How to write an explanatory note on vat. How to write an explanation for the requirement of the tax office

When conducting an inspection, the inspector has the right to request a written explanation. Situations in which to provide explanatory note to the tax office upon request (we offer a sample for non-profit organizations) necessarily, spelled out in clause 3 of Art. 88 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation:

1. Errors in the submitted reports. For example, the declaration revealed inaccuracies or inconsistencies. In this case, the tax authorities require you to provide a justification for these inconsistencies or send a corrective report.
2. In the corrective reporting, the amounts payable to the budget are significantly lower than in the initial calculations. In such a situation, the inspector may suspect deliberate underreporting. tax base and payments and asks for an explanation of the changes.
3. Losses are reflected in the submitted income tax return. In any case, the Federal Tax Service will have to justify the unprofitable activity, therefore, an explanatory note on losses can be prepared in advance.

The inspection request should be answered within 5 working days from the date of official delivery of the request - such norms are enshrined in clause 3 of Art. 88, paragraph 6 of Art. 6.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. In special cases, the FTS will have to notify the receipt tax request(Letter of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation dated January 27, 2015 No. ED-4-15 / 1071).

Some requests may not have the official stamp. You will still have to answer such requirements - such explanations are given in the Letter of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation dated 07.15.2015 No. ED-3-2 / [email protected]

How to compose

When drawing up an explanatory note, we are guided by the following rules:

1. We compose the answer on the letterhead of the organization. If there is no such form, in the header of the document we indicate the full name of the institution, TIN, KPP, OGRN and the address.
2. We indicate the number and date of the requirement for which the explanatory note is drawn up. It is permissible to compose an answer to several tax inquiries at once.
3. If the report contains errors and inconsistencies, double-check the reports to exclude typos or misprints.
4. In the descriptive part of the explanatory note, we reveal in detail and consistently the circumstances of the situation that needs to be explained.
5. When responding to a request, rely on facts, document the circumstances. Attach copies of documents to your answer, if any. For example, attach to the explanatory note a copy of the supplementary agreement to the contract with the condition of the price increase.

If the inspector requires you to provide an explanatory note on inconsistencies in the value-added tax return, you will have to send a response electronically. An exception to the rule is assigned to organizations that report on VAT on paper. If the institution reported electronically, but provided an answer to the request on paper, then the tax authorities will consider such explanations not provided. Such norms are spelled out in the Letter of the Federal Tax Service dated January 27, 2017 No. ED-4-15 / 1443.

What will happen if you do not answer the requirement of the Federal Tax Service

No matter how the inspection officers threaten with punishments, the tax authorities cannot fine or issue an administrative penalty for the absence of an explanatory note:

• Article 126 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation is not a basis for punishment, since the provision of explanations does not apply to the provision of documents (93 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation);
• Article 129.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation is inapplicable, since a request for written explanations is not a "counter check" (93.1 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation);
• Article 19.4 of the Administrative Code is not an argument, the punishment is applicable only if you fail to appear at the territorial inspection.

Similar explanations are given in clause 2.3 of the Letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated July 17, 2013 No. AS-4-2 / ​​12837.

Form and ready-made samples for different situations

So, we offer a general form of an explanatory note that is suitable for almost any situation:

Now we will present several ready-made samples of an explanatory note that an institution will need in certain circumstances.

Personal income tax charged incorrectly

The error is rare, but it still takes place. If the tax authorities find an incorrectly calculated tax, then the organization will have to not only prepare an explanatory note, but also generate corrective reporting (reference 2-NDFL).

An explanatory note in any form is suitable for such a situation. If you are unsure of how to write an explanatory note correctly, a sample will help you get the job done.

Errors and discrepancies in VAT

Value added tax is a fiscal obligation in which accountants make most of the mistakes. As a result, discrepancies and inaccuracies in reporting are inevitable.

The most popular mistakes when the amount of tax charges is less than the amount tax deduction claimed for reimbursement. In fact, the reason for this discrepancy could only be the carelessness of the person responsible for invoicing. Or a technical error while uploading data.

In the explanatory note, indicate the following information: “We inform you that there are no errors in the purchase book, the data was entered correctly, in a timely manner and in full. This discrepancy occurred due to a technical error when generating invoice No. ____ from "___" ______ 20 ___. Tax reporting has been corrected (insert date of dispatch of corrections) ”.

Reporting discrepancies

Quite often there are situations when the same economic indicator has different meanings in the submitted forms of fiscal reporting. Such discrepancies are caused by the fact that for each tax, fee, contribution, individual rules for determining the taxable base are established. And if the tax authorities require you to provide an explanatory note on this issue, provide explanations in free form. In the text, indicate the specific reasons for the discrepancies.

Also, the reason for such a discrepancy may be different norms and rules. tax accounting for a number of specific situations. Write down the circumstances in the explanatory note.

It is encouraged to provide explanations with references to the norms of the current fiscal legislation. Even if the company is wrong (it has misinterpreted the norms of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation), the FTS will provide detailed explanations, which will allow avoiding larger mistakes and fines in future activities.

Reducing the tax burden

This question is of particular interest to the tax authorities. Thus, representatives of the Federal Tax Service constantly monitor the volume of receipts in the state budget... When they decrease, the reaction is immediate: requirements with the provision of an explanatory note, an invitation to the head to a personal meeting with a representative of the Federal Tax Service, or an exit office check(last resort).

In such a situation, one cannot hesitate, it is necessary to immediately provide explanations to the Federal Tax Service. In the explanatory note, describe all the circumstances and facts that influenced the decrease tax payments... Support the facts with documents or provide economic justifications. Otherwise, the FTS will initiate an on-site inspection, which may take several months.

What to write in the explanatory note:

1. Reduction of salary taxes. The reasons may be staff reduction, enterprise restructuring, decrease in the level of wages.
2. A decrease in profits can occur due to the termination of the contract with buyers. A copy of the supplementary agreement on termination of the contract should be attached to the explanatory note.
3. Increased costs as a result of declining profits. Justification can be expansion of activities (increase in production volumes, opening of a new branch, division, retail outlet), change of suppliers or increase in prices for inventories and raw materials (attach copies of contracts).

Reasons for the decline tax burden can be quite a lot. We'll have to figure it out in each case.

An explanation of insurance premiums must be written in the event that a corresponding request has been sent to the company from the tax structure.

In what situations do you receive requests for clarification?

Letters from the tax department explaining the assessed and paid insurance premiums are not so uncommon. Usually they are caused by the fact that the tax inspectors did not like something in the reports submitted to them, for example, they found discrepancies with their own data in the documents submitted by the organization, or found any erroneous or inaccurate information. In particular, doubts can be caused by situations when there was a noticeable decrease in the employee's wages in comparison with previous years, when the amount in the 2-NDFL certificate is not identical to the amount that went into the budget tax payment or there was a discrepancy between the indicators in the 2-NDFL certificates and the 6-NDFL form, etc.

Files

At the same time, the main parameters that tax authorities pay attention to when monitoring insurance premiums is the total amount of payments made by the organization for its employees.

In what time frame do you need to give an explanation

An explanatory note, according to the law, must be submitted to tax office no later than five days after receiving the relevant request. You need to send it exactly to the tax office from which the request came.

Allowed sending methods

Transfer to tax note can be done in two ways. If the company uses an electronic reporting form, then the explanation must be transmitted in this way, otherwise it will not even be considered.

But if an enterprise uses the right to submit reports on paper, then an explanation can be formed on paper and then referred to the tax office personally. It does not work personally - not a problem, you can send the document through an authorized person (provided that he has a notarized power of attorney in his hands) or by regular mail - in this case, the date when the letter was accepted by the postal worker will be considered the date of submission of the explanation service.

What happens if you do not answer the request for clarification

Sometimes employees of organizations, for some reason, do not consider it necessary to respond to letters from the tax authority, or, out of absent-mindedness, they simply forget to do it. Previously, no sanctions for this were provided for by the legislation, but from January 1, 2017, tax authorities received the right to fine enterprises for failure to provide explanations.

At the same time, the fine is quite large: for the first time it is 5 thousand rubles, but if the tax agent repeatedly commits such a violation, the amount will increase to 20 thousand rubles.

In addition, one should not forget that employees of the supervisory agency may interpret the silence of the taxpayer in their own way, as a result of which the enterprise may be put on the schedule of the next visiting tax audits... And this is already a more serious danger, because following the results of such control activities, companies are often subject to more serious administrative punishment (especially important, given that there are some flaws in the work of almost any organization).

How to write an explanation

The explanation for insurance premiums can be written in any form - there is no unified standard for it. At the same time, it is recommended that its structure and content comply with the rules and regulations adopted for business papers.

It is very important that the explanation clearly describes the reasons for the problem in connection with which the tax authorities contacted the company. They need not only to be identified, but also to be argued. In this case, the evidence base should consist not only in words, but also in the presence of appropriate supporting documents.

How to issue an explanation on paper

For explanations, you can take a regular sheet of paper or a form with company details, while it is better not to write them by hand, but to print them on a computer. After the final formation, the document must be signed - it is good if the document contains two autographs: the director and the chief accountant. The explanation should be made in two identical copies, one of which must be sent to the place of demand, and the second must be kept. If in accounting policies the enterprise has an indication of the use of the seal in its current activities, the letter should be endorsed with its help. In the journal of outgoing documentation, you must put a mark on the sent explanation (indicating its number and date).

Sample explanation to the tax

If you received a request from the tax office to provide an explanation about insurance premiums, and you have never done such documents before, look at the example below and read the comments to it - with their help you will most likely be able to form the letter you need.

1. First of all, indicate the addressee in the explanation, i.e. the tax office for which the explanation is intended. Then fill in information about the organization in more detail: write its name, requisites, contact details (address, phone number), be sure to mark the outgoing message number. After that, you can proceed to the main section.
2. First, give here a link to the number and date of the requirement that came from the supervisory authority, then start formulating the actual explanations. In each specific situation, they depend on exactly what circumstances led to the questions of tax specialists. But in any case, give an explanation both descriptively (for example, if technical problems or incorrect work of the accountant led to the error, write it down) and documentary.
3. Referring to documents, indicate their numbers and date of creation. If the reason in connection with which the tax authorities had questions has already been corrected, be sure to note this, as well as the fact that in the future you will take all measures to prevent such situations.
4. In conclusion, be sure to sign the form.

How to write an explanation for a requirement correctly tax office? This question is very relevant, since recently the tax authorities have been simply bombarding taxpayers with letters demanding an answer on this or that question.

How to give the correct answer to the request of the tax inspectorate to provide explanations in order to avoid further checks?

To begin with, let's decide in what cases the inspectors ask for clarification? Most often, this is a discrepancy between the data on the books of purchases and sales from buyers and sellers when checking VAT, the amount to be refunded for VAT, losses from activities when checking income tax and STS, inconsistency of data on taxable bases in VAT and income tax returns, and many other reasons.

So what if you got it?

1. Within 6 days, counting from the date of sending you an electronic request, you must submit to the inspectorate a receipt for the receipt of the request for TCS.

2. Upon receipt of the request, it is necessary to check the correctness of filling in the declaration in respect of the amounts indicated in the request. When checking the VAT declaration, check the amounts in the declaration with the amounts for all received and issued invoices, check the correctness of filling in the invoice details: dates, numbers, amounts, rates. When accepting an invoice for deduction in installments several times, it is necessary to check total amount VAT deductible for all entries in relation to this invoice, taking into account entries for previous tax periods. When checking the income tax declaration or the simplified tax system, it is necessary to reconcile all the amounts of income and expenses taken into account for calculating these taxes.

3. If an error is found that leads to an underestimation of the amount of tax payable, it is necessary to submit an updated declaration with corrected information.

4. If an error is found that does not affect the amount of accrued tax in the declaration, you do not need to submit a "revision". An explanation with the correct data must be provided to the tax office. Explanations are written in free form or in hard copy, or provided by TCS in electronic form.

5. If, nevertheless, provided by you in tax information were correct, you also need to notify the tax office.

Sample 1. The answer to the request of the tax authorities to provide explanations about the reason for the loss of the company.

Interdistrict IFTS No. 22
.................................................. ...................... in the Chelyabinsk region
.................................................. ...................... from LLC "BABYLON"
.................................................. ...................... address: 454039, Chelyabinsk
.................................................. ...................... Avtomatiki st., 5, office 16
.................................................. ...................... tel. 8-352-66-75-852

In response to your request No. 98665 dated 03.11.2015 for the provision of documents, I would like to inform you as follows. The income tax return for 9 months of 2015 shows the loss. The loss in the company was formed due to the fact that during this period of time, due to high competition in the market, a small amount of work was carried out, which could not cover the costs of the company.

Director
LLC "BABYLON" .............................................. ........... Ogaev A.B.

_________________________________________________________________________
Sample 2. Explanation of the tax requirement on the reason for the incorrect reflection in the purchase book of the invoice number in the VAT reporting.
.................................................. ................. Interdistrict Inspectorate of the Federal Tax Service No. 22
.................................................. ................. in the Chelyabinsk region
.................................................. ................. from Ogonyok LLC
.................................................. ................. address: 454039, Chelyabinsk
.................................................. ................. Rusakova st., 8, office 65
.................................................. ................. tel. 8-458-652-85-731

In response to your request No. 365142 dated 05.11.2015 for the provision of documents, I would like to inform you as follows. As a result of an accountant's error in the purchase book, in section 8 on line 12, the invoice number of the supplier Kalibr LLC (TIN 7448025365) 35 of 03.10.2015 was incorrectly indicated for the amount of 35,000 rubles. You should read correctly: invoice number 45 from 03.10.2015.

Director
LLC "Ogonek" Degtyareva S.A.
_________________________________________________________________________

The algorithm for responding to the tax authorities' request to provide explanations is defined in the letter of the Federal Tax Service of Russia No. ED-4-15 / [email protected] from 06.11.2015

The main thing when writing an answer is not even how you composed the answer, but the fact that you reacted to the letter.

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Companies that have submitted a profit and loss statement to the tax service with a loss may receive a notification requesting an explanation of the reasons for its formation. Otherwise, if the taxpayer fails to provide the necessary information, the tax inspectorate may decide to conduct an on-site audit or, in extreme cases, to liquidate legal entity... It is not recommended to ignore such a "sign of attention". This article will take a closer look at how to write an explanation for tax losses. A sample will be given at the end of the article.

How to behave?

and for whom it is not a secret that none Chief Accountant does not want his company to be included in the list of "lucky ones" for conducting offsite events to audit financial and economic activities by tax authorities. But what should he do if the annual report came out with a loss, and the tax office requires an explanation of the reasons for its occurrence?

In such a situation, there are two options for behavior:

• leave the annual report as it is, but at the same time it is necessary to correctly and convincingly write explanations of the company's losses;
• artificially correct reporting in such a way that unprofitableness will eventually "disappear".

Having opted for one or another option, you must understand what tax risks you can expect and what consequences they can bring to the company.

If you have at your disposal all the properly executed documentation that can confirm the validity of the costs incurred, then there is no need to artificially adjust the reporting, that is, there is no need to clean up the company's losses, since they will be lost for you forever. In such a situation, it will be more expedient if you prepare explanations for the tax loss. A sample of such an explanatory note is discussed below.

But sometimes there is no way to explain the reasons for the negative balance. Then you can correctly correct the income statement and thereby hide the loss. But you should understand that willful misrepresentation of reporting can result in fines for the company. It will be better if you review it again to see if you have taken into account all incomes before submitting your reports to the tax office.

What are the criteria for considering companies that showed a loss?

As a rule, these are three types of losses:

• a fairly large loss;
• the loss is repeated within two tax periods;
• the loss was shown last year and in the interim quarters of the current year.

What should newly registered enterprises do? Typically, loss for new businesses is a common occurrence. Besides, tax law requires to take into account expenses in the period in which they were formed, despite the fact that the income has not yet been received. If a company was established and suffered a loss during the same year, then the tax authorities, most likely, will not consider it as problematic.

However, if you show a loss for more than one year, then the inspection will require you to explain the reasons for this situation, since it may consider that you are deliberately reducing profits. Therefore, we recommend that if you have a loss, submit the balance sheet and profit and loss statement with an explanatory note, this will allow you to avoid unnecessary questions.

What indicators do tax authorities pay attention to when checking an unprofitable company?

1. On the ratio of borrowed and equity capital... It is considered acceptable if the amount of equity capital is greater than the borrowed capital. At the same time, it will be better if the growth rate of borrowed capital is lower.
2. At the rate of growth of current assets. It is considered normal if this indicator is greater than the growth rate of non-circulating.
3. At the rate of growth of accounts receivable and accounts payable... These indicators should be almost the same. Tax officials may be interested in the reason for the increase or decrease in these indicators.

What should a loss explanatory note look like?

How to write an explanation to the tax office? As such, there is no standard form, explanations are written in any form on the official letterhead of the enterprise and are confirmed by the signature of the head. The note is drawn up in the name of the head of the tax inspectorate, which sent a request for an explanation of losses.

The main emphasis in the letter should be on explaining the reasons for the formation of a negative financial result. It is very important here to back up all the words with facts that influenced the situation when the enterprise's expenses exceeded income. It is very good if the company has documents with which you can confirm that this is an ordinary economic activity aimed at making a profit, and losses in the next reporting period will not be present. To prove that you have taken a number of steps to achieve positive results, you can attach a copy of the business plan, a transcript of accounts payable, and other similar tools to the explanatory note.

What are the reasons for unprofitableness to name in the explanatory note?

Let's name the main reasons that can be used as an example of an explanation of losses.

Explanation 1. Decrease in prices for goods, works and services sold

The reasons for this decline may be the following factors.

1. The selling price has been reduced due to a decrease in market prices or a decline in demand. The consumer will not buy a product with a price higher than the market price, but selling it at a loss, you can get at least some revenue and not go even more at a loss. This explanation can be supported by the following documents:

• the order of the head on the establishment of new prices and the reasons for such changes;
• a report from the marketing department, which will reflect the situation on the market and provide an analysis of the decrease in demand for the goods shipped by the company.

2. The product expires. To prove this reason, the following documents can be attached:

• the act of the inventory commission;
• an order from the head to reduce the prices of goods.

3. Refusal of the buyer from the order. You can substantiate this reason by attaching an agreement on termination of the contract or an official letter from the buyer, in which he writes about his refusal.

4. Seasonal nature of the goods, works and services sold. Seasonal fluctuations in demand are typical for such spheres of activity as construction, tourism, etc. To substantiate this reason, you will also need an order from the head to reduce prices.

5. The decline in prices is due to the development of a new sales market. At the same time, you should have marketing research, plans, development strategies in your arsenal. It will not be superfluous if you provide copies of supply agreements for new points of sale or documents for opening a new division in another region.

Explanation 2. Decline in sales or production

This explanation of the loss can be accompanied by a report on a decrease in the volume of products, work and services performed, or on a decrease in sales of products in quantitative terms.

Explanation 3. The need for work or activities that require large one-time costs

This can be the repair of equipment, office, warehouse and other facilities, as well as all sorts of research, licensing, etc. To justify these costs, you should have source documents on them, such as work contracts, estimates, invoices and other similar documentation.

In the event that the tax inspectorate requires an explanation of losses in the reporting for a quarter, half a year or nine months, you can refer in the explanatory note to the fact that the financial result of the enterprise is formed on an accrual basis for the year. And therefore, the situation with him may still change before the end of the year.

Clarification 4. Force majeure (flooding, fire, etc.)

In this case, you should have on hand a certificate from the government agency that recorded this situation. You will also need an opinion from the inventory commission on the losses incurred as a result of the disaster.

Sample explanatory note

For a clear understanding of how to write explanations for the tax loss, the sample below will help us.

To the chief

IFTS of Russia No. 6

in Kazan

Skvortsov A.S.

EXPLANATION

Having examined your request regarding the provision of explanations explaining the formation of the loss, Romashka LLC reports the following.

During the nine months of 2014, the proceeds of LLC Romashka from the sale of products amounted to 465 thousand rubles.

The costs accounted for in tax accounting amounted to RUB 665 thousand, including:

• material costs - 265 thousand rubles.
• labor costs - 200 thousand rubles.
• other expenses - 200 thousand rubles.

Compared to the same period last year, these costs increased by 15 percent, including:

• material costs - by 10%;
• labor costs - by 4%;
• other expenses - by 1%.

From these indicators it is clear that the growth in the company's expenses was mainly associated with an increase in prices for materials and raw materials necessary for the production of our products. In addition, it should be noted that the company has increased wage costs in order to motivate its employees.

Also, due to the market situation and the level of competition, the Company was unable to implement the planned increase in prices for the goods sold.

In connection with the above, it can be argued that the loss is the result of objective reasons.

At present, the management of the enterprise is already conducting negotiations, the purpose of which is to attract new buyers and customers, and also the issue of improving the products is being considered, which will increase the income of the enterprise at times. The company plans to go to a positive financial results already based on the results of 2015.

Explanatory note on taxes

Currently, businesses may be required to provide an explanation to the tax office for VAT. This is in the event that, when sending them an updated declaration, the amount of tax payments is less than that indicated in the original version.

The explanation for VAT, as well as the explanation for tax losses, is drawn up in any form and is supported by the signature of the head of the organization. It indicates the indicators that have changed in the declaration, which became the reason for the reduction in the amount of tax. Among other things, it will not be superfluous to indicate the reason according to which other information was indicated in the original declaration. This may be an error in the calculation due to a misunderstanding of the law or a program failure, and other similar factors.