus, which are suitable for almost any age, in which you can learn about how life originated, what theories of evolution exist, facts from history, etc. They perfectly expand the horizons of a person, make him a much more erudite and pleasant intellectual interlocutor. It is really useful to watch such informative videos for everyone without exception, since knowledge is power. We wish you a pleasant and useful viewing!

In our time, it is simply necessary to be what is called "on the wave." This refers not only to news, but also to the development of one's own mind. If you want to develop, explore the world, be in demand in society and interesting, then this section is for you.

O.V. Kulagina, certified tax consultant

The price of the item is below cost, or Tax risks sales

It often happens that new line goods are put on sale even before the old goods are completely sold. Or maybe it's just that the demand for the product has decreased significantly, or maybe the company is exploring a new market segment. And then the goods are sold at heavily discounted prices. But many accountants are afraid to reduce the sale price below the purchase price, since this is allegedly prohibited by law and is fraught with additional taxes. Let's see if this is actually the case.

WARNING 1. Selling below cost is prohibited by law

In the general case, the contracting parties determine the price of the goods themselves. The exception is prices that are regulated by the state, for example, in the field of electricity, gas supply, communications and paragraph 1 of Art. 424 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation; paragraph 1 of Art. 4, art. 6 of the Law of 17.08.95 No. 147-FZ; sub. 4 p. 2, p. 4 art. 8 of the Law of December 28, 2009 No. 381-FZ. So for a regular contract, there is no lower price limit on the part of the Civil Code. The main thing is that this price suits both parties.

The Federal Antimonopoly Service also monitors prices in order to prevent the abuse of “big players” in the field of pricing. However, companies that are not able to influence the price situation in the market by their actions alone or with a group of other companies have nothing to fear. Part 1 Art. 5, part 1, art. 7, paragraph 1, part 1, art. 10 of the Law of July 26, 2006 No. 135-FZ.

In 2013, the FAS prepared amendments to the Law on trading activities, advocating a ban on sales at a price below cost, but the project did not find support in the government, was sent for revision and has not even reached the State Duma yet.

Conclusion

If your company does not have a decisive influence on the pricing in the market and does not sell goods, the prices of which are regulated by the state, then the price floor is not limited.

FEAR 2. Loss on sale at a price below cost is not taken into account for tax purposes

Let's just say that this is not the case. The tax base for income is calculated in aggregate for all transactions paragraph 1 of Art. 274 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. And only if a special procedure for calculating the tax base is established, income and expenses from these operations are considered separately. For example, a special procedure is provided for transactions with securities and paragraph 2 of Art. 274, art. 280 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. In addition, there is a direct prohibition on recognizing in expenses the price difference between the market price and the sale price of the goods to the employee. If you sold a product to an employee at a non-market price, which is even lower than the purchase price, then it is obvious that such a price difference is formed and, in fact, it represents a loss when selling below cost and paragraph 27 of Art. 270 Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

But in relation to other transactions of sale and purchase at a loss, no special rules No. Therefore, schematically, it looks like this: income from all transactions is summed up and all recognized in reporting period selling expenses and paragraph 1 of Art. 247, sub. 3 p. 1, p. 3 Art. 268 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. It is obvious that the loss-making transaction revenue will be recognized in income from sales along with the revenue from other sales, and the expenses on it will be recognized together with the expenses on other transactions. If you are not systematically working in the red, then it is generally unrealistic to detect losing trades. They will simply drown in the total mass, and they will not be visible in the income tax return. paragraph 2 of Art. 268 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation; Letter of the Ministry of Finance dated September 18, 2009 No. 03-03-06/1/590.

With a “profitable” simplification, a sale at a loss does not affect the amount of tax in any way: how much money was received for the goods - from that amount the tax was calculated paragraph 1 of Art. 346.15, paragraph 1 of Art. 346.17, paragraph 1 of Art. 346.18 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. If the simplification is “income-expenditure”, then in this case it is not so easy to track a losing transaction, income and expenses on it can generally fall into different reporting and even tax periods. After all, expenses are recognized as payment for the goods to the supplier and its sale, and income - upon receipt of money from the buyer. paragraph 1 of Art. 346.15, sub. 23 paragraph 1 of Art. 346.16, paragraph 1, sub. 2 p. 2 art. 346.17 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation; Letter of the Ministry of Finance of October 29, 2010 No. 03-11-09/95. When selling goods to employees, the price difference between the retail price and the sale price is also not taken into account in expenses.

CONCLUSION

Tracking a losing trade is unlikely unless you are working negatively systematically. It is unlikely that the tax authorities will do this, because the loss from sales, if the goods are sold to non-employees, is still taken into account for tax purposes.

FEAR 3. If the sale price is lower than the purchase price, the tax authorities charge additional taxes based on the market price

There is some truth in this judgment. It all depends on whether such a transaction is controlled. Let's say you sold apples at a price lower than a third-party purchase Russian company. Then you can safely look into the eyes of the inspector, since the price of the transaction between parties that are not dependent on each other is initially considered to be the market price. paragraph 1 of Art. 105.3 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. That is, the tax authorities will not check your prices for compliance with their market prices. Simply because this type of verification is provided only for controlled transactions, and transactions between independent Russian organizations do not belong to controlled paragraph 1 of Art. 105.17, paragraph 1 of Art. 105.14 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

“But what about Art. 40 NK? - you ask. Despite the fact that the notorious Art. 40 of the Tax Code on market prices has not yet been canceled, its effect has been significantly narrowed: it applies only to those transactions for which income and expenses are recognized before 01/01/2012. That is, at the moment, the tax authorities can only try to recalculate taxes based on market prices if the “sale” took place in 2011, since 2010 and earlier periods can no longer be covered by the on-site audit scheduled in 2014. paragraph 4 of Art. 89 Tax Code of the Russian Federation

TELLING THE MANAGER

If the seller independently calculates and pays taxes at the market price from income from a controlled transaction, then the buyer will not be able to recalculate the tax base downward. After all, he will have such a right only if, after checking prices and paying the arrears by the seller, the buyer receives a notification from the tax authority to carry out symmetrical adjustments to paragraph 1 of Art. 105.3, paragraphs. 1, 2 art. 105.18 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

But if you sold goods at a non-market price and such a transaction is controlled for you, for example, you sold apples for mere pennies to your subsidiary on OSNO, the amount of income from transactions with which exceeded the uncontrolled threshold (in 2013 - 2 billion rubles, in 2014 - 1 billion rubles) sub. 1 p. 2 art. 105.14 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, then in this case I have to paragraph 4 of Art. 105.3 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation:

• <или>voluntarily calculate income tax and VAT based on the market price (immediately or at the end of the tax period) pp. 3, 6 art. 105.3 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation;
• <или>at the “price” check to prove to the tax authorities that the apples were impossibly sour and the transaction price is well within the range of prices at which such goods are sold by independent persons and sub. 1 p. 1, p. 3 Art. 105.7, paras. 1, 7 art. 105.9 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. If the tax authorities nevertheless consider that the prices were incomparable with the market ones, then after the “price” check they will go to court in order to recover the arrears and interest on income tax and VAT paragraph 5 of Art. 105.3, sub. 4 p. 2 art. 45 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. And if the income from the transaction relates to 2014, then the tax authorities can also impose a fine in the amount of 20% of the amount of unpaid taxes in paragraph 1 of Art. 129.3 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation; paragraph 9 of Art. 4 Law of July 18, 2011 No. 227-FZ.

But sellers’ transactions on the simplified taxation system do not fall under price control, since such organizations do not pay either income tax or VAT, for which additional charges are possible during “price” checks sub. 1, 4 p. 4 art. 105.3, paragraph 2 of Art. 346.11 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

Conclusion

The statement that taxes will be recalculated based on market prices is only partly true. It all depends on whether the transaction is recognized as controlled. If so, then you will have to prove to the tax authorities that the transaction price is comparable to the market price. If not, then there is no need to worry about additional charges.

FEAR 4. The costs of purchasing goods sold at a loss are not economically justified, and therefore they cannot be taken into account when calculating income tax

Each commercial organization by definition seeks profit and paragraph 1 of Art. 50 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. However, one-time losing trades also fit into this concept, because the desire to systematically make a profit is fraught with risk and does not exclude a loss. In addition, by selling today at a low price, the company insures itself against increasing losses in the future, therefore, the management assesses the profitability of the transaction precisely at the current moment.

In which cases transactions between related parties are not considered controlled, you can read in the article “On interdependence and controllability frankly”:

The Tax Code does not give tax authorities the right to assess how effectively a taxpayer manages capital, and therefore the concept of “economic feasibility of expenses” must be considered through the direction of expenses to generate income in Art. 252 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation; Definitions of the COP dated 12/16/2008 No. 1072-O-O (clause 2 of the motivational part), dated 06/04/2007 No. 366-O-P (clause 3 of the motivational part), dated 06/04/2007 No. 320-O-P (p. .3 motivational part). And in the example with apples, the expenses for the purchase of goods were economically justified, because, firstly, they were not purchased for a charity event, but were going to be successfully sold at a profit. Another thing is that the circumstances have changed somewhat and now it is much more important to release the apples frozen in an unsuccessful batch working capital. And secondly, they still received income, because there is some kind of revenue Letter No. 16-15/070063@ of the Federal Tax Service for Moscow dated August 2, 2012. And no one is safe from losses. Decrees of the FAS MO dated July 18, 2013 No. A40-86022 / 12-20-468; FAS SZO dated 16.06.2011 No. А56-60826/2010.

You can do the following to confirm that your expenses are reasonable. First, the manager must issue an order to mark down the goods. Secondly, the markdown must be justified. For example, you can attach to the order the conclusion of a merchandiser or sales manager, that de apples of last year's harvest, it is impossible to store them for more than 1 month in the conditions of your warehouse, and in case of loss of the presentation, the losses from write-offs will be much higher, etc. In any In this case, the justification should indicate for what purpose and why you decided on a losing trade. All this will help you strengthen your position in the event of a dispute with the tax authorities.

CONCLUSION

Expenses will be economically justified if they were aimed at making a profit. Final result is not of decisive importance.

FEAR 5. If the goods are sold at a loss, then VAT cannot be deducted on them.

The tax authorities are inclined to see in a loss-making transaction an unreasonable tax benefit, because the deduction on purchase was greater than the amount of tax accrued on the sale of goods. And all because the reasonable economic goal of concluding a loss-making transaction is not at all obvious to the tax authority. And as we remember, its absence is one of the signs of receiving unreasonable tax benefits. pp. 1 , , 9 Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Arbitration Court dated 12.10.2006 No. 53.

Therefore, just as to justify expenses, you need to stock up on arguments in your favor in advance. The same documents will do: the order of the head, the conclusion of commodity experts, financiers, etc.

In litigation, the case is resolved in favor of the taxpayer if he provides the court with evidence of a reasonable economic goal that was pursued when concluding a loss-making transaction and Decrees of the FAS MO dated May 30, 2013 No. A40-40420 / 12-91-224, dated May 5, 2012 No. A40-43413 / 11-90-184; 15 ААС dated 02.04.2013 No. 15AP-2735/2013. But if there was no such goal, and by all indications, the organization is a participant in the tax scheme, then do not expect mercy from the tax authorities. In addition to the non-obvious economic goal, controllers will also identify other signs of obtaining an unjustified tax benefit, for example, the inability to fulfill the contract. For example, an organization purchased a batch of goods, and it is not clear where it was stored for a whole month, since the organization does not own or lease storage facilities, and although the contract for safekeeping was concluded, it was not executed. Decree of the FAS SKO dated January 24, 2013 No. A32-3122 / 2012.

CONCLUSION

A tax benefit in the form of a VAT deduction on goods sold at a loss can be justified if the entity proves that it pursued reasonable economic goal, for example, to avoid even greater losses from the complete write-off of the goods. But if the goods were sold only on paper and there were no real transactions, then the tax authorities will remove such deductions.

So, of all the fears considered, the most real is the removal of expenses and deductions. To prevent this from happening, prepare a cost justification in advance. And if you, God forbid, are a participant in the tax scheme, then only fake documents without real operations are unlikely to help you.

The sale and purchase agreement is complex. legal document, the parties in the process of its execution it is important to comply with applicable law, with particular care to approach the drafting of the main terms and conditions, dedicated, for example, to the introduction of a property.

How is the price of a contract for the sale of an apartment determined?

In the process of buying and selling a property, the main importance is determination of the cost of housing. The price of the property is essential term of the contract and must be spelled out in it, otherwise, the document will be considered not concluded at all, even if all other conditions of the written agreement are met (Article 555 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

The price of the contract for the sale of an apartment can be defined:

• at the sole discretion of the seller;
• by mutual agreement of the parties;
• based on an independent assessment.

Independent evaluation real estate makes it possible to find out the market value of housing, this procedure should be carried out in a number of cases:

• When selling, if, for example, an apartment has several owners, and they disagree on its value.
• on property disputes.
• When applying for a mortgage, banks need documentary evidence of the price of housing.
• A loan or a loan from banking institutions, if the guarantee of the return of the loan is a real estate object.

When determining the cost of housing on your own or by contacting the services specialized organizations, it is important that the price of an apartment does not exceed by several times the average market value of real estate of the same type, otherwise the sale will be extremely difficult.

Is the deposit included in the price of the property?

Deposit- this is the amount of money that the buyer transfers to the owner of the property or his representative, on account of settlements under the contract.

Target making a deposit - securing obligations under the transaction, that is, confirmation by the buyer of his intention to draw up a sale and purchase agreement.

The law does not provide uniform pattern to make a deposit, but there is a number of legal requirements to pass it correctly:

• The deposit agreement must be concluded in writing, regardless of the amount (Article 380 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).
• It is important to state that the transferred amount is precisely a deposit, and not, for example, an advance payment or an advance payment.
• The receipt by the seller of the amount of money must be confirmed by a written receipt issued to the buyer.

By making a deposit, the parties can confirm their commitments for the conclusion:

• Purchase and sale agreements.
• of the main contract on the terms provided for (Article 429 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

Transferred amount of the deposit at the conclusion of the main contract for the sale of the property counted in the total cost of the apartment.

The law does not spell out the exact deposit amount, which must be paid when buying a home, usually it determined by agreement of the parties and is approximately 5-10% of the value of the property.

Change in the value of the apartment under the contract of sale

A receipt for the purchase of a dwelling at an underestimated or overpriced price

A receipt is a document that confirms the partial or complete fulfillment of an obligation under transfer Money . This is a guarantee for the payer, establishing the payment under the contract.

If the parties decide to indicate in the agreement an overestimated or, conversely, an underestimated cost of a dwelling, the question arises of whether how much to write in the receipt. A controversial point arises, since it is unprofitable for the seller to indicate the real amount in the document, and it is important for the buyer to observe personal interests. In such a situation, the parties can go to the trick and issue two receipts:

1. In the first real estate price matches with the one specified in the contract.
2. The second document states the remaining amount of money, the purpose of which may be, for example, the design of a dwelling.

The receipt must be made in writing, by hand and by the compiler himself, contain the amount of payment for the purchase, the data of the housing itself, the date and place of the document.

It is important that the receipt indicates that the agreed amount transferred in full and the recipient of funds does not have any claims.

Accounting for the cadastral value when selling an apartment in 2017

This is the price of an apartment, which is calculated by independent appraisers, on the initiative government agencies. The information received is entered into real estate cadastre.

The state conducts a cadastral valuation of housing, since this value taken into account for the following purposes:

• Taking out a loan to buy an apartment, in state banking institutions.
• Payments for transactions related to real estate (donation, purchase, sale).
• Calculation of payments for the inheritance of residential premises.
• Payment of property tax.
• Amounts of money when using an apartment on the terms of social employment.

The cadastral value of housing is calculated based on the following characteristics:

• Living area of ​​the property.
• Location.
• Year of construction, type of housing (brick, panel, monolith).
• Infrastructure development of the region.
• Market value of similar properties.

The cadastral value of real estate is not constant, it is updated and can be changed by the state, for example, due to the general rising property prices.

Income tax and personal income tax deduction when selling an apartment

Based on the new rules for the sale of real estate from January 1, 2016, income tax individuals(personal income tax) is calculated based on at the cadastral, and not the inventory cost of housing, which was previously used.

When calculating tax on income from the sale of real estate, it is necessary to proceed from following conditions:

• The personal income tax rate is 13%, and is calculated as a percentage of the value of the property sold.
• The cost of the apartment, determined in the contract of sale, cannot be less than 70% of the established cadastral value of this housing.
• When calculating the tax, it is possible to use a property deduction - the amount by which a person has the right to reduce the tax payment, but not more than 1 million rubles.

Citizen P purchased an apartment in 2014, in 2016 he decided to sell the property for 3 million 500 thousand rubles, the amount of tax that must be paid to the budget is calculated as:

(3,500,000 - 1,000,000) × 13% = 325 thousand rubles.

A property deduction is provided once in a lifetime, if a person has already used such a right, then personal income tax will be calculated as 3,500,000 × 13% = 455,000 thousand rubles.

After January 1, 2016, in order not to pay personal income tax, a citizen must own an apartment over five years, not three, as previously envisaged.

Sale of housing at a price below or above the cadastral value

State cadastral valuation made on the basis market value object and other information about real estate (floor, area, location).

Main differences cadastral value from the market value are as follows:

• The cadastral value is required mainly for the calculation of tax payments.
• The cadastral valuation is carried out by a professional appraiser engaged by the state, based on statistical analysis and mathematical methods.
• The market price is usually determined by the owner himself or by an independent appraiser, based on the value of similar properties.

Analyzing market prices, experts set the cadastral value close to market. But due to the likelihood of errors, deviations in the market and cadastral value take place.

If the owner of the apartment does not agree with the cost of housing indicated in the cadastre, he has the right V judicial order challenge this value.

How to find out the cadastral value of an apartment?

Everyone can find out the cadastral value willing. There are several ways to verify this information:

• On the official website of the tax service, when a person knows cadastral number real estate object.
• If the apartment number in the cadastral register is not known, you can clarify the necessary information on the website Federal Service state registration, cadastre and cartography (Rosreestr), there you will need to indicate the address of the apartment.
• Personal appeal to the department of Rosreestr or to the multifunctional center for the provision of state and municipal services(MFC).

A homeowner who already has a cadastral passport should know that its duration is not limited, but the information contained in the document may not be up to date, as the evaluation activity is repeated at least once every five years.

In order to update the information specified in the cadastral passport, a citizen has the right to order certificate(for this you should contact the local offices of Rosreestr or the MFC).

If the owner has carried out a legal redevelopment apartments, then information about the changes should be reported to the territorial body of Rosreestr, and then received new cadastral passport.

Conclusion

The process of buying and selling a home involves a lot of problematic aspects:

• execution of the contract;
• determination of the price of the property;
• making a deposit;
• establishment of the cadastral value of the apartment;
• calculation of tax contributions payable.

It is not uncommon for parties to change the cost of housing for various reasons. Both the owner of the apartment and the future owner underestimate or, on the contrary, wish to overestimate the price of the property. Such actions can be regarded as fraudulent schemes and entail punishment, up to criminal liability. Therefore, when concluding a contract of sale, the parties should approach it with particular care. competent design complying with the requirements of the current legislation.

Question

The consequences of concluding a deal with an underestimation of the cost of housing

I want to buy an apartment, but the seller of the real estate option I like offers to indicate in the contract of sale a price that is less than the amount that I have to pay for the purchase. This is beneficial for the seller, since the amount of tax that he needs to pay after the sale of the property will be significantly lower, and after payment he will issue two receipts to me, one of which will indicate the amount under the contract, and the second will contain the balance of the payment I made for inseparable housing improvements. Can you tell me what are the consequences for me to conclude such a deal?

Answer

The scheme you indicated is illegal, liability for tax evasion is provided for in the criminal legislation of our country, the buyer can be recognized as an accomplice of the seller, and the issued receipts will confirm the tax violation. If, for any reason, the transaction is declared invalid by the court, then you risk not returning the amount indicated in the second receipt.

It often happens that a new line of products is launched for sale even before the products of the old one are completely sold. Or maybe it's just that the demand for the product has decreased significantly, or maybe the company is exploring a new market segment. And then the goods are sold at heavily discounted prices. But many accountants are afraid to reduce the sale price below the purchase price, since this is allegedly prohibited by law and is fraught with additional taxes. Let's see if this is actually the case.

Concern 1. Selling below cost is prohibited by law

In the general case, the contracting parties determine the price of the goods themselves. The exception is prices that are regulated by the state, for example, in the field of electricity, gas supply, communications<1>. So for a regular contract, there is no lower price limit on the part of the Civil Code. The main thing is that this price suits both parties.

And the prices are monitored by the Federal Antimonopoly Service in order to prevent the abuse of "big players" in the field of pricing. However, companies that are not able to influence the price situation on the market by their actions alone or with a group of other companies have nothing to fear.<2>.

Note. In 2013, the FAS prepared amendments to the Law on Trading Activities, calling for a ban on sales at a price below cost, but the project did not find support in the government, was sent for revision, and has not even reached the State Duma yet.

Conclusion

If your company does not have a decisive influence on the pricing in the market and does not sell goods, the prices of which are regulated by the state, then the price floor is not limited.

Concern 2. Loss from selling at a price below cost is not taken into account for tax purposes

Let's just say that this is not the case. The income tax base is calculated cumulatively for all transactions<3>. And only if a special procedure for calculating the tax base is established, income and expenses from these operations are considered separately. For example, a special procedure is provided for transactions with securities<4>. In addition, there is a direct prohibition on recognizing in expenses the price difference between the market price and the sale price of the goods to the employee. If you sold a product to an employee at a non-market price, which is even lower than the purchase price, then it is obvious that such a price difference is formed and, in fact, it represents a loss when selling below cost<5>.

But with regard to other transactions of sale and purchase at a loss, there are no special rules. Therefore, schematically, it looks like this: income from all transactions is summed up and all expenses from sales recognized in the reporting period are deducted from the amount received<6>. It is obvious that the loss-making transaction revenue will be recognized in income from sales along with the revenue from other sales, and the expenses on it will be recognized together with the expenses on other transactions. If you are not systematically working in the red, then it is generally unrealistic to detect losing trades. They will simply drown in the total mass, and they will not be visible in the income tax return.<7>.

With a "profitable" simplification, a sale at a loss does not affect the amount of tax in any way: how much money was received for the goods - from that amount they calculated<8>. If the simplification is "income-expenditure", then in this case it is not so easy to track a losing transaction, income and expenses on it can generally fall into different reporting and even tax periods. After all, expenses are recognized as payment for the goods to the supplier and its sale, and income - upon receipt of money from the buyer<9>. When selling goods to employees, the price difference between the retail price and the sale price is also not taken into account in expenses.

Conclusion

Tracking a losing trade is unlikely unless you are working negatively systematically. It is unlikely that the tax authorities will do this, because the loss from sales, if the goods are sold to non-employees, is still taken into account for tax purposes.

Concern 3. If the sale price is lower than the purchase price, the tax authorities charge additional taxes based on the market price

There is some truth in this judgment. It all depends on whether such a transaction is controlled. Let's say you sold apples at a price lower than the purchasing third-party Russian company. Then you can safely look into the eyes of the inspector, since the price of the transaction between parties that are not dependent on each other is initially considered to be the market price<10>. That is, the tax authorities will not check your prices for compliance with their market prices. Simply because this type of verification is provided only for controlled transactions, and transactions between non-interdependent Russian organizations are not classified as controlled<11>.

Note. "But what about Article 40 of the Tax Code?" - you ask. Despite the fact that the notorious Art.40 of the Tax Code on market prices has not yet been canceled, its effect has been significantly narrowed: it applies only to those transactions for which income and expenses are recognized before 01/01/2012. That is, at the moment, the tax authorities can only try to recalculate taxes based on market prices if the "sale" took place in 2011, since 2010 and earlier periods can no longer be covered by the on-site audit scheduled in 2014 G.<12>

But if you sold goods at a non-market price and such a transaction is controlled for you, for example, you sold apples for mere pennies to your subsidiary on OSNO, the amount of income from transactions with which exceeded the uncontrolled threshold (in 2013 - 2 billion rubles, in 2014 - 1 billion rubles)<13>, then in this case you have to<14>:

<или>at the "price" check to prove to the tax authorities that the apples were impossible sour and the transaction price is well within the range of prices at which such goods are sold by independent persons<16>. If the tax authorities nevertheless consider that the prices were incomparable with the market prices, then after the "price" check they will go to court to recover the arrears and penalties on income tax and VAT<17>. And if the income from the transaction relates to 2014, then the tax authorities can also impose a fine in the amount of 20% of the amount of unpaid taxes<18>.

We tell the manager

If the seller independently calculates and pays taxes at the market price on the income from a controlled transaction, the buyer will not be able to recalculate the tax base downwards. After all, he will have such a right only if, after checking prices and paying the arrears by the seller, the buyer receives a notification from the tax authority to make symmetrical adjustments<20>.

But transactions of sellers on a simplified taxation system do not fall under price control, since such organizations do not pay either income tax or VAT, for which additional charges are possible during "price" checks<19>.

Conclusion

The statement that taxes will be recalculated based on market prices is only partly true. It all depends on whether the transaction is recognized as controlled. If so, then you will have to prove to the tax authorities that the transaction price is comparable to the market price. If not, then there is no need to worry about additional charges.

Concern 4. The cost of purchasing goods sold at a loss is not economically justified, and therefore they cannot be taken into account when calculating income tax

Every business organization, by definition, seeks to make a profit.<21>. However, one-time losing trades also fit into this concept, because the desire to systematically make a profit is fraught with risk and does not exclude a loss. In addition, by selling today at a low price, the company insures itself against increasing losses in the future, therefore, the management assesses the profitability of the transaction precisely at the current moment.

Note. In which cases transactions between related parties are not considered controlled, you can read in the article "On interdependence and controllability frankly": GK, 2013, N 21, p. 66

The Tax Code does not give tax authorities the right to assess how effectively they manage capital, and therefore the concept of "economic feasibility of expenses" must be considered through the focus of expenses on generating income<22>. And in the example with apples, the expenses for the purchase of goods were economically justified, because, firstly, they were not purchased for a charity event, but were going to be successfully sold at a profit. Another thing is that the circumstances have changed somewhat and now it is much more important to release the working capital frozen in an unsuccessful batch of apples. And secondly, they still received income, because there is some kind of revenue<23>. And no one is immune from losses.<24>.

You can do the following to confirm that your expenses are reasonable. First, the manager must issue an order to mark down the goods. Secondly, the markdown must be justified. For example, you can attach to the order the conclusion of a merchandiser or sales manager that apples are from last year's harvest, it is impossible to store them for more than 1 month in your warehouse, and in case of loss of presentation, write-off losses will be much higher, etc. In any case, the justification should indicate for what purpose and why you decided on a losing trade. All this will help you strengthen your position in the event of a dispute with the tax authorities.

Conclusion

Expenses will be economically justified if they were aimed at making a profit. The end result is not decisive.

Concern 5. If the goods are sold at a loss, then VAT cannot be deducted on them

The tax authorities are inclined to see in a loss-making transaction an unreasonable tax benefit, because the deduction on acquisition was greater than the sale of goods. And all because a reasonable economic goal of concluding a reduction in the amount of tax accrued in a racket transaction is not at all obvious to the tax authority. And as we remember, its absence is one of the signs of receiving unreasonable tax benefits.<25>.

Therefore, just as to justify expenses, you need to stock up on arguments in your favor in advance. The same documents will do: the order of the head, the conclusion of commodity experts, financiers, etc.

In litigation, the case is resolved in favor of the taxpayer if he provides the court with evidence of a reasonable economic goal that was pursued when concluding a loss-making transaction<26>. But if there was no such goal, and by all indications, the organization is a participant in the tax scheme, then do not expect mercy from the tax authorities. In addition to the non-obvious economic goal, controllers will also identify other signs of obtaining an unjustified tax benefit, for example, the inability to fulfill the contract. For example, an organization purchased a batch of goods, and it is not clear where it was stored for a whole month, since the organization does not own or lease storage facilities, and although the contract for safekeeping was concluded, it was not executed<27>.

Conclusion

A tax benefit in the form of a VAT deduction on goods sold at a loss can be justified if an entity proves that it pursued a reasonable economic goal in entering into a loss-making transaction, such as avoiding even greater losses from a complete write-off of goods. But if the goods were sold only on paper and there were no real transactions, then the tax authorities will remove such deductions.

* * *

So, of all the fears considered, the most real is the removal of expenses and deductions. To prevent this from happening, prepare a cost justification in advance. And if you, God forbid, are a participant in the tax scheme, then only fake documents without real operations are unlikely to help you.

<1>paragraph 1 of Art. 424 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation; paragraph 1 of Art. 4, Art. 6 of the Law of 17.08.95 N 147-FZ; sub. 4 p. 2, p. 4 art. 8 of the Law of December 28, 2009 N 381-FZ

<2>Part 1 Art. 5, part 1, art. 7, paragraph 1, part 1, art. 10 of the Law of July 26, 2006 N 135-FZ

<3>paragraph 1 of Art. 274 Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<4>paragraph 2 of Art. 274, Art. 280 Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<5>paragraph 27 of Art. 270 Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<6>paragraph 1 of Art. 247, sub. 3 p. 1, p. 3 Art. 268 Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<7>paragraph 2 of Art. 268 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation; Letter of the Ministry of Finance of September 18, 2009 N 03-03-06 / 1/590

<8>paragraph 1 of Art. 346.15, paragraph 1 of Art. 346.17, paragraph 1 of Art. 346.18 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<9>paragraph 1 of Art. 346.15, sub. 23 paragraph 1 of Art. 346.16, para. 1, sub. 2 p. 2 art. 346.17 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation; Letter of the Ministry of Finance of October 29, 2010 N 03-11-09 / 95

<10>paragraph 1 of Art. 105.3 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<11>paragraph 1 of Art. 105.17, paragraph 1 of Art. 105.14 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<12>paragraph 4 of Art. 89 Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<13>sub. 1 p. 2 art. 105.14 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<14>paragraph 4 of Art. 105.3 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<15>pp. 3, 6 art. 105.3 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<16>sub. 1 p. 1, p. 3 Art. 105.7, paragraphs. 1, 7 art. 105.9 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<17>paragraph 5 of Art. 105.3, sub. 4 p. 2 art. 45 Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<18>paragraph 1 of Art. 129.3 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation; paragraph 9 of Art. 4 Law of July 18, 2011 N 227-FZ

<19>sub. 1, 4 p. 4 art. 105.3, paragraph 2 of Art. 346.11 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<20>paragraph 1 of Art. 105.3, para. 1, 2 art. 105.18 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation

<21>paragraph 1 of Art. 50 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation

<22>Art. 252 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation; Definitions of the COP dated 12/16/2008 N 1072-O-O (clause 2 of the motivational part), dated 06/04/2007 N 366-O-P (clause 3 of the motivational part), dated 06/04/2007 N 320-O-P (p .3 motivational part)