The Amendments to Economic Laws, part II

The press service of the Supreme Council of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic continues to acquaint readers with an overview of the laws adopted by the deputy corps in the VIII session of the VII convocation of the Parliament. The autumn session is not closed due to the special legal regime in the republic – state of emergency economic situation. The new article is about the amendments made to the legislation in the economic sphere since the beginning of 2025.

The Amendments to the Republican Budget for Salaries

The state directed the remainder of the republican and local budgets, as well as target funds, formed as of January 1, 2025, to financially support salaries for public sector employees. The Supreme Council supported the law-in-draft developed by the President in two readings on February 26. Both the republican and local budgets of cities and districts are suffering huge losses due to the downtime of industrial enterprises.

For example, the Government was given the right to allocate 37 million rubles from the Road Fund for social payments, 30 million rubles from the Share Fund, and 59 million rubles from the Capital Investment Fund. The law adopted by the law granted local administrations in cities and districts the right to allocate the remainder of local budgets, including target funds, for social payments. Viktor Guzun, Chairman of the relevant parliamentary committee, emphasized that thanks to the reserves formed in the budget in December, it was possible to pay salaries in January and pensions in February. Local budgets received transfers to pay salaries in February and pensions for March at the end of February. Budget funds, taking into account the balances for 2024, were enough to pay salaries and pensions in March.

New conditions for entrepreneurs working on the simplified tax system

Individual entrepreneurs and organizations working on the simplified tax system are allowed to continue working in this tax system next year in the event of late payment of taxes. The Supreme Council adopted amendments to the relevant law in February. If an entrepreneur allowed late payment of taxes and other mandatory payments to the budget and off-budget funds for a period of 30 calendar days or more Previously, then he lost the right to work "on a simplified system" from the next year, according to the provisions of the law "Special tax regime – simplified tax system".

Amendments to the tax legislation, which soften the current provisions of the law on the simplified system, were developed based on the appeals of entrepreneurs by parliamentarians Viktor Guzun, Galina Antyufeeva and Vadim Kravchuk. The second law-in-draft introduced paragraph 2-1 of Article 15.5 into the Code of Administrative Offenses. It introduces fines for organizations and individual entrepreneurs operating under the simplified tax system if tax payments are overdue for more than 3 months and the amount of overdue payments exceeds 100 minimum wages. The fines range from 50 to 100 minimum wages for individual entrepreneurs, from 100 to 200 minimum wages for officials, and from 300 to 350 minimum wages for legal entities. The Supreme Council supplemented the law on the special tax regime in April, giving individual entrepreneurs the opportunity to suspend the application of the simplified tax system not only personally. According to the new rule, if an individual entrepreneur cannot independently apply to the tax office with a statement that he or she is suspending activities under the simplified tax system, then this can be done by a spouse or other close relative, provided that they have documents confirming that the entrepreneur cannot do this themselves. In addition, any person acting on his or her behalf on the basis of a notarized power of attorney can file an application to the tax office to suspend the work of an individual entrepreneur under the simplified tax system.

The Amendments to the law on the simplified tax system will come into force on the 1st of May.

Solar energy

Norms have been adopted at the legislative level that will help develop alternative energy sources in Pridnestrovie. The Supreme Council adopted in March a package of laws that will create conditions in Pridnestrovie for the start of implementing investment projects for the generation of electric and thermal energy from renewable sources.

Amendments have been made to the laws "On state support for investment activities", "On the tax on the income of organizations", "On payment for land" and the Customs Code of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic.

A number of benefits and preferences have been established for enterprises and organizations that will build solar power plants and sell surplus electricity to the general grid:

- the activity of producing electric power products from renewable energy sources is recognized as a priority type of activity;

- legal entities that build a station with generating equipment, produce and sell electric energy produced from renewable energy sources are exempt from paying corporate income tax for a period of 5 (five) years from the first day of the month in which revenue from the sale of electricity was first received, in terms of this revenue;

- legal entities that are owners of generating equipment (installations) and sell electric energy produced from renewable energy sources are exempt from paying land tax in respect of land plots provided for use (including lease) for the purpose of placing this equipment, for a period of 5 (five) years from the first day of the month in which installations for generating electricity from renewable energy sources are put into operation;

- a special customs procedure will be applied in respect of equipment that produces electric and thermal energy from renewable energy sources and (or) using solid fuel.

Amendments to the law on support measures during the emergency economic period

The PMR Citizens who are entitled to a benefit for payment of utilities and live in houses where electric or gas boilers are installed for heating are granted a benefit for the provision of solid fuel at a preferential price in the amount of the benefit provided by law for utilities, in the manner and within the limits of the standards approved by the Government of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic from January 1, 2025 until the end of the emergency economic period. Amendments were adopted to the law on state measures to minimize the negative impact in connection with the emergency economic period and the reduction of gas supplies. These standards were relevant during the heating season. the procedure, conditions and standards for the issuance of firewood are established by a regulatory act of the Government of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic.

Deputies Alexander Korshunov and Viktor Guzun developed law-in-draft to protect socially vulnerable groups of citizens of Pridnestrovie in connection with the termination of natural gas supplies to the republic.

The Supreme Council made amendments to this law in April, which update certain provisions of Article 5. They concern the submission of reports.

Thus, information on the execution of the republican and local budgets, budgets of extra-budgetary funds for the first quarter of 2025 must be provided by June 20, 2025. For financial and tax reporting (except for financial reporting of budgetary entities for 2024), the deadline is May 5, 2025 inclusive. Individuals must submit tax returns for 2024 to territorial tax inspectorates by May 10, 2025. The validity of permit documents, the list of which is approved by a regulatory legal act of the Government (for example, licenses), is automatically extended and is valid not until the end of the State of Emergency in the economy and 30 days after, but until May 10, 2025 inclusive.

Cancellation of the law on the development of blockchain technologies

Due to the negative consequences of the reduction (termination) of natural gas supplies to the republic from January 2025 and the economic crisis, the law "On the development of information blockchain technologies" has been canceled in Pridnestrovie. It has been in force since 2018. The objects of activity in the field of blockchain technologies include cryptocurrency, smart contracts, mining and other products and processes built on the basis of this technology.

Amendments and additions were made to the laws "On the tax on income of organizations", "On the fundamentals of the tax system in the PMR", "On electric power industry" and the Customs Code of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic in connection with the cancellation of the law on blockchain technologies.

Landscaping fee

The targeted landscaping fee, which residents of cities and villages pay annually in the amount of 145 rubles (10 minimum wages), should not go to the maintenance of local governments and state administrations, for example, to the repair of an administrative building. The Supreme Council deputies enshrined this norm in the law "On the Fundamentals of the Tax System in the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic" so that law enforcement officers had a clear understanding of this issue. Since the parliament received requests from local deputies of various localities asking to clarify for what purposes the money from the targeted collection for improvement of the population can be spent.

Residents of cities have been paying the targeted collection since 2023, and rural residents since 2013. The money from the collection can be used, for example, for the arrangement of children's playgrounds, sports grounds, recreation areas, parks, squares, and adjacent territories. Financing of these areas is determined only on the basis of the decision of local Councils of People's Deputies.

To protect consumer rights

Executive bodies of state power are now empowered to create hotlines for consumer appeals about possible violations of their rights. Tax inspectors will be able to post information about the activities of such hotlines in sales areas and next to cash registers. This concerns the Finance Ministry's hotline for non-issuance of receipts in particular. The Supreme Council supported amendments to the laws "On the Protection of Consumer Rights" and "On the State Tax Service of the PMR" in order to protect consumer rights.

The authors of the legislations noted that a sales contract, according to the provisions of the Civil Code, is considered concluded from the moment the seller issues a cash or sales receipt to the buyer, which confirms payment for the goods. It is the cash (sales) receipt that is one of the most important tools for protecting consumer rights in the sphere of purchase and sale of goods, provision of services and performance of work. All individual entrepreneurs working under the "simplified" system must issue a cash receipt to their customers according to the law. In the event of non-issuance of a receipt, the consumer can call the hotline to the regulatory authorities, which are obliged to respond to the request and conduct an inspection. If the information about the non-issuance of a receipt is confirmed, the tax authorities have the right to impose a fine.

Medical products for state programs are exempt from customs duties

The Supreme Council adopted amendments to the law "On customs tariff", according to which medical and pharmaceutical products and medical equipment imported into the republic within the framework of state target programs by state institutions subordinate to the Ministry of Health are exempt from customs duties. Special tariff benefits within the framework of the implementation of state programs were applied on the basis of government orders until now. The new provisions in the law will simplify and speed up customs procedures for medical equipment and drugs imported into Pridnestrovie for the implementation of state programs in the field of healthcare.

Changes in the procedure for electing the head of the board of directors of a joint-stock company

The procedure for electing the chairman of the board of directors (supervisory board) of a joint-stock company has been simplified. The Supreme Council of the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic adopted amendments to the law "On joint-stock companies". The authority to elect the chairman of the board of directors (supervisory board) will be granted to the board of directors from among its members, according to the new rule.

The law established that the head of the board of directors (supervisory board) could only be elected at a general meeting of shareholders previously. This is 50 or more people. Difficulties arose in practice with convening a general meeting of shareholders, and the enterprise in the form of a joint-stock company could not fully operate.