Deposit tax: how it will work and how much you have to pay

How did the tax on deposits appear?

At the end of March, President Vladimir Putin addressed the Russians for the first time with a message about restrictions related to the spread of the coronavirus. But the head of state spoke not only about the pandemic. Among other things, he announced the introduction of a tax on interest on deposits, which will be 13%.

Initially, the message about the new law sounded as if the innovation would affect only those who have more than one million in their accounts. In fact, everything is somewhat more complicated. We figure out what awaits the depositors.

How will the tax on deposits be calculated?

Income from deposits is taxed. And whether you have to pay it will depend not on the amount of money in the account, but on how much you earned on it. The tax is paid on that part of the income that exceeds the figure obtained by the formula:

Income Threshold = 1 million × key rate in effect on January 1 of the year for which tax is paid.

Now the key rate is 4.25%. Let's say it persists in the future. Then the threshold figure dividing the income from which tax should and should not be paid will be:

Income threshold = 1 million × 4, 25% = 42, 5 thousand rubles.

If the annual income from the account does not exceed this amount, you will not have to pay anything. If it is higher, then the difference should be 13%. For example, you were charged 50 thousand in the form of interest. The state will have to pay:

Deposit tax = (50,000 - 42,500) × 13% = 975 rubles.

At the same time, it is not so important whether you have more or less a million in your account. It all depends only on income.

For example, you put 1.2 million on a deposit at 3.32% (weighted average rate for September 2020 according to the Central Bank). In 12 months you will earn 40,442 rubles, and you will not have to pay tax. But if you put 800 thousand at 6%, then you will earn 49 331 rubles on this and will have to pay 888 rubles to the state.

If there are several deposits, then it is necessary to summarize the income from all and compare with the threshold. For example, you have three deposits. From one in a year you received 13 thousand, from the other - 20 thousand, from the third - 40 thousand. In total, this is 73 thousand, the threshold is exceeded by 30, 5 thousand.

The tax is not levied on ruble deposits, the rate for which does not exceed 1% during the year.

How income will be recorded

Income earned during the year will be taxed. And the date of its receipt is important here.

For example, you opened a deposit in 2020, interest on which is calculated every month. In this case, when calculating the tax base, only the accruals of 2021 will be taken into account. But if in 2018 you opened a deposit for three years with a lump sum payment of income at the end of the term, then the amount for this entire period will be included in the calculations.

The Central Bank is now proposing to amend the law in order to remove income received from such deposits from taxation until 2021. But this is just an idea so far. However, there is still time to implement it.

How the tax on deposits in foreign currency is calculated

If the contribution is made in foreign currency, then the amount of income will be recalculated into rubles at the exchange rate that is valid on the day it is received. This does not take into account how much you earned due to the change in the exchange rate difference.

Let's say you invested an amount that in ruble terms is one million. But by the time you take the money, it already costs 1.2 million rubles. These 200 thousand are not taxed.

In this case, only the percentages will be calculated. For example, you have a deposit in dollars, and for the year you earned $ 300 in percent. These $ 300 will be converted into rubles at the exchange rate for the day the bank pays you income. And then it will become clear whether you need to pay tax and how much.

When will the tax on deposits start to apply?

The corresponding provision of the law takes effect from January 1, 2021. That is, for the first time the tax will need to be paid in 2022, but on the income that you receive in 2021.

How to pay tax on deposits

The mechanism for calculating and paying the tax will be as follows. By February 1 of the year following the reporting year, banks will transfer information on depositors' income to the tax authorities.

The FTS will independently calculate how much you have to pay and will send you an appropriate notification. It will come in electronic form to your personal account on the tax website, if you have one, or by mail. You must receive it no later than October 30th. The tax must be paid before December 1.

Citizens whose deposits are subject to the tax will receive the first notifications by October 30, 2022. Accordingly, the money will have to be transferred until December 1, 2022. How exactly is not yet entirely clear. But most likely, in the same way as property taxes, that is, through a personal account, on a tax website, in a bank or through a payment terminal.