Nearly $25.79 billion. The sum of the tax claims against Khodorkovsky’s organized criminal group in oil business was one and a half times more than the defense budget of Russia in 2005. The website Prigovor.ru reminds its readers of what happened on December 7, 2004.
On this day 19 years ago, on December 7, 2004, it became known that the JSC “Yuganskneftegaz” – the main production affiliate of the Oil Company Yukos – received the materials of the investigation of 2003 with the tax claims amounting to about 34 billion rubles. Taking into account the data as of the beginning of November, the total sum of the tax claims against Yukos for 2000 – 2002 already exceeded $14 billion, and against “Yuganskneftegaz” - $3.3 billion. And the fiscal results of 2003 only added weight to the tax burdens of the “most transparent” company.
On the same day, on December 7, 2004, in order to have a more accurate, although an interim, picture of the tax offenses committed by the Oil Company Yukos, in the press emerged an extract from an official document containing urgent at the moment data of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation on tax claims against the company Yukos and its affiliates.
“The Federal Tax Service (FNS) informs that during 2004 by FNS of Russia and the Interregional Inspection of Russia on the main tax-payers:
- with regard to the JSC Oil Company Yukos measures of tax control were carried out to control the compliance with laws of taxes and levies for the years 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003;
- with regard to the JSC “Yuganskneftegaz’ for the years 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002;
- with regards to the JSC "Samaraneftegaz” for the year 2002;
- with regards to the JSC "Tomskneftegaz” for the year 2002.
In consequence of the carried out measures, violations were found that resulted in additional tax charges of the sums of non-paid taxes, the emergence of arrears on fines, and in bringing to tax responsibility of the JSC Oil Company Yukos for 2000 to the total sum of 99,328,914,879.6 rubles, including:
- the sum of non-paid taxes – 47,966,133,380 rubles;
- the arrears on fines for untimely paying taxes – 32,176,350,549 rubles;
- the sum of tax sanctions for committing tax offences – 19,186,430,950.6 rubles.
For 2001 on the total sum of 115,320,468,071 rubles, including:
- the sum of non-paid taxes – 48,891,426,333 rubles;
- the arrears on fines for untimely paying taxes 27,315,900,677 rubles;
- the sum of the tax sanctions for committing tax offences – 39,113,141,061 rubles
For the year 2002 to the total sum of 193,812,570,636 rubles, including:
- the sum of the non-paid taxes – 90,286,552,485 rubles;
- the arrears on fines for the untimely paying taxes – 31,485,110,355. 58 rubles;
- the sum of the tax sanctions for committing tax offences – 72,040,907,796 rubles.
On November 19, 2004, an act of the on-site audit for 2003 was serviced to the total sum of 169,903,889 thousand rubles, including:
- the sum of the unpaid taxes – 86,240,291 thousand rubles;
- the arrears on fines for untimely paying taxes – 14,714,588 thousand rubles;
- the sum of tax sanctions for committing tax offenses – 68,949,010 thousand rubles.
Thus, the total sum of the tax claims amounted to 578,365,842,587.18 rubles, including:
- the taxes – 273,384,403,198 rubles;
- the fines for untimely paying taxes – 105,691,949,581.58 rubles, and
- the penalties for committing tax offences – 199,289,489,807.6 rubles.
EXACTION OF HIDDEN TAXES
The tax agencies took measures in order to exact sums of unpaid taxes and arrears on fines by way of taking a decision to recover means at the expense of property of the debtor with subsequent sending of corresponding rulings to the Court Bailiffs Service.
In its turn, the Court Bailiffs Service issued an order on the institution of the enforcement proceedings to exact tax claims from the JSC Oil Company Yukos for 2000, 2001, 2002. As of November 24, 2004, from the Court Bailiffs Service, within the framework of these enforcement proceedings, came in 104,285,378,985 rubles.
OFFENSES OF YUKOS AFFILIATES
As the result of the control measures with regard to the JSC “Yuganskneftegaz”, which resulted in additional charge of unpaid taxes, emergence of arrears on fines, and bringing to tax responsibility.
For 1999 to the total sum of 9,395,703,643 rubles, including:
- the sum of the unpaid taxes – 6,582,244,342 rubles;
- the arrears on fines for untimely paying taxes – 2,813,495,301 rubles.
For 2000 to the total sum of 5,979,342,441 rubles, including:
- the sum of the unpaid taxes – 3,792,140,151 rubles;
- the arrears on fines for untimely paying taxes – 2,187,202,290 rubles.
For the year 2001 to the total sum of 67,810,918,541.8 rubles, including:
- the sum of unpaid taxes – 32,762,704,663.80 rubles
- the arrears on fines for untimely paying taxes – 21,520,263,001.40 rubles;
- the sum of tax sanctions for committing tax offences – 13,527,950,876.67 rubles.
For 2002 to the total sum of 29,621,977,906.6 rubles, including:
- the sum of unpaid taxes – 17,137,374,804.52 rubles;
- the arrears on fines for untimely paying taxes – 5,989,805,838.50 rubles;
- the sum of the tax sanctions for committed tax offences – 694,797,263.63 rubles.
Thus, the total sum of the tax claims against the JSC “Yuganskneftegaz” amounted to 112,807,942,532.52 rubles, including:
- the taxes to the tune of 60,274,463,961.32 rubles
- the fines for untimely laying taxes to the tune of 32,510,730,430.9 rubles;
- the penalties for committing tax offenses to the tune of 20,022,748,140.3 rubles.
It’s necessary to note that the JSC “Yuganskneftegaz” from August 2004, in fact, ceased to cover the current payments on taxes in accordance with the presented tax declarations, and, as the result, emerged the current tax arrears, as of 24.11.2004, to the amount of 15,924,134,953 rubles, including: on the value-added tax to the tune of 513,510,260 rubles; on the income tax to the tune of 3,438,619,946 rubles; on the mineral extraction tax to the tune of 11,969,376,471 rubles; on the consolidated social tax to the tune of 2,528,276 rubles.
Page No 50 from the report of “Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein” in which the liabilities of “Yuganskneagegaz” (YNG) are laid down, as of September 17, 2004. In particular, the company UNG had indebtedness before the tax agencies on property tax to the tune of $117.
With regard to the JSC “Samaraneft", as the result of the control measures, offenses were found, which, according to the field tax audit report for 2002 from 15.10.2004 No 52/776, amounted to 7,126,497,027 rubles, including:
- the sum of unpaid taxes - 4,877,890,179.16 rubles:
- the arrears on fines for untimely paying taxes – 1,622,084,257.43 rubles;
- the sum of the tax sanctions for committing tax offenses – 626,522,590.41 rubles.
With regard to the JSC “Tomskneft”, as the result of the control measures, offenses were found out which, according to the field tax audit report for 2002 from 12.10.2004 No 52/764, amounted to 3,673,330,805.85, including:
- the sum of unpaid taxes – 2,186,578,718.4 rubles, as well as non-tax payments to the tune of 3,693,643 rubles;
- the arrears on fines for untimely payment of taxes – 625,283,305.15 rubles;
- the sum of the tax sanctions for committing tax offenses – 857,775,139.4 rubles.
On the whole, as pointed out by the media outlet “Pravda.ru”, the press and analysts correctly assessed the sum of the tax claims against “Khodorkovsky’s empire”, supposing it to be to the amount of $22-24 billion. In reality, this sum happened to be a bit more significant - $25.79 billion. For comparison – this is one and a half times more than the defense budget of Russia for the next (2005) year", notes the website Prigovor.ru.
(See the previous article “On this day, Yukos was faced with $5 billion 541 million of tax arrears”. 86.2 billion rubles of back taxes, 14.8 billion rubles of fines, and about 70 billion of penalties. The website Prigovor.ru reminds its readers of what happened on December 6.
