Lukashenka signed decree on “social parasites”

The unemployed are to pay a charge equal to 20 basic units, otherwise they are to be arrested.

On April 2 Alyaksandr Lukashenka signed a decree #3 On Prevention of Social Parasitism. The decree comes into force right after it is officially published, and it is to be applied to relations which started since January 1, 2015, charter97.org was informed by his press-service.

It was noted, that the legal act “has been published in order to stimulate employment of citizens who are capable to work, and to guarantee that they would fulfill their constitutional obligation to participate in financing of public spending.”

The decree makes it an obligation for citizens of Belarus, foreign citizens and stateless persons permanently residing in the country, who are not taking part in financing of state spending or who had been taking part in this financing for less than 183 calendar days in the year that just ended, to pay a charge of 20 basic units.

Citizens, who are employed for 183 or more calendar days or engaged in other kinds of activities specified by the decree (entrepreneur activities, craft activity, creative work, activities of a lawyer, a notarial activities, services in the sphere of rural tourism, execution of work under civil contracts, full-time education), are recognized as persons participating in financing of state spending, and consequently, are freed from paying the charge.

The periods of raising a child under 7, a disabled child under 18, three or more underage children are also to be considered as participation in financing of state spending.

The decree has an exhaustive list of categories of citizens who are exempted from the charge. In particular, they are legally incompetent citizens, disabled persons, people under 18, women aged 55+, men aged 60+, and some other categories of citizens.

The sum of the charge which is to be paid, is reduced by sums of taxes paid in the period of taxation that has expired (an income tax on individuals, a single tax on individual entrepreneurs and other individuals, a tax under a simplified system of taxation).

The charge is to be paid on or prior to November of the year which follows the tax period which has ended, in accordance with the notice of the tax authority.

At the same time, in order to stimulate charge payers to pay it independently, there is an option of reducing the sum by 10% in case a payer offers information about payment in the period since August 1 of the current tax period till May 31 of the year that follows the tax period that expired. In this case the charge is to be paid prior to or on July 1 of the year which follows the tax period that expired.

Non-payment or underpayment of the charge is to lead to a fine of 2 to 4 basic units, or an administrative arrest with an obligatory community service.

The decree comes into force after its official publication, and is to be applied to civil relations which started since January 1, 2015.