The Presidium of the Government of the Russian Federation at its meeting on May 26, 2008 made the following decisions on the items on its agenda.

1. On the Guidelines of the Tax Policy for 2009 and for the Planning Period 2010 and 2011 and Draft Federal Laws Aimed at Their Implementation.

The meeting took note of the report of the Russian Finance Ministry on the above issue.

It approved the main guidelines of the tax policy for 2009 and for the planning period 2010 and 2011 presented by the Finance Ministry of Russia.

The Finance Ministry of Russia jointly with the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia and other federal executive power bodies concerned have been instructed to finalise the draft guidelines of the tax policy for 2009 and the for the planning period 2010 and 2011 in the light of the discussions held, paying particular attention to:

• adjusting the timeframe for additional measures to stimulate research and development;
• implementing the measures aimed at increasing oil production;
• introducing accelerated amortisation of certain groups of companies' basic assets;
• adjusting the procedure of the use of special tax regimes including exercise of the right to pay a single agricultural tax by agricultural producers that have branches and representative offices;
• improving taxation to create favourable conditions for stock market participants;
• stimulating energy saving and energy efficiency;
• more effective control of transfer pricing.

The finalised draft of the guidelines of the tax policy for 2009 and for the planning period 2010 and 2011, along with the necessary materials for comprehensive assessment of changes of the budget revenue shall be submitted to the Government of the Russian Federation before August 1, 2008.

The meeting approved draft federal laws On Introducing Amendments to Articles 182 and 293, Part 2 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and On Introducing Amendments to Article 218, Part 2 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. The decision has been made to introduce them at the State Duma under established procedure.

The Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Economic Development, the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Ministry of Health and Social Development, jointly with the federal executive bodies concerned, have been instructed to revisit the issue of changing the current system of collecting excise on ethylated alcohol and alcohol-containing products and submit the relevant proposals to the Government of the Russian Federation.

The meeting approved the draft federal law On Introducing Amendments to Part 2 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation adjusting the provisions on stimulating priority research and development work.

A decision has been made to submit the said draft federal law to the State Duma under established procedure.

The Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Economic Development, the Finance Ministry, the Energy Ministry, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the federal executive  bodies concerned, with the participation of the Russian Academy of Sciences and other organisations concerned, shall by August 15, 2008 submit to the Government of the Russian Federation proposals regarding the list of priority research and development work.

The meeting approved the draft federal law On Introducing Amendments to Chapters 26¹, 26² and 26³, Part 2 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation with adjusted provisions regarding the transition to a single agricultural tax for agricultural producers which have branches and representatives offices.

It has been decided to submit the said draft federal law to the State Duma under established procedure.

The Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Economic Development, the Ministry of Energy, and the Ministry of Agriculture have been instructed to prepare and submit to the Government of the Russian Federation before June 5, 2008 proposals in the shape of amendments to the draft federal law On Introducing Amendments to Part 2 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation when preparing it for the second reading at the State Duma on the issues of:

• introducing tax benefits for organisations exploiting oil deposits whose development involves extra costs;
• a shift to indirect accounting of oil produced and more rigorous definition of the concept of the mass of oil extracted for tax purposes;
• adjusting the time frame of the use of benefits on the profit tax of organisations for agricultural producers, with the tax rate to equal zero until 2012 inclusive;
• and accelerated amortisation of certain groups of basic assets of organisations.

The Ministry of Economic Development, the Finance Ministry and the Ministry of Industry and Trade with the participation of federal executive bodies concerned have been instructed by July 1, 2008 to prepare and submit to the Government of the Russian Federation proposals regarding accelerated amortisation of certain types of plant and machinery intended for the production of innovation products.

2. On Implementing Measures for Social Protection of Veterans and Disabled People.

The meeting took note of the report by the Minister of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation, Tatyana Golikova, on the above issue.

The Ministry of Health and Social Development and the Finance Ministry have been instructed:

• by June 15, 2008 to submit to the Government of the Russian Federation proposals on the procedure of providing disabled people with cars or paying a lump-sum of compensation to them;
• in preparing amendments to the Federal Law On the Federal Budget for 2008 and for the Planning Period 2009 and 2010 and in forming the draft federal budget for 2009 and for the planning period 2010 and 201, to envisage budget allocations to finance the costs of providing disabled people with cars or compensation referred to above.

The Ministry of Regional Development, the Ministry of Health and Social Development and the Finance Ministry in drafting the federal budget for 2009 and for the planning period 2010 and 2011 shall envisage corresponding allocations for the provision of housing for WWII veterans.

The Ministry of Health and Social Development, the Ministry of Economic Development and the Finance Ministry shall within two weeks submit to the Government of the Russian Federation proposals on indexation of the size of the insured part of the pension, including pensions paid to veterans and disabled people, as of August 1, 2008.

The Ministry of Health and Social Development and the Foreign Ministry shall submit to the Government of the Russian Federation a package of documents on the issue of the accession of the Russian Federation to the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People.

The Ministry of Health and Social Development jointly with the Finance Ministry and other federal executive bodies concerned shall study the issue of improving the mechanism of delivering to certain categories of citizens whose social support is the prerogative of the Russian Federation, social assistance in the shape of a range of social services and submit the relevant proposals to the Government of the Russian Federation in the third quarter of 2008.

The Ministry of Health and Social Development of Russia has been instructed to take measures to improve the activities of the federal medical and social testing institutions, including measures to provide such institutions with skilled personnel, strengthen their material and technical basis and the legal framework of their activities.

The results shall be reported to the Government of the Russian Federation in the third quarter of 2008.

The Ministry of Health and Social Development jointly with the executive bodies of the subjects of the Russian Federation shall take measures to improve the quality and accessibility of medical assistance rendered to veterans at hospitals for war veterans.

The measures taken shall be reported to the Government of the Russian Federation in the forth quarter of 2008.

3. On Introducing Amendments to Selected Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation to Increase the Size of Certain Social Benefits and the Value of the Package of Social Services.

The meeting approved, in the light of the discussion held, the draft federal law On Introducing Amendments to Selected Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation to Increase the Size of Certain Social Benefits and the Value of the Package of Social Services. It has been decided to introduce the draft at the State Duma under established procedure.

The Ministry of Health and Social Development, the Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Economic Development jointly with other federal executive bodies concerned have been instructed to consider the mechanisms of indexation of social benefits and within two months submit proposals on their improvement to the Government of the Russian Federation.

4. On Submitting to the President of the Russian Federation for Presenting for Ratification the Agreement between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus on Ensuring Equal Rights of the Citizens of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus to Free Movement, Choice of Place of Sojourn and Residence in the Territories of the Members States of the Union State.

The meeting adopted a draft decree of the Government of the Russian Federation on the said issue.

5. On Adjusting the Functions of the Federal Executive Bodies in Accordance with the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of May 12, 2008 No 724 Issues of the System and Structure of the Federal Executive Bodies.

It has been decided on the strength of the discussions held, to adopt the draft decrees of the Government of the Russian Federation:

• On the Ministry of Sport, Tourism and Youth Policy of the Russian Federation with the introduction of a clarifying provision to the effect that the Integrated Calendar Plan of Interregional, All-Russian and International Physical Culture and Sporting Events is subject to approval by the Federal Agency for Physical Culture and Sports;
• On the Federal Agency for Physical Culture and Sports;
• On the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs;
• On Amendments to and Annulment of Some Enactments of the Government of the Russian Federation on the Issues of Tourism;
• On Approving the Statute on the Ministry of Communications and the Media of the Russian Federation;
• On Approving the Statute on the Federal Service of Supervision in the Sphere of Communications and the Mass Media;
• On Introducing Amendments to Some Enactments of the Government of the Russian Federation;
• On Introducing Amendments to Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of June 30, 2004 No 319;
• On Introducing Amendments to Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of June 30, 2004 No 320;
• On the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation;
• On the Federal Service for Monitoring Compliance with the Laws on the Protection of the Cultural Heritage;
• On the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation;
• On the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation on the understanding that the functions of support of export, industrial production, access to the markets of goods and services, exhibition and fair activities, the conduct of anti-dumping investigations as well as non-tariff regulation measures will be performed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, while the customs and tariffs regulation and accession of the Russian Federation to the World Trade Organisation will be transferred to the corresponding ministry after the issue has been discussed in July 2008;
• On the Federal Registration Service;
• On Approving the Statute on the Federal State Statistical Service;
• On the Federal Real Estate Cadastre Agency;
• On the Federal Agency for the Management of State Property;
• On Introducing Amendments to the Statute on the Federal Agency of Geodesy and Cartography;
• On the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation;
• On the Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation;
• On Aspects of the Activities of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation and the Federal Medical-Biological Agency;
• On the Issues of the Structure and Organisation of the Activities of the Ministry of Regional Development of the Russian Federation;
• and On the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation and the Introduction of Amendments to Some Decrees of the Government of the Russian Federation.

The Ministry of Sport, Tourism and Youth Policy of the Russian Federation has been instructed to additionally work on the issue of the structure and functions of the federal bodies of executive power in the sphere of physical culture, sports, tourism and youth policy raised during the meeting and submit corresponding proposals to the Government of the Russian Federation within a month.

The Ministry of Economic Development and the Foreign Ministry jointly with the other federal executive bodies concerned shall study the issues of interaction with the member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States and submit the relevant proposals to the Government of the Russian Federation within three days.

The Ministry of Economic Development shall additionally study the issue raised during the meeting regarding Rosstat being under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Economic Development and submit the relevant proposals to the Government of the Russian Federation within three days.

May 30, 2008
Moscow

* Decisions on the items on the agenda are taken with due accounts of the remarks and proposals made at the Government meeting and are issued as official documents of the Government of the Russian Federation.