From 2025, new amendments to the Tax Code will come into force in Russia, including those concerning the taxation of personal income. One of the key innovations is the change and expansion of the progressive taxation scale for personal income tax.

In the material of the publication «Company Lawyer» tax consultant Tax Compliance Sergey Ivanov analyzed what companies will face when calculating personal income tax of employees and what claims to expect from inspectors.

What income is affected by the amendments

Russia now has a multi-stage progressive personal income tax scale - the amendments to the Tax Code were signed by the President [1]. The new rules will work from 2025 and will affect all those who pay personal income tax independently or through tax agents. Recall that the payers are both Russian citizens and non-residents. If earlier «progression» was applied to income from 5 million rubles, when the rate was 15 percent instead of the standard 13 percent, from 2025 the scale will be multi-stage - from 13 to 22 percent.

The number of «steps» in the progressive scale depends on income. The TC distinguishes two categories: income, which forms the main tax base, and other income. The main tax base is formed by labor income (including vacation pay, sick pay, bonuses, compensation payments), income from renting out an apartment, income under contracts of state employment, etc. (income of an individual in cash and in kind). (income of an individual in cash and in kind, as well as in the form of material benefit), to which the progressive taxation scale is applied. Also the progressive scale specified below applies to income in the form of winnings received by participants in gambling and lotteries, income received by participants in an investment partnership, income in the form of amounts of profit of a controlled foreign company (including fixed profit of a controlled foreign company).

There will be five rates of personal income tax for this category:

13% - annual income up to 2.4 million rubles.

15% - annual income from 2.4 million rubles to 5 million rubles.

18% - annual income from 5 million rubles to 20 million rubles.

20% - annual income from RUR 20 mln. to RUR 50 mln.

22% - annual income over 50 million rubles. 

For other income, for example, dividends, interest on deposits, income from the sale of securities, real estate, there is a two-stage scale: 13 percent for annual income up to 2.4 million rubles inclusive and 15 percent - if the income exceeds this amount. However, if other income is received by a non-resident, he pays tax on it at the rate of 15 percent in any case.

How to calculate personal income tax during the year

To calculate personal income tax, income from the main tax base and other income are not added together. They make up two separate bases, in each of which income must be counted from the beginning of the year. When income in each of the bases exceeds the limit, a higher rate will be earned for it. In this case, the higher rate applies only to the amount over the limit.

Let's understand by example. A citizen receives 3 million rubles of dividends for the year and a salary of 900 thousand rubles monthly.

Two rates will apply to dividend income: 13 percent for the amount of 2.4 million rubles and 15 percent for the remaining 600 thousand rubles.

Three rates will apply to income from labor activity.

In January, the income will amount to 900 thousand rubles, which means that the minimum rate of 13 percent will apply.

In February, income will amount to 1.8 million rubles, the rate of 13 percent will remain in effect.

In March, the income will already amount to 2.7 million rubles, so to the salary for March will apply two rates:

600 thousand rubles. - 13 percent, and the limit of 2.4 million is exhausted;

300 thousand rubles. - at the rate of 15 percent.

In April and May, 15 percent personal income tax will be withheld from the salary, and in June the income for the year will amount to 5.4 million rubles. Two rates will be applied to the June salary:

500 thousand rubles. - at the rate of 15 percent, at which point the limit of 5 million rubles is exhausted;

400 thousand rubles. - at the rate of 18 percent.

How a company should act if an employee has several jobs

The law does not oblige employers to take into account an individual's total income from other companies. Only those amounts which the employer itself pays to the employee should be counted. 

Let's look at an example. The employee receives a monthly salary of 400 thousand rubles from employer No. 1 and another 620 thousand rubles from employer No. 2. Each employer will withhold tax independently of the other.

In the aggregate, income from January to April amounted to more than 4 million roubles, which means that the rate of 15 per cent should be applied. The employee reached the threshold of 2.4 million roubles in March. 

However, employers are not entitled or obliged to find out the amount of income in other positions of the employee. This will be done by the tax authority. If necessary, it will recalculate personal income tax and send the employee a notice of additional payment. Transfer the money to the budget will need no later than December 1 of the year following the expired tax period [2].

When personal income tax must be paid after the sale of shares and interests

Tax will have to be paid on the sale of securities or shares in a company regardless of the period of their ownership if the seller's annual income exceeds 50 million roubles. Previously, there was a privilege: if a citizen acquired shares or stakes more than five years ago and owned them continuously for the entire period, he is exempt from personal income tax on their sale. 

Let's look at an example. A citizen seven years ago purchased shares for 12 million rubles and sold them in 2025 for 90 million rubles. That is, the income will amount to 90 - 12 = 78 million rubles. Of this, 50 million rubles is not subject to personal income tax.

Taxation is subject to 28 million rubles, of which:

2.4 million rubles. - at the rate of 13 percent;

RUR 25.6 mln. - at the rate of 15 percent.

The limitation of 50 million rubles works only in a specific tax period (a year). This means that it is possible to limit the sale of shares/shares to 50 million in the first year and sell the rest in the next year. In such a case, the benefit will apply to the entire volume of shares/shares sold.

Whether the amendments affect the self-employed if they are employed

The rates of tax on professional income will not change. This is due to the fact that the self-employed are not treated as PIT payers but apply a special tax regime. Even if a self-employed person is employed and receives a salary in parallel with income from private orders, these incomes are not summarized for personal income tax purposes. The Federal Tax Service has already noted a high growth rate in the number of self-employed this year. It is likely that the tax reform will further strengthen this trend. 

More changes will not affect the participants of the SWO and persons who work in the Far North and equated areas in the part that relates to increasing district coefficients and percentage allowances. 

[1] Federal Law of 12.07.2024 № 176-FZ “On Amendments to Parts One and Two of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, certain legislative acts of the Russian Federation and the invalidation of certain provisions of legislative acts of the Russian Federation»

[2] Clause 6 of Art. 228 of the Tax Code