Russia’s finance minister said the authorities “didn’t go too far” with the tax increase, even though there was such a risk

Russia’s finance minister said the authorities “didn’t go too far” with the tax increase, even though there was such a risk

The Russian government “didn’t go too far” with taxes, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said.

In his opinion, this is “eloquently” demonstrated by the Russian budget execution figures for the first five months of 2026.

There were risks that we might go too far somewhere. No, we didn’t.

In Russia, starting January 1, 2026, the value-added tax (VAT) rose from 20% to 22%. In addition, the income threshold allowing use of the simplified taxation system was changed.

Russian entrepreneurs have repeatedly complained that working became significantly more difficult after the new rules came into force.

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