Is it legal to issue a “negative” invoice? Can the seller issue such an invoice and the buyer accept negative VAT?

The need to adjust previously issued invoices to reduce tax may arise in several cases. For example, when returning a product, when providing a discount on a shipped product, when a tax is erroneously allocated in an invoice, or when a negative amount difference occurs. Regulatory framework The Tax Code of the Russian Federation does not provide for the possibility of issuing “negative” invoices. Not a word is said about them in the Rules for maintaining logs of received and issued invoices, purchase books and sales books when calculating value added tax, approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of December 2, 2000 N 914. However, there is no direct ban on issuing such invoices -there are no invoices either. Opinions of judges, the Ministry of Finance and tax authorities There are different views on the problem of “negative” invoices. Issuing “negative” invoices is unacceptable:

• Letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated March 21, 2006 No. 03-04-09/5,
• dated May 29, 2007 No. 03-07-09/9.

It is allowed to issue a “negative” invoice:

• Resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Moscow District dated September 11, 2008 No. KA-A41/8495-08-P,
• Federal Antimonopoly Service of the West Siberian District dated 02/07/2007 No. F04-9404/2006(30453-A45-26),
• FAS Moscow District dated June 25, 2008 No. KA-A40/5284-08.

Given this, the possibility of reducing the tax base by issuing a “negative” invoice will probably have to be proven in court. What to do with “negative” VAT? VAT on negative amount differences can be posted with negative entries in the Sales Books and Purchase Books based on the adjusted VAT amounts in the period when the negative amount difference arose. In other cases of adjustments to the initially accrued VAT, the accountant will need to make corrections during the periods of the business transaction with the submission of an updated VAT return. For example, if a tax is erroneously allocated, such an obligation arises on the basis of paragraph 1 of Article 81 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Discount When providing a discount, the moment of presentation of VAT is controversial and depends on the understanding of the term “discount” and on the terms of the agreement under the Civil Code. After all, the current legislation on taxes and fees does not define the concept of “discount”. Tax authority the discount can be regarded as a gratuitous transfer on the basis of Art. 572, 574 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Taxpayers have successfully disputed this opinion. Ministry of Finance of Russia interprets the discount as a change in the price of a previously delivered product with the need for adjustments to previous deliveries. In contrast to them FAS Moscow District in Resolution No. KA-A41/8495-08-P dated September 11, 2008, he concludes that the discount is a separate business transaction that does not coincide in time with the time of delivery of the goods. And that the primary documents must be prepared precisely during the discount period. What to do? To reduce tax risks, we recommend that instead of issuing “negative” invoices, you make changes to already issued invoices. At the same time, in all cases of making changes to previously issued invoices, except for taking into account negative amount differences, it will be less risky to make changes to the Purchase Book and Sales Book in previous periods with the submission of updated VAT returns for the corresponding periods.

Negative value and compensation: identifying the differences

Budgetary reimbursement - compensation of negative value added tax based on confirmation of the legality of the amounts of budget reimbursement of value added taxbased on payer verification results , including automatic budgetary compensation in the manner and according to the criteria defined in Section V of this Code (p.p. 14.1.18 NK ).

VAT reimbursement from the budget is carried out according to the procedure establishedArt. 200 NKU. According to clause 200.1 NKU the amount of tax subject to payment to the budget or budget reimbursement is determined as the difference between the amount of the tax liability and the amount of the tax credit of such a reporting tax period.

The right to budget compensation arises only whentwo periods in a row A negative VAT value is declared:

— in the first period in the declaration line 19 of the declaration is completed (negativedifference between the amount of tax liabilities and the amount of tax credit), as well as line 20.1 of the declaration - if the company has a tax debt, and/or line 20.2 (which is transferred to line 21.1 of the declaration of the next reporting period) - if there is no debt (or the amount of tax debt is less than the negative difference );

— in the second period line 22 is formed in the declaration. The amount that needs to be put towards budget reimbursement (in line 23.1 if the payer wants to receive it (Attachment 4 is filled in along the way) and/or line 23.2, if the taxpayer allows it ), will help determineappendix 2 to the VAT return. It deciphers the negative value according to the periods of its occurrence and tracks it actual paid in previous and reporting periods part. Budgetary compensation will be subject to the amount of the negative value of the previous period, in part equal to VAT amount, actually paid (and in cash) in previous and reporting periods (1) to suppliers of goods, services or (2) to the state budget, and (3) in the case of receiving services from a non-resident in the customs territory of Ukraine - the amount of tax obligations on services received from a non-resident (p.p. “a” clause 200.4 NKU ). The remainder of the negative VAT value after the budget refund (reflected in line 24 of the declaration) is included in the tax credit of the next tax period.

Often, payers who have a negative value for two periods in a row and who have decided to include the amount of budget compensation in the reduction of tax liabilities for the following periods (clause 200.6 NKU ), when filling out a VAT returnthey confuse the purpose of line 23.2 and line 24 , considering that there is no difference between them, and the amount that should be put on budget reimbursement on line 23.2 is mistakenly put on line 24. Difference really small and formally is as follows :

— line 23.2 , designed to reflectbudgetary compensation , which in the future will bereduce tax liabilities (tax payable)next periods , A

— line 2 4, designed forreflection of the remainder of the negative value, which was not subject to refund (the VAT payer has a negative value, but did not pay the VAT amount to the supplier; the VAT payer is not entitled to a refund, since it falls under restrictive criteria clause 200.5 NKU), which goes to next period tax credit .

In both cases, the amount of future tax is reduced.

In addition, many payers who have a negative value for two consecutive periods do not want to get involved with the budget reimbursement procedure (the reason for this is the tax authorities checking the legality and reliability of the amount of budgetary compensation declared in the declaration, which awaits the payer within 30 days following the deadline for filing such a declaration) and simply bypassing lines 23.1 and/or 23.2 of the declaration they transfer the entire negative balance (minus the amount tax of the reporting period) from line 22 to line 24. Formally, such actions areviolation . After all, the payerobliged to declare budgetary compensation , if there are legal grounds for this.

Let's look at the main differences between what a negative VAT value is and the amount of a budget VAT refund in the table.

Differences between negative value and budget

VAT refund

Negative meaning	Budgetary reimbursement
Moment of occurrence
Can be determined based on the results of one reporting period	Can only be determined when negative VAT is declared for two consecutive periods
Definition
Negative difference between the amount of tax liabilities and the amount of tax credit arising at the end of the reporting period	Part of the negative value of the previous VAT period within the amount of VAT actually paid in the previous and reporting tax periods
In what size is it reflected?
Reflected in full size	Reflected only in the amount of VAT actually paid
Place in the VAT return
During the period of occurrence— line 19, the indicator of which is further taken into account: — to reduce the existing tax debt that arose during previous periods (p. 20.1); — in the absence of a tax debt, is included in the tax credit next reporting (tax) period (page 20.2). In the next period: - from line 20.2 of the previous declaration is transferred to line 21.1 of the current declaration; — the balance of the negative balance not covered by the amount of tax payable in this period is transferred to page 22; - the remainder of a negative value that is not subject to reimbursement (the VAT payer has a negative value, but didn't pay the amount of VAT to the supplier or to the budget; The VAT payer is not entitled to a refund, since he is subject to restrictive criteria clause 200.5 NKU) moves to line 24. This amount is taken from column 5 of Appendix 2. In the next period, the indicator of this line is transferred to line 21.2, and a tax credit for the period will be generated as part of the amount from line 21	During the period of occurrence rights to budget compensation, the amount of compensation is declared on line 23 (fill out Appendix 3): - in line 23.1, if the payer wishes to receive it “to the payer’s rack at the bank”; At the same time, Appendix 4 is filled out; - in line 23.2, if the taxpayer allows it “In the case of changes in tax dues, taxes are due for the added tax period for the coming winter (tax) periods” in the case where the taxpayer has chosen the option of receiving a refund to reduce tax liabilities for future periods (line 23.2 is completed), the amount of such compensation is not reflected in the declarations for the following periods. However, it is necessary to track the amount of such compensation, since if a tax liability for payment appears in subsequent periods, then it can be offset against such compensation
Reflection in the personal account card
Not transferred to personal account card	The amount of line 23.2 of the VAT return is transferred to the taxpayer’s personal account card and in the future this amount takes part in repaying VAT tax obligations in the calendar order of occurrence of such overpayments (See EBNZ section 130.20.01)
What reduces
Included in the tax credit of the next reporting period and reduces the tax liability of the next period	Goes to pay off tax obligations in order of priority
If tax authorities have identified an understatement of tax liabilities
The remainder of the negative value does not count towards the additional accrued tax liability. The additional amount of tax, fine, and penalty will have to be paid in cash.	The declared amount of budget compensation (from line 23.2), listed on the personal account, can be offset against the amount of additional accrual, fines and penalties
Further accounting
Reflected in the following VAT returns	Not subject to reflection in the following VAT returns (see EBNZ in section 130.20.01)
Inspections by tax authorities
When submitting a VAT return with a negative value, no verification is carried out. When filing a VAT return with a negative value over 100 thousand UAH. taxpayer A documentary unscheduled inspection awaits(clause 78.1.8 NKU)	The amount claimed for reimbursement is subject to check: - within 30 calendar days following the deadline for receiving a tax return, the tax authority will conduct desk audit the data stated in it ( clause 200.10); - upon detection sufficient grounds, indicating that the calculation of the amount of budget compensation was made in violation of tax laws, over the next 30 calendar days(following the end of the desk audit), the tax authority has the right to conduct unscheduled documentary inspection payer to determine the accuracy of the accrual of the amount of budget compensation. Sufficient grounds are listed in List No. 1238
When deregistered as a VAT payer
The remainder of the negative value (line 24) is lost	The budgetary compensation declared in line 23.1 will be received, in line 23.2 it will disappear

Reflection of unpaid compensation

A negative amount that was not reimbursed in the current period (for example, due to the fact that it was not paid to the supplier) does not disappear, but is transferred to the following periods. In the current period declaration itreflected in line 24 and transferred exactly to line 21.2 of the declaration of the next period .

In the next period, everything will depend on the payments of the previous and reporting periods: either this amount falls into the budget refund, or again becomes a “negative balance” that does not fall under the budget refund and is transferred to the tax credit of the next period. In the second case, it will again move from line 24 to line 21.2 of the declaration for the next period.

In Appendix 2, column 5 discloses information about the remaining unpaid (by period) balances of a negative value, which, when making payments, may become a refund from the taxpayer in the future. Such amounts have the right to participate in the calculation of the refund next period. In this regard, in this case, when filling out Appendix 2 for the current reporting period in its columns 2 and 3carry respectively values ​​from columns 2 and 5 applications 2 for the previous reporting period , adjusting them (taking into account possible filling in the current declaration) to the indicators of lines 18, 21.1, 21.3, i.e., in particular:

- reducing the remainder of the negative value (in the chronological order of its occurrence) by the indicator of line 18 (if one, of course, is declared in the current declaration)

- increasing the balance of the negative value (by adding (adding) to it a “minus” that arose in the previous reporting period), if in the current declaration, for example, completed lines 21.1, 21.3 appear.

What are the consequences of not reflecting paid compensation?

IN clause 200.6 it is possible for the payer to choose the direction of the refund (in whole or in part): to the current account or to reduce tax liabilities for the next reporting periods. At the same time, inArt. 200 NKU It is not mentioned that the payer has the right to claim or not claim budgetary reimbursement.

Consequently, the payer is formally obliged to declare a budget reimbursement if there are legal grounds for this. Tax authorities take a similar position in the consultations given in the EBNZ in section 130.20.01.

If the payer does not do this, for example, he mistakenly believes that the VAT amount has not been paid to suppliers(in other words, if, in the presence of payments the VAT payer will not fill out line 23 of the declaration, but will transfer the negative value from line 22 to line 24 of the declaration), and such a fact will be discovered by tax authorities during a desk or documentary audit, then it is considered that the taxpayer voluntarily refuses to receive such an understatement amount as budget compensation, and takes it into account in reducing VAT liabilities in the following tax periods (p.p. “a” clause 200.14 NKU ). That is, the payer will no longer be able to receive such an amount into the current account, but such an amount will reduce the amount of VAT that will need to be paid to the budget in subsequent periods.

Penalties for such violations inNKU are not provided for, although tax authorities may regard it as a violation of the procedure for maintaining tax accounting, for which administrative liability is provided in accordance with Art. 163 1 KUoAP in the amount from 85 to 170 UAH.

IN p.p. 4.6.7 Order No. 1492 It was determined that line 21.3 of the declaration is provided to reflect an increase or decrease in the balance of the negative value, which, after budgetary compensation, is included in the tax credit of the next tax period (line 24 of the declaration) based on the results of a desk or documentary audit.

Tax authorities in this case believe (see EBNZ in section 130.20.01) that since the amount of underestimated budget compensation cannot be reflected either in line 23.1 or in line 23.2 of the declaration, then accordingly the value of line 24 of the declaration, which with the sign “-” is reflected in line 21.3 of the declaration in the tax period in which the notification-decision in Form B2 was received. The specified amount of understated budget compensation is subject to transfer to the personal account card of the tax payer and in the future this amount (subject to confirmation of its declaration by a documentary check) takes part in the repayment of VAT tax obligations of such a taxpayer in the calendar order of occurrence of such overpayments.

If during the audit no other violations of tax accounting are established, except for an understatement of the amount of budget reimbursement, then these changes in tax reporting cannot lead to additional accrual of tax liabilities for the payer based on the results of such an audit (see. letter of the State Tax Administration of September 19, 2007 No. 18727/7/16-1517 // “Taxes and Accounting”, 2007, No. 83). In theory, there should now be a similar approach when identifying understatement of budget reimbursement.

What is the danger of a negative value?

According to p.p. 78.1.8 NKU , if the payerdeclaration submitted , in which value added tax is claimed for reimbursement from the budget, if there are grounds for verification specified insection V NKU, and/or with a negative value for value added tax , which amounts tomore than 100 thousand hryvnia , then in relation to such a payera documentary unscheduled inspection is carried out .

That is VAT payer,Those who declare a negative value of more than 100 thousand UAH are threatened with an unscheduled documentary inspection.

An unscheduled documentary inspection on the grounds defined in this subclause is carried out solely on the legality of the declaration of the value added tax claimed for reimbursement from the budget and/or on the negative value of the value added tax amounting to more than 100 thousand UAH.

The fact that the presence of documented information about the payer’s violation of tax legislation in accordance withclause 78.1 NKU is the basis for conducting an unscheduled documentary audit of the VAT payer, as indicated inclause 7 of List No. 1238 .

Unscheduled on-site inspections carried out in the event of declaration by the taxpayer of the VAT claimed for reimbursement from the budget and/or the negative value of VAT amounting to more than 100 thousand UAH., if there are sufficient grounds indicating that the calculation of the amount of budget compensation was carried out in violation of tax legislation, according toclause 200.11 NKU during 30 calendar days following the deadline for conducting a desk audit (remember that a desk audit of the data declared in the VAT return is carried out within 30 calendar days following the deadline for receiving such a declaration).

Regarding the possibility non-recognition by tax authorities of a declaration with a “minus” (with a declared negative value for VAT, then it is worth noting the following: in Appendix 6 to Method Recommendations No. 516 a complete list of reason codes is provided for which a taxpayer may be refused recognition of reporting. Among them there is no such reason as the presence of a negative VAT value. Accordingly, tax authorities do not have the right not to recognize such a declaration.

It happens that when submitting a “minus” VAT return, the tax authorities insist on refilling it, threatening with the stamp “CANCELED, forwarded about the possibility of ignorance.” Such a stamp indicates automatic non-recognition of tax reporting (p.p. 4.14.3 Recommendation Method No. 516 ). In this case, the requirement to fill out a VAT return with a positive indicator, or in case of refusal to refill, affixing the stamp “CANCELED, forwarded about the possibility of ignorance” is illegal.

Refusal official of the State Tax Serviceaccept tax return and their requirement in relation to such a declaration of changes in indicators, reduction or cancellation of the negative value of taxation objects, amounts of budget refunds, illegal increase in tax liabilitiesprohibited (cm. letter of the State Tax Service of March 16, 2012 No. 7470/7/15-1217 us. 46 of this issue).

How to get away from negative values

To avoid problems that may arise when submitting a declaration with a negative value, and also to avoid an unscheduled on-site inspection, which may occur if a negative value is declared in the amount of 100 thousand UAH. and avoid the amount of negative VAT value, the taxpayer can temporarily “hide” the negative value that may emerge in the reporting period. For this we can recommend:

(1) hold back tax invoices received during the reporting period with a significant amount of VAT. That is, deliberately not including in the tax credit (say, by mistake) the amount of VAT on such tax invoices. And then, when the negative value decreases slightly (is covered by the resulting tax obligations), the enterprise may well restore the tax invoices “hidden” in this way. Reinstatement of tax credit forsuch a tax invoice should already be regarded asbug fix , applying in this case accordingly the mechanism for correcting errors provided for by law - by submitting a clarifying calculation. The main thing is not to forget about them and restore such tax invoices no later than 365 days from the date of their issue. After all, as providedpara. 3 clause 198.6 NKU, if the taxpayer did not include the amount of VAT in the tax credit in the corresponding tax period on the basisreceived tax invoices , such right is retained by him for365 calendar days from the date of their discharge .

Erroneously not taken into account tax invoices during the “recovery” period are subject to reflection in section II of the Register of issued and received tax invoices, and in column 5 it is marked “PNU”, i.e. a note is made that such tax invoices are reflected in the clarifying calculation (clause 9.4 of Order No. 1002 ). In addition, such tax invoices are reflected accordingly andin the bottom line “These are included up to clarifying breakdowns for the winter period” . Moreover, according to tax authorities (see EBNZ in section 130.23), this line contains the number of entries corresponding to the number of tax invoices included in the adjusting calculation for the reporting period being corrected. Let us recall that at present, when correcting errors, it is necessary to draw up and submit a clarifying VAT calculation, either as a separate document, or as an appendix to the current declaration. For details on filling out the clarifying calculation for self-correction, see the article “Filling out the clarifying calculation for VAT” // “Taxes and Accounting”, 2011, No. 46, p. 26;

2) erroneously accrue additional tax liabilities for VAT , followed by error correction.

Here is a unique collection of all positions of the Ministry of Finance and the Federal Tax Service on value added tax for the last two-plus years: it includes all positions starting from July 2009. Today, disputes about VAT remain one of the most common. And although the positions of the above authorities, reflected in their letters, are not precedents or mandatory rules, tax authorities are guided by them in practice. Taxpayers, in some cases, can use these letters to defend their positions without going to court. This reference book, essential for any tax specialist, allows you to find the right argument in no more than two minutes: unlike any other publications, all conclusions are strictly structured by topic and issue and presented in clear formulations. The basis for the collection was Timothy's database, which has earned the highest ratings from professionals. A guide to legal positions...

The book describes methods for calculating and paying VAT, taking into account the main changes in tax legislation that came into force in 2007. Currently, there is a fundamentally new procedure for refunding VAT under one general declaration, including transactions subject to VAT at a zero rate. New edition of paragraph 4 of Art. 168 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation provides for the procedure for paying VAT on a separate payment order when carrying out barter transactions, offsetting mutual claims and settlements with securities, and those taxpayers who use non-cash forms of payment should be careful about such transactions. The most pressing problems related to the calculation of VAT are discussed in detail: the procedure for exemption from the duties of a taxpayer; practice of applying certain tax benefits; procedure for fulfilling the duties of a tax agent; VAT refund for export; the procedure for using invoices in various business situations. Practical...

You have in your hands an unusual publication that contains basic information in four areas necessary for the successful work of an accountant: basics of accounting, accounting, taxation, “1C: Accounting”. You can start self-preparation from scratch, since the book includes a section on the basics of accounting with key concepts, categories and accounting techniques. In the “Accounting” section, methods, entries, examples and typical situations in all areas of accounting for commercial organizations are given in a concise and accessible form. The "Taxes" section contains information about taxpayers, objects of taxation, tax rates and payment procedures for all taxes provided for by the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, taking into account the latest changes. A practical example of calculation is provided for each tax. The section "1C: Accounting" version 8.1 provides a description of the basic principles and algorithms of action in the most popular today for accountants, managers and...

The textbook provides the basics of public finance, finance of organizations (enterprises), accounting and reporting, and also discusses problems related to financial management, organization of accounting and taxation. This knowledge will help executives and managers better interact with their financiers and accountants, quickly and carefully make management decisions based on an understanding of the processes occurring in the organization’s finances. On a scientific and practical level, current issues of organizing finances at an enterprise, the formation of financial resources, their distribution and use, and the organization of accounting are resolved. Using examples, methods of planning and forecasting the financial results of the economic activities of organizations are studied. Accounting is presented to the extent necessary for each manager, which will allow him to read the balance sheet and use accounting data for planning and...

A modern accountant must have a wide range of diverse knowledge. These are mainly accounting, taxation, auditing. And, of course, accounting is now unthinkable without automation tools. The peculiarity of accounting work is the need to constantly monitor changes in legislation and master new areas of accounting. The book contains all the basic information that may be useful to an accountant. In it the reader will find the latest rules and regulations, calculation methods and tax rates. This is a real consultant in solving any situations! Changes related to the abolition of the unified social tax introduced by Federal Law No. 212-FZ of July 24, 2009 and other tax news are taken into account. The book contains changes and additions as of 01/01/2010. The book is intended to help practicing accountants, students, students of retraining and advanced training courses, and teachers.

Professional accountant consultant as amended on 01/01/2009. Accounting theory. Accounting. Taxation. Audit. System "1C:Enterprise" A modern accountant must have a wide range of diverse knowledge. These are mainly accounting, taxation, auditing. And, of course, accounting is now unthinkable without automation tools. The peculiarity of accounting work is the need to constantly monitor changes in legislation and master new areas of accounting. The book contains all the basic information that may be useful to an accountant. In it the reader will find the latest rules and regulations, calculation methods and tax rates. This is a real consultant in solving any situations! The book is intended to help practicing accountants, students, students of retraining and advanced training courses, and teachers.

The book is addressed to individual entrepreneurs, small businessmen, and managers of small firms. The peculiarity of the book is that studying it will allow an entrepreneur to conduct accounting independently, even without special training, in other words, to save money on an accountant. The first chapter of the book is devoted to the theoretical aspects of accounting in small businesses: it talks about meters and accounting objects, features of setting up accounting processes in small businesses, etc., in a language understandable to a “dummie.” The next few chapters contain a description of software aimed at individual entrepreneurs.

It is not always possible to reduce VAT for a negative amount difference

What has changed in work: If your company has a buyer in That is, and he transferred rubles in the next quarter after shipment, it will not be possible to adjust the VAT base for negative differences.

They explained in what cases it will be possible to adjust the VAT tax base taking into account negative amount differences. We are talking about those differences that arise when the price of goods under the contract is expressed in conventional units, and the buyer pays in rubles. Most often, the exchange rate on the day of payment differs from what it was on the date of shipment. And if it has decreased, the seller will receive less than the expected amount from the buyer. Hence the question: is it possible to reduce the amount of VAT accrued for payment to the budget?

It’s good if shipment and payment occurred in the same quarter. Then all deviations in the amount of revenue can be taken into account in the tax base for VAT. This is directly stated in paragraph 4 of Article 166 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. But when the buyer transfers money already in the quarter following the one in which he received the goods, it is dangerous to adjust the tax amount. In any case, the Russian Ministry of Finance is convinced that there are no legal grounds for the recalculation (see letter dated May 16, 2011 No. 03-07-11/127).

Of course, the officials' conclusion is not indisputable. After all, the supplier forms the VAT base based on the prices that appear in the contract with the buyer. And when the cost of a product is expressed in y. That is, the seller most often learns about the real amount of revenue only on the day of payment. The size of the tax base determined during the shipment period is conditional. And by the way, this was recognized by the judges of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation in resolution dated February 17, 2009 No. 9181/08. It turns out that the tax base can be reduced by a negative difference, and a VAT “clarification” can be submitted to the inspectorate for the quarter in which the shipment took place. However, by choosing this approach, disputes with auditors, alas, cannot be avoided.

The article was published in the magazine "Glavbukh" No. 13, 2011