The key facts

  • Passive income is proposed to be taxed at rates of 13–22% under the general progressive scale instead of the current 13–15%
  • The Finance Ministry estimates the number affected at no more than 6% of the population, or 4 million citizens
  • For deposits, the non-taxable threshold of 1 million rubles, adjusted for the Central Bank rate, will be preserved

The essence of the amendment

The State Duma passed a bill in its first reading, providing for the inclusion of Russians' passive income in the main personal income tax base. The document was submitted by the Russian government as part of the budget package and is described as a set of tax innovations aimed at increasing the resilience of the budget system. Gazeta.Ru reports this.

What changes for taxpayers

Currently, passive income — dividends, interest on deposits, income from transactions with securities and digital rights, from the sale of property and equity stakes, under insurance and gift agreements, and others — is taxed at rates of 13–15%. The bill proposes applying a general progressive scale of 13–22% to it. In practice, this means that large passive income will be taxed at the same elevated rates as the main tax base, rather than under a separate preferential scale.

Who will be affected and which benefits remain

According to the Russian Finance Ministry's explanation, the measure will affect no more than 6% of the population, that is, about 4 million citizens. At the same time, as the outlet notes, rates for the monetary allowances of SVO participants and northern allowances will remain at 13–15%, and for deposits the non-taxable threshold of 1 million rubles, adjusted for the Central Bank of Russia's key rate, will be preserved. Thus, even with interest on deposits included in the general base, the bill does not abolish the non-taxable minimum mechanism for deposits itself.

Context of the budget package

On October 29, the State Duma also passed in its first reading the draft federal budget for 2027 and the planning period of 2028–2029. The tax bill is being considered as part of this package. After the first reading, the document still has to pass the remaining readings, so the final parameters for taxing passive income may change — at this point, sources report only support for the initial version.