Vladimir Putin has signed a decree suspending double tax treaties with 38 “unfriendly” countries.
Tax agreements with Poland, the US, South Korea, Sweden, Luxembourg, Romania, Bulgaria, the UK, Hungary, Ireland, Slovakia, Albania, Belgium, Slovenia, Croatia, Canada, Switzerland, Montenegro, Czechia, Denmark, Italy, Finland, Germany, France, Macedonia, Cyprus, Spain, Lithuania, Iceland, Portugal, Austria, Greece, New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Malta and Japan will be waived.
The Russian president also ordered respective bills to be introduced to the State Duma. His decree comes into force starting today.
In March, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs suggested that Putin cancel double taxation agreements with “unfriendly” countries. The agencies claimed that Western countries were imposing unilateral sanctions on Russia, which “is a violation of international law.”
Double tax treaties allow taxpayers not to pay taxes on the same income to several states at once when working abroad. As of 2023, Russia has tax treaties with 78 countries.