Tax, customs, rent, land purchase benefits and... What else do residents of special economic zones receive?

I am Pavel Patrikeev, co-founder of the legal service for entrepreneurs in the IT and e-commerce sector "Patrikeev and Partners" and I will tell you what preferences SEZ residents receive and what is needed to become one of them.

Special Economic Zones: Are the Privileges Real?

Information about SEZs is not classified as secret, but for some reason they are still treated with caution. But free economic zones open up new opportunities for business development and allow you to save on taxes in a completely legal way. Still wondering why your company needs this? Or would you like to study the issue in more detail? Let's take things in order.

SEZs (special economic zones) or FEZs (free economic zones), in simple terms, are special territories with a special legal status and a preferential regime for entrepreneurial activity.

Due to this, investments are attracted to the region declared a SEZ, and it is actively developing, as is the business that has taken advantage of the offered benefits.

What's the catch then? You will ask and you will be right. After all, to obtain the status of a resident of a special economic zone, it is necessary to fulfill a number of conditions. Each of the SEZs has its own, as well as a list of benefits. All issues related to activities in free zones are regulated by the Federal Law "On Special Economic Zones in the Russian Federation" dated July 22, 2005 No. 116-FZ.

In general terms, the features of the work can be reduced to the following points:

• a resident cannot have branches and representative offices outside the SEZ;
• loss of resident status deprives of benefits, but allows work within the zone;
• leave the SEZ by agreement of the parties or through the court in case of violations.

And the cherry on the cake is the limited validity period of the special legal status! It is set for only 49 years and is not subject to renewal. This is enshrined in law.

And do not forget that the SEZ can be closed ahead of time if within 3 years after opening:

• not a single contract with a business has been concluded;
• residents do not carry out the declared activities.

And also in the case when, based on the results of the first 5 years, the zone is recognized as ineffective. Special reasons can also lead to closure:

• environmental protection;
• protection of human life;
• protection of cultural values;
• ensuring state security, etc.

So what exactly does a business that enters the SEZ get? It directly depends on the zone, but in general the preferences look like this:

• quick start;
• savings on taxes, rent and duties;
• reduction in expenses on the acquisition of assets and servicing loans.

Therefore, in any case, entering a free zone brings many advantages!

Today, there are 53 SEZs of various focus areas in the country, and some of the most interesting for entrepreneurs are technology-implementation ones. They were opened with the aim of developing innovative activities and I will consider each of the 7 in detail.

Innopolis

It is included in the ecosystem of the city of Innopolis and is focused on the implementation of projects in such areas as:

• nanotechnology;
• biotechnology;
• electronic technology;
• medical technology;
• information and communication technology.

Conditions for potential residents:

• registration of individual entrepreneurs/legal entities within the Verkhneuslonsky or Laishevsky districts of Tatarstan with further work in Innopolis;
• the main activity of the company is described as technology implementation.

Benefits for resident:

• 2% tax for companies on the general taxation system;
• 1% for those working on the simplified taxation system Income;
• 5% for companies on the simplified taxation system Income minus expenses;
• 0% on property, transport and land.

Technopolis "Moscow"

The SEZ was created in 2005 and is one of the most dynamically developing at the moment.

Conditions for potential residents:

• registration of individual entrepreneurs/legal entities within the territorial boundaries of the zone;
• absence of representative offices, branches and divisions outside the SEZ;
• absence of the right to transfer rights and obligations for activities to third parties;
• agreement on industrial and production or technical and implementation activities;
• work in accordance with the agreement.

Economic conditions are listed separately. For parks marked Greenfield — land on which the resident creates infrastructure at his own discretion:

• investments over 5 years for each hectare of at least 382,571,990 rubles;
• average salary of employees 90,870 rubles;
• annual revenue from each hectare of 478,530,641 rubles.

For Brownfield parks, where there is already a ready-made infrastructure, other requirements:

• investments for each m² of land over 5 years 68,181 rubles;
• average salary 90,870 rubles;
• annual revenue from each m² of land 316,916 rubles.

Benefits for residents:

• 0% — VAT on imported goods, customs duties, transport tax and for 10 years on property/land;
• 2% income tax.

Dubna

An open zone with a wide range of areas for activity: nanotechnology, nuclear physics technologies, composite materials and others.

Conditions for potential residents:

• coordination of a package of documents with the Management Company of the TVT SEZ "Dubna";
• submission of papers to the Ministry of Investment, Industry and Science of the Moscow Region;
• defense of the project at the Expert Council under the Government of the Moscow Region.

Benefits for a resident:

• 0% — on land and transport (5 years), on profit to the regional budget (8 years), on property (10 years), customs duties and VAT;
• 1% of the cadastral value (land lease);
• 15% of the cadastral value when buying out land.

There is also a special price for office lease — from 1294.7 RUB/m².

Saint Petersburg

A site intended for the implementation of large projects.

Conditions for potential residents:

• registration of individual entrepreneurs/legal entities within the boundaries of the special zone;
• conducting technology implementation activities;
• drawing up an application and forming documents on its basis for submission to the Committee on Industrial Policy, Innovation and Trade;
• defending the application at the Expert Council of the SEZ;
• signing an agreement.

Benefits for a resident:

• 2% income tax (increases gradually after 10 tax periods);
• 0% — property tax (10 years after registration), land tax (5 years after receiving the right of ownership), transport tax (within 5 years);
• STZ regime;
• 2% of the cadastral value per year for land lease;
• 25% of the cadastral value when buying out a plot.

A special rate of insurance premiums is provided for companies in the IT segment — 7.6%.

Tomsk

The open zone is focused on creating new products and technologies for the global market.

Conditions for potential residents:

• company registration within the city;
• absence of branches and representative offices outside the zone;
• exclusion of such activities as development of mineral deposits, production and processing of excisable goods.

Separate economic requirements have been introduced for the profile direction. Participants in the industrial and production profile must ensure investments in the amount of 120 million rubles. There is no minimum limit for other profiles.

Benefits for a resident:

• 0% — customs duties, property/transport/land tax;
• 7-15.5% income tax (tied to residency periods);
• 5% tax for those working on the simplified tax system.

IT companies provide contributions to social funds in the amount of 7.6%, SMEs — 15%.

Istok

Optimal zone for research activities, scientific developments, creation of prototypes and trial batches of products labeled "high-tech"

Conditions for potential residents:

• company registration in Fryazino;
• no representative offices or branches outside the zone;
• application submission;
• approval of the Istok SEZ and the expert council under the Moscow Region government;
• signing an agreement.

Benefits for a resident:

• 0-13.5% income tax to the regional budget (the rate is tied to the residency period);
• 2% income tax to the federal budget;
• 0% — customs duties, VAT, property tax (10 years), transport (5 years), land (5 years).

Almaz (Saratov region)

High-tech cluster focused on the needs of the defense industry complex of the Russian Federation and other industries.

Conditions for potential residents:

• registration of individual entrepreneurs / legal entities in the cities of Saratov, Engels, Balakovo;
• absence of branches and representative offices outside the SEZ;
• submission and approval of an application in the SEZ;
• submission of a business plan to the Ministry of Economic Development of the Saratov Region;
• signing an agreement.

Benefits for a resident:

• 0-13.5% income tax for companies operating on the OSNO, to the regional budget (the rate is tied to the period of residence);
• 2% income tax when working on the OSNO to the federal budget;
• 2% for companies on the Simplified Tax System Income (the rate is limited to 2026);
• 7% for organizations on the Simplified Tax System Income minus expenses (the rate is limited to 2026);
• 0% - customs duties, VAT on property (10 years) and for 5 years on transport/land.

Refusal more than once

How often are companies denied residency? I do not keep such statistics, but I have cases of successful entry into the SEZ and I can say that most often the reason for refusal is trivial errors resulting from typos, ill-conceived business plans, lack of market analysis, etc.