Digital tax: an instructive foreign experience

Abstract

The article is meant to analyze current problems and prospects for the development of effective tax policy as part of digital transformation of Russian economy. Introduction of a digital tax and the consequences of the digital tax reforms in the EU, the USA and OECD countries are highlighted. The necessity of qualitative transformation of the tax system of the Russian Federation in response to modern challenges is substantiated, taking into account the changes of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation adopted at the end of July 2020. The authors suggested their own concept of a digital tax and the prospects for its adoption in Russia, and consider it inappropriate to impose taxes on Internet users who do not use the Internet for business. Today, the main focus should be made on creating and testing effective technologies that allow on-line monitoring the tax basis of digital economy entities, taking into account the cross-border movement or use of digital products (goods and services). In addition, it would be extremely important to provide for a potential tax exemption for part of the profits of international ICT companies that are received on the territory of the Russian Federation and reinvested in joint with Russian companies projects in the high-tech for civil purposes area.