Tax registration of foreigners in 2023: procedure, list of documents, and terms of registration

Publication date/update: 26.02.2023

Foreigners coming to Russia for employment are required to register with the tax authority at their place of residence or stay. The document confirming the registration of a foreign citizen with the tax office is the TIN. It confirms the legality of the activities of foreigners in the Russian Federation and allows them to exercise their rights and interact with government authorities.

In this article, we will tell you how foreign citizens can obtain a TIN, what documents need to be submitted to the tax authority, and how long the registration procedure takes.

Foreign citizens who have immigrated to Russia and want to obtain a Tax Identification Number must personally contact the Federal Tax Service, submit an electronic application on the State Services portal, or send documents by registered mail.

Foreigners can also submit an application to the tax office through the Federal Migration Service. If for some reason a citizen of a foreign state cannot register for tax purposes on his own, this can be done by third parties based on a notarized power of attorney.

Tax registration for foreign citizens is free of charge, and the procedure does not differ from that which is carried out by individuals – citizens of Russia. The difference lies only in the package of documents required to obtain a TIN.

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The list of documents for registering a foreigner with the tax authority is available on the website of the Federal Tax Service. The mandatory documents that must be provided by a foreign citizen to obtain a TIN include:

a standard application;

an identity document.

Additionally, one of the following documents must be submitted:

a residence permit with the mark of registration at the place of residence;

a migration card with the mark of migration registration body;

a detachable part of the arrival notification, certified by the seal of the Federal Migration Service;

All documents in a foreign language must be translated by a specialist certified by an association of translators or other authorized organizations. All documents must also be copied and certified by a notary.

The term for issuing a certificate of registration with the tax authority does not exceed five working days from the date of application. After assigning a Tax Identification Number, a foreign citizen is considered officially registered with the Tax Service of Russia and can be employed and pay taxes.

The tax service notifies the applicant that the document is ready for collection via SMS and sends an official notification by Russian post to the address indicated in the application. You can pick up the certificate at the same tax service department where you submitted documents for its receipt.

The absence of a TIN is not a basis for refusing employment. If a foreign citizen, when applying for a job in a Russian company (or a branch of a foreign enterprise operating in Russia), does not have a TIN, the employer is obliged to independently register him with the tax authority. This obligation is enshrined in Federal Law No. 325 of September 29, 2019.

When paying wages to a foreign employee, the company must assess income tax and report to the tax office at its location. Within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the report, the tax office assigns a TIN to a foreign citizen and notifies the company about it. After receiving the notification, the employer is obliged to send it to the employee no later than five days and report this to the tax office.

A Tax Identification Number is assigned once and for all. The TIN is retained by its owner as long as he or his employer assesses and pays taxes on the income received. If tax deductions are not received by the budget within three years, the Federal Tax Service deregisters the foreign citizen. If after a while the foreigner returns to Russia, the TIN will need to be obtained again.

A foreign citizen has the right to apply to the nearest multifunctional center for registration with the tax office. The term for the provision of the service is seven to ten days since it can take from two to five days to move documents between the MFC and the Federal Tax Service.

Registering with the tax authority is recommended for all foreigners staying in Russia for a long time (except for tourists). TIN may be needed not only when receiving income from work, but also, for example, when buying/selling movable and immovable property.

You can find out your TIN on the website of the Federal Tax Service. For this, go to the appropriate tab, agree to the processing of personal data, and fill in the form fields. If an identification number has already been assigned, the system will automatically issue it. You can get a duplicate of the document at the nearest tax office.

In the absence of a TIN, a foreign citizen can only make the first payment for a patent. For subsequent payments, the TIN is mandatory.