The Government of the Russian Federation will reduce the VAT on fruit down to 10%. Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev tweeted that he had decided to reduce the VAT on fruit and berries to 10%, as in his opinion, this should lead to lower prices and to the development of the domestic horticultural economy.
The Prime Minister said that the decision on whether to reduce the tax from 20 to 10% was made after a discussion with members of the government and deputies of the State Duma. Medvedev added that on July 10, during a visit to the headquarters of United Russia, it was agreed that the bill would be submitted by deputies to the State Duma.
The head of the Duma faction of United Russia, Sergei Neverov, said earlier that the bill was ready for submission to the Duma. He also said that all factions consider the issue of supporting fruit and berry producers as a priority, as Russian producers are yet unable to supply the volume that would cover the country’s needs.
Amendments are planned to be made to Article 164 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.
The preferential VAT rate of 10% applies to a specific list of goods, including meat, meat products, milk, dairy products, eggs, vegetable oils, margarine, sugar, salt, grain, animal feed, bread and bakery products, fish, seafood, baby and diabetic food. From January 1 of the current year, fruits and berries were taxed at a rate of 20%.