Comprehensive support for entrepreneurs since 1993!

Law firm "AVENTA" offers you effective individual solutions for building and developing a stable, profitable business.

We have been providing corporate legal services for more than 20 years and have extensive experience in solving the most complex problems in any industry.

The services of the law firm "AVENTA" are a result, not a process!

Each business has individual characteristics, risks, problems and opportunities. We see our task as quickly studying and assessing the client’s problem, taking into account all the nuances and offering the optimal solution in each specific case.

PROFESSIONALLY

Leading experts in the field of legal consulting and judicial practice work with you. Thousands of companies that have effectively solved their business problems indicate that Aventa is rightfully one of the best law firms working with entrepreneurs.

PROMPTLY

Each lawyer specializes in a specific area of ​​law. That's why we quickly develop customized solutions even for the most difficult situations.

RELIABLE

We have extensive experience in successfully resolving corporate disputes, complex legal conflicts, crisis situations, and reducing possible risks to zero.

COMFORTABLE

Providing a range of legal services to enterprises and individual entrepreneurs will allow you to solve any business problems within the framework of working with one company: from creating a business to its reorganization or liquidation.

We are located in the center of the capital, so if you require the services of a law firm in Moscow, you can quickly come to us from almost anywhere in the city.

Remote legal advice by phone or online is also possible for residents of regions or clients who are on a business trip and cannot obtain the services of a law firm in Moscow.

SAFELY

The provision of legal services at Aventa requires complete confidentiality, maximum accuracy in assessing business risks and strict adherence to current legislation.

RATIONAL

The cost of legal services in Moscow can be a real stumbling block. But we assure you that neither the practice of “more expensive is better” nor the attempt to save money on resolving the issue is optimal. Moreover, often low prices for legal services in Moscow are more likely to indicate the presence of hidden additional fees or low qualifications of employees.

We do not strive to set the lowest prices for legal services in Moscow. However, we support a rational and transparent pricing policy.

• no hidden extras
• without imposing additional services
• without breaking the service into many “sub-items”
• without chaotic “cheating” due to the location in the center

Therefore, we can objectively say that we provide inexpensive legal services in Moscow (CAO), which pay for themselves many times over in the efficiency and efficiency of our work.

Law firm "AVENTA":

We offer:

• Legal support of the company

Full legal support of the financial and economic activities of the organization.

• Litigation, legal services

Protection of client interests in corporate conflicts, ranging from pre-trial resolution of disputes and filing a claim to representation of interests in arbitration courts and intellectual property rights courts.

• Due Diligence

Legal, financial and tax Due Diligence, which provides an objective assessment of the state of the business, identifying existing risks and ways to minimize them.

• Full range of services on patent and copyright issues

Reliable protection of companies' intellectual property, from registration of trademarks, patenting of inventions, utility models and industrial designs, to legal protection of intellectual property in court.

• Valuation of the company's tangible and intangible assets

The full range of valuation services for business: business valuation, stock valuation, real estate valuation, equipment valuation, intellectual property valuation.

• Full range of services on corporate and shareholding law issues

Providing consulting legal services and practical legal assistance in registering legal entities, accreditation of foreign representative offices and branches. Drawing up and introducing amendments to constituent documents. Services for liquidation, bankruptcy and reorganization of legal entities, closure of representative offices and branches.

Unfortunately, we cannot provide an exact price list for services, since each case is individual. Contact us using the online application or by phone +7 495 134-12-21. Our experts will guide you on the preliminary cost and other issues.

We will be glad to see you among our clients!

*This material is over three years old. You can check with the author the degree of its relevance.

New procedure for accreditation of foreign legal entities

New procedure for accreditation of branches and representative offices of foreign legal entities from January 1, 2015: what has changed and has it become easier?

Branches and representative offices of foreign legal entities accredited before January 1, 2015 are required to submit information for inclusion in the Register before April 1, 2015.

Federal Law No. 106-FZ of May 5, 2014 “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation” amended a number of legislative acts of the Russian Federation, including the Federal Law of July 9, 1999 No. 160-FZ “On Foreign investments in the Russian Federation" (hereinafter referred to as the Law on Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation). With regard to the Law on Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation, the changes came into force on January 1, 2015. They radically changed the procedure for accreditation of branches and representative offices of foreign organizations.

This article will discuss the version of the Law on Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation that entered into force on January 1, 2015 in terms of accreditation of representative offices and branches of foreign companies, amendments to information about such branches and representative offices, the procedure for their liquidation, with the exception of performing these actions in in relation to representative offices of foreign legal entities operating in the field of civil aviation and representative offices of foreign credit institutions.

Until January 1, 2015, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation (and in some cases its territorial branches) (hereinafter referred to as the Chamber of Commerce and Industry) had the authority to issue permits for the activities of branches and representative offices of foreign legal entities, and the authority to accredit branches and representative offices of foreign legal entities - the State Registration Chamber under the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation (hereinafter referred to as the State Registration Chamber). From January 1, 2015, the powers to implement were transferred to the Federal Tax Service (clause 1 of Article 21 of the Law on Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation; clause 1 of the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of September 30, 2004 No. 506 “On approval of the Regulations on the Federal Tax Service” ).

In accordance with clause 2 of the Order of the Federal Tax Service dated December 26, 2014 No. ММВ-7-14/680@, accreditation or amendments to the information contained in the register, or termination of accreditation is carried out by a territorial tax authority authorized by the Federal Tax Service. According to the Order of the Federal Tax Service of December 22, 2014 No. ММВ-7-14/668@, the powers to accredit branches and representative offices of foreign legal entities (except for representative offices of foreign credit organizations) operating on the territory of the Russian Federation are assigned to the Interdistrict Inspectorate of the Federal Tax Service of Russia No. 47 in Moscow.

The new edition describes in more detail the procedure for creating and liquidating branches and representative offices of foreign companies, and in conjunction with the Orders adopted by the Federal Tax Service in this area, makes the accreditation procedure more understandable. If previously there was no clear procedure for the execution of documents submitted for accreditation, and their execution was possible in free form, now the Order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated December 26, 2014 No. ММВ-7-14/681@ established special forms of applications necessary for making certain actions. This significantly simplifies the procedure for preparing applications and minimizes the time for their preparation.

As before, a branch or representative office of a foreign legal entity is created, opened, or terminates its activities based on the decision of the foreign legal entity. A foreign legal entity, within 12 months after making a decision to create or open a branch or representative office on the territory of the Russian Federation, is required to submit an application for accreditation, which includes information certified by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry on the number of foreign citizens who are employees of this branch, representative office, and the corresponding package of documents. The list of documents was approved by clause 6 of the Order of the Federal Tax Service dated December 26, 2014 No. ММВ-7-14/680@. At the moment, there are a number of questions, the answers to which will be formed only after the practical application of the new accreditation procedure. For example, an application on Form 15AFP contains a sheet in which applicants indicate the number of employees agreed upon with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In this case, there is a column on the sheet where the Chamber of Commerce and Industry must mark the approval. Neither the Law on Foreign Investments nor the Orders of the Federal Tax Service contain clear explanations on this matter. Specialists from the regional branches of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry also cannot provide explanations regarding the practical implementation of the plan. Most likely, when agreeing with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry on the number of employees, it will be necessary to send a sheet from the application to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and attach it when submitting an application for accreditation.

Both the Law on Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation and the Order of the Federal Tax Service dated December 26, 214 No. ММВ-7-14/680@ establish specific deadlines within which applicants must submit documents and the tax authority must register. Thus, accreditation of a branch or representative office of a foreign company must be carried out within 25 working days from the date of submission of the relevant documents along with the application. The previous version of the Law on Foreign Investments of the Russian Federation did not contain any indication of the period of accreditation. Changes to the information contained in the register in relation to a foreign legal entity are carried out within 10 working days, as well as termination of accreditation of a branch or representative office of a foreign legal entity. Upon completion of registration by the authorized body, the applicant will be issued a document in the form approved by Order of the Federal Tax Service dated December 26, 2014 No. ММВ-7-14/681@. Thus, the fact of accreditation will be confirmed by a certificate in form 15СвФП and the issuance of an information sheet in form 15ЗФП (similar to the Record Sheet when registering a Russian legal entity or making changes to information about a Russian legal entity).

At the same time, neither the Law on Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation nor the Orders of the Federal Tax Service contain information regarding the fee (fee) charged for registration actions, as well as the period for which accreditation can be issued. Previously, it was possible to obtain permission/accreditation for 1, 3, 5 years.

As for the state fee for accreditation of a branch or representative office, from January 1, 2015, its amount for both branches and representative offices will be 120,000 rubles for each branch, for each representative office. Until January 1, 2015, the state duty was paid only for the accreditation of a branch, while in addition to the state duty, a Chamber of Commerce and Industry fee or a state registration fee was payable; when accrediting a representative office, only a fee was payable. The amount of the fee was set in conventional units, the calculation of which was made at the dollar-ruble exchange rate on the day the invoice was paid.

The Law on Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation also establishes an exhaustive list of grounds for refusal of registration and grounds for termination of accreditation. It should be noted that previously a branch could terminate its activities by decision of a foreign legal entity. Article 21 of the Law on Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation establishes that accreditation can also be terminated in connection with the termination of the activities of a foreign legal entity or by decision of an authorized body. If the option of terminating the activities of a foreign legal entity was not previously enshrined in law, but seemed logical, then the termination of accreditation by decision of the authorized body is a novelty. The list of grounds for making such decisions is enshrined in paragraph 7 of Article 21 of the Law on Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation. The list is exhaustive and is not subject to broad interpretation.

Another innovation - on the one hand, positive, and on the other - imposing additional responsibilities for already accredited branches and representative offices of foreign companies - is the creation of a state register of accredited branches, representative offices of foreign legal entities and the provision of information from it.

Information about branches and representative offices of foreign legal entities that will be accredited after January 1, 2015 are subject to inclusion in the state register of accredited branches and representative offices of foreign legal entities (hereinafter referred to as the Register). In this case, the entry will be assigned an accreditation record number (hereinafter referred to as NRA). It is the NZA that will need to be indicated in documents when making changes to information about a foreign legal entity or terminating accreditation, and not the TIN, as before. The information contained in the Register can be provided to interested parties upon request in any form. The composition of information to be entered into the Register and the volume of information provided from it was approved by Order of the Federal Tax Service dated December 26, 2014 No. ММВ-7-14-683@. Information is provided to applicants in the form of an Extract or Certificate of absence of the requested information within a period not exceeding 5 working days. According to Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated December 25, 2014 No. 1491, a fee of 200 rubles is charged for providing information from the Register. The orders of the Federal Tax Service do not provide for the possibility of obtaining information from the Register in an established manner (by analogy with an extract from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities).

In addition, information from the Register will be available on the Internet, on the website of the Federal Tax Service.

Those branches and representative offices of foreign legal entities that were accredited or carried out activities on the basis of a permit to open a representative office before January 1, 2015, whose accreditation or permit will not expire until April 1, 2015, are obliged to 2015 submit information about yourself for inclusion in the Register. Entering information is free of charge.

From January 1, 2015, in accordance with paragraph 10 of Article 21 of the Law on Foreign Investments in the Russian Federation, the authorized tax authority, no later than 3 working days, will automatically send in electronic form information about accreditation, changes to the information contained in the register, termination of accreditation of a representative office, branch of a foreign legal entity to state extra-budgetary funds for registration or deregistration of a branch, representative office of a foreign legal entity as insurers.

Clause 4 of Article 83 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation establishes that registration (deregistration) with the tax authorities of a foreign organization at the place of its activities on the territory of the Russian Federation through an accredited branch or representative office is carried out on the basis of information contained in the state register of accredited branches, representative offices foreign legal entities.

Thus, the obligation to submit information for tax registration of a branch, representative office of a foreign legal entity, as well as to state extra-budgetary funds for registration as an insurer with accredited branches, representative offices of foreign legal entities has been canceled since January 1, 2015.

Whether the new accreditation procedure will simplify the procedure itself or whether this will affect the timing of accreditation will be shown, as usual, by practice. Specialists from the INTELLECT-S group of legal companies monitor legislation on a daily basis, professionally and in the shortest possible time.

accreditation of branches and representative offices of foreign companies, joint-stock companies, foreign trade activities, Due Diligence, foreign employees, corporate law, non-profit organizations, registration and reorganization, registration of companies, legal advice, legal services for Italian business in Russia

Foreign legal entities opening representative offices in the Russian Federation are required to undergo an accreditation procedure and register for tax purposes. This is a long and complex process that requires certain knowledge of the law.

The first stage of registering a branch of a foreign company in the Russian Federation is accreditation. This mandatory procedure takes at least 35 working days and represents the entry of information about the branch into the state register and the issuance of a certificate of the established form.

Completing the accreditation procedure for branches of foreign companies in Russia is mandatory in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation. The Interdistrict Inspectorate of the Federal Tax Service (MIFTS) No. 47 for Moscow has the right to conduct accreditation.

Also necessary in the accreditation process is the procedure for certifying the number of foreign employees of the branch. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation (RF CCI) has the right to certify the number of foreign employees of the branch.

The cost of services for accreditation of a representative office of a foreign company in Moscow starts from 120,000 rubles on a turnkey basis.

If it is necessary to interact with the parent company, communication is conducted in English.

Additional charges:

— state duty for accreditation of a branch or representative office of a foreign company with the Federal Tax Service. The fee is 120,000 rubles. The fee is paid at a time.
— state duty to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation from 5,000 to 15,000 rubles, depending on the number of foreign employees.
— notarial expenses and services for translation of documents, as well as interpretation for foreign representatives when certifying documents by a notary.

During our work, we have registered and accredited over 150 representative offices and branches of foreign companies in Russia!

Scheme of working with us

1.We answer all questions, hold a meeting or communicate in any convenient way

2. We conclude an agreement

3.You provide us with information for accreditation

4.We prepare documents for accreditation

5.We prepare notarized translations of documents

6. We notarize documents

7.We certify the number of foreign employees to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry

8.We submit documents to the Federal Tax Service

9.After 30 working days we receive a set of constituent documents

10.Get statistics codes

11.Order printing (if necessary)

12. We receive notifications about registration with the Social Insurance Fund and the Pension Fund of Russia

13.Preparing documents for opening a bank account (optional)

14.We hand over the finished set of documents

List of required documents:

• Written statement in MIFNS No. 47 for Moscow, drawn up in the prescribed form (15AFP). The application must be signed by the Head of the Branch or another person authorized to do so by the foreign company. We are preparing this statement.
• Extract from the register of foreign legal entities country of origin of the company or another document of equal legal force confirming the legal status of a foreign legal entity.
• Constituent documents foreign legal entity (Charter) (the document is valid for one year from the date of its legalization).
• Document issued by the authorized body of the country of origin of the foreign organization, confirming her registration as a taxpayer in this country, indicating the taxpayer code (or an analogue of the taxpayer code).
• Decision of a foreign legal entity to open a branch In Russian federation. We are preparing the text of this decision.
• Regulations on the branch foreign legal entity in the Russian Federation. We are preparing the text of the regulation. It can be signed in Russia by the Head of the Branch or another person authorized to do so by the foreign company.
• A notarized power of attorney to vest the head of a branch of a foreign legal entity in the Russian Federation with the necessary powers. We are preparing the text of this power of attorney.
• Notarized power of attorney to an authorized person to conduct business in the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation and MIFNS No. 47 for Moscow (submitted if the authorized person is not the head of the branch). We are preparing the text of this power of attorney.
• Copy of passport and tax registration certificate(TIN) (if available) Head of a Branch of a foreign company
• Card of information about a branch of a foreign legal entity.

Requirements for all foreign documents:

• Documents are accepted only with genuine marks of consular legalization or certified by an apostille, unless exemption from these procedures is provided for by international agreements of the Russian Federation
• Documents must be translated into Russian (the translation must be certified by a notary or at a consular office abroad)
• Documents are valid for 12 months from the date of issue.
• Powers of attorney and decisions are made with notarization of the signatures and powers of the signatories.

A foreign citizen can be appointed to the position of head of a Branch of a foreign company on the territory of the Russian Federation only after obtaining a work permit in Russia, as well as after obtaining a permit to attract and use foreign workers by a Branch of a foreign company.

The procedure for obtaining these permits takes from 3 weeks to 3 months depending on the type of work permit and can only begin after the accreditation procedure has been completed.

Information that must be contained in documents or must be presented as additional information:

• Type of activity of the foreign company;
• Location of the foreign company;
• Telephone, email address, website address of a foreign company;
• Data of the director, founder and head of the branch (passport details, residence address, Taxpayer Identification Number, date of birth, place of birth) of the foreign company;
• If the founder of a foreign company is a legal entity, then information about it is provided: name, address, taxpayer code, share of participation;
• Data on the registration of a foreign company (date of registration, name of the registering authority, its location, registration number of the organization, taxpayer code);
• Name of the servicing bank of the foreign company, SWIFT code, account number of the foreign company;
• The size of the authorized capital of a foreign company;
• Number of employees of the foreign company;
• Revenue of a foreign company for the previous financial year;
• Phone, email address, branch website address;
• Registration address of the Branch in Russia
• Goals and activities of the branch;
• Russian business partners;
• The number of foreign employees that the Branch plans to hire.

The contractor begins the procedure for registering a representative office of a foreign organization from the moment of submitting all properly executed documents and providing the information necessary to fill out the documents.
Branches of foreign legal entities can operate on the territory of the Russian Federation from the date of their accreditation and cease their activities if their accreditation is revoked.

What state fees do I need to pay?

For accreditation of a branch of a foreign company there is a fee state fee 120,000 rub..

Also, a fee is charged for certification by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation of the number of foreign employees of the Branch ( 5,000 rub. — in the absence of foreign employees or 15,000 rubles. — in the presence of foreign employees).

What else needs to be done to register a representative office of a foreign organization?

In addition to the accreditation procedure, for the full functioning of a foreign company in Russia, it is necessary to complete the following:

• registration with the tax authorities (at least 5 working days)
• printing production;
• receiving an information letter from the Statregister of Rosstat about registration in the Unified State Register of Industrial Organizations;
• registration with extra-budgetary funds;
• opening a bank account.

Assistance to foreign legal entities in registration and accreditation

"Outsourcing Solutions" provides assistance in opening branches of foreign companies in the Russian Federation. Accreditation of a representative office of a foreign company in Moscow, Tver, St. Petersburg and other cities of Russia by our specialists includes:

• preparation of registration package in Russian, English and other languages;
• notarized translation of documents;
• submission of documents to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, State Register of the Russian Federation;
• entering the organization into the register of accredited companies;
• registration with the Federal Tax Service;
• registration in extra-budgetary funds.

Our employees interact directly with the parent foreign company: excellent command of English is an indispensable condition for specialists working in the corporate sector of our company. If necessary, we will help you obtain an expanded quota for foreign workers.

30.01.2018

When regulatory authorities discover that a Russian company, whether intentionally or out of inexperience, is starting to work with a dubious domestic company, the former is charged with attempting to evade taxes and is subject to inspection by tax inspectors. If a company is suspected of partnering with an unreliable foreign counterparty, the Federal Tax Service, the customs service, and export and currency control authorities will be involved in studying its activities. Therefore, you should learn how to verify a foreign legal entity before planning cooperation.

Why do you need to check foreign counterparties?

It doesn’t matter whether the company conducts foreign trade activities or operates exclusively within the country, checking the financial and legal status of counterparties is necessary. The purpose of such a study is an attempt to protect oneself from financial risks, assess the possible benefits of cooperation and avoid problems associated with it in the future.

Without requesting documents from the counterparty, you risk being deceived - he may have collections and debts, and their presence threatens to delay the timing of cash receipts under the contract. Or you can enter into a contract with a person who does not have the right to do so and is not an official representative of the company, then the contract will be considered invalid.

If it turns out that any of the company’s activities are contrary to the requirements of Russian legislation, the company will be declared inoperable, which means that all concluded agreements will be canceled without compensation. Any problems will lead your company to financial losses.

In the event that Russian government agencies in charge of foreign trade activities notice that an organization has entered into relations with a dubious foreign enterprise, all of its applications will be rejected, and a comprehensive check will be undertaken by:

• Tax Inspectorate. In order to prevent a company from illegally obtaining a tax benefit, it will be denied the recognition of a zero VAT rate or the deduction of VAT from taxable profit.
• Export and currency control authorities. Employees of government agencies will be sent by management to conduct on-site inspections of the financial and economic activities of the enterprise.
• Customs Service. Cargo sent under an agreement with a dubious company will be detained at the border.
• Banking institution. Bank employees will notify export and currency control that a suspicious transaction is being prepared.

Inspection of foreign companies and the request for documents necessary for its implementation is necessary, first of all, in order not to arouse suspicion among the tax service of one’s imprudence or criminal conspiracy to evade taxes. Even the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation introduced the concept of “due diligence when choosing a counterparty.” Neglecting the verification procedure may result in tax liability.

How to become a distributor of a foreign company in Russia

The distributor builds a sales market for the enterprise for which he works. He or a legal entity for the purpose of carrying out large-scale purchases from the manufacturer of any product for resale in the future. This position is attractive to many applicants because it has a number of advantages:

• high salary
• free schedule,
• work outside the office,
• the ability to choose your own methods of performing duties.

You need to start your career as a distributor by searching for a suitable organization whose products or services you would like to distribute and offer to customers.

For cooperation, you can choose both the manufacturers themselves and intermediary companies, the main thing is that the company must be proven and reliable, otherwise you risk your business reputation.

To stand out among applicants for a position, you need to prepare for a conversation with the management of the selected organization:

• explore the range of products,
• develop a unique proposal on ways to increase sales.

If you are interested in the possibility of engaging in distribution activities, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with the information.

Methods for checking a foreign legal entity

Sometimes a check of a foreign counterparty is carried out for personal purposes, when the business owner wants to make sure of his reliability. But most often it is organized to prove the company’s diligence to the tax service in order to avoid the loss of tax benefits and deductions. Depending on the purpose of studying the activities of foreign organizations, you may need a report on the activities in electronic or written form.

There are two main ways to check the legality of a foreign company:

1. Request data from foreign registers via the Internet. Not only in Russia there are state registers of companies (such as the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, the Unified State Register of Individual Entrepreneurs), in other countries records are also kept of all legally established enterprises, and the information reflected in them appears more complete than in the Russian Federation - for example, you can see data on the amount of authorized capital sold shares, composition of founders and address. Information helps to assess the risks of cooperation with one of the foreign companies. Citizens of other states can also use the databases for a fee.
2. Send a request to the authorized body that maintains the register to provide the necessary information in writing. The verification method does not differ from that used to conduct verification of domestic partners, and consists of submitting a request for an extract from a foreign register, certified by a notary.

Receiving information in electronic form

Today, the most convenient and fastest way to request a service of interest to a user is to send a request via the Internet. You can check the activities of a foreign counterparty online and receive reports with the required information in electronic form in the following ways:

• By contacting the tax administration of the state in whose territory the potential partner’s company is registered.
• By ordering certificates in specialized databases.
• Through legal agencies that provide consulting services for checking foreign counterparties.
• Through highly targeted registries that provide information about foreign companies.

However, the most reliable sources of information are government databases. Many states have created open databases with information about the reliability of taxpayers, the presence of debt obligations of companies, the payment of VAT by some companies, etc. Similar services are organized in:

• European countries. To view data on organizations in 28 EU countries, you can use the Unified Business Register, which has been in force since 1998. The purpose of the registry is to redirect the user to national distributors who will charge a fee for the provision of the service and provide the necessary data.
  

  The advantage of obtaining an extract from the European Business Register is the ability to receive it in English and the speed of requesting information.

  Several international firms initiated the opening of a register of beneficial owners. Thanks to their initiative, it became possible to identify the ultimate owner of organizations that were registered offshore.

  • In France, there is a portal of the office of the Arbitration Court, which contains data on the owners of legal entities, registered real estate, subsidiaries, affiliates, and beneficiaries. The information is provided free of charge only in part - you will have to pay a fee for copies and extracts.

    It is possible to order the following documents:

    • a set of papers, including an extract from the cadastre;
    • information about bankrupt and liquidated companies, as well as existing guarantees;
    • statutory documents with notes on changes that have occurred in the activities of companies;
    • an extract on the organization’s government debts;
    • an extract about the founders and managers of legal entities;
    • legal addresses.
  • In Germany, there are 2 registers at once, which can be accessed via the Internet: the general register of the Federal States and the register administered by the Ministry of Justice.

    Using the first one involves going through a lengthy registration procedure, including:

    • filling out the registration form;
    • waiting for the application to be approved by the portal administration;
    • verification of the signature by sending the signed form in paper form through the post office to the address of the Federal Land Office.

    The second, on the contrary, will seem convenient to the user, largely due to the ability to select one of 5 languages. After paying the fee, you can request the following documents:

    • current statement of the organization;
    • chronological extract;
    • historical extract;
    • statement about the owners;
    • company documents.
  • In the UK, the government has not provided for the issuance of information from the register of legal entities directly from the official government website, but intermediaries have developed a very convenient database for searching for any information of interest to the user, both official and unofficial. The State Register allows you to find information by company name, and commercial companies will help you find a specific person. The information provided free of charge includes information about the owner of the organization; all other information will be available after payment of the fee.
• Countries of the former Soviet Union. A disadvantage of the information content of national CIS databases can be considered the lack of details about the activities of companies that would be publicly available. It is impossible to find information about bankruptcy and dishonesty of companies, and files of court cases are open only in Georgia and Ukraine.
  • In Ukraine. Inspection of enterprises can be carried out through the state database “Information Resource Center”. Available information includes company names, founders and managers. There is no data on the number of legal entities registered under one person.
  • In Uzbekistan. Information is presented on the open data portal. You can refer to a special register of managers of several legal entities at once, but no details other than their total number are indicated here.
  • In Kazakhstan. Information of interest to Russian entrepreneurs is available on the website of the State Revenue Committee of the Ministry of Finance. To conduct a search, you need to indicate the tax payer's BIN. The search results will provide information about the unreliability of some companies, about value added tax payers and about company debts.
  • In Moldavia. The official website of the tax service allows, through a special service, to find information about addresses, general directors and registration dates of companies for free by entering the TIN of the company of interest into the form. Other data will become available after payment is made.
  • In Tajikistan. The official portal of the Tax Committee contains data on companies that do not pay taxes, as well as names, tax identification numbers and registration dates of organizations. In Tajikistan, there is no register of bankrupt enterprises and a database of judicial economic cases, so it is difficult to verify potential partners.

Receiving a report in writing with notarization

The procedure for applying for a written report from a foreign register of companies does not differ from a similar request to Russian government agencies in order to check the reliability of a domestic counterparty.

The action plan is as follows:

1. Visit the official website of the Federal Tax Service of Russia, go to the “International Cooperation” section, find in the table a link to the website of the tax administration of the country in which the potential partner enterprise was registered.
2. Follow the link, if necessary, register and verify the signature.
3. Pay a fee for information services.
4. Leave a request for an extract from the register, translation into Russian, affixing an apostille and sending it to the desired address.
5. Wait for the requested documentation.

Sources of information about foreign organizations

When choosing a source of information about the activities of a foreign company with which cooperation is expected, preference should be given to resources owned by government agencies and regularly updated.

You can find information about foreign counterparties:

• on the websites of tax authorities;
• on online resources open to the public;
• from company directories published in different countries;
• from specialized databases;
• by contacting the Chamber of Commerce and Industry;
• through a local specialized organization.

Specialized Russian databases for checking foreign companies

Our country has a specialized information retrieval system designed to check foreign counterparties - the Portal of Foreign Economic Information of the Russian Federation. The resource was organized by the Ministry of Economic Development as a tool to increase the level of efficiency of the country's foreign economic activity.

The main goals pursued by the portal developers:

• providing information to domestic and foreign companies;
• assistance in promoting domestic goods and services to international markets.

The operation of the system is under the authority of the Department of Development and Regulation of Foreign Trade Activities.

The system is being filled:

• structural divisions of the Ministry of Economic Development;
• Representative offices of the Russian Federation on trade and economic affairs abroad;
• regional administrations of the Russian Federation;
• business associations;
• industry unions;
• domestic companies engaged in exports.

Together with the global D&B network (Dun and Bradstreet), the Russian Interfax group has developed the Interfax-D&B system, adapted for work in the Russian Federation and the CIS countries. It allows you to obtain information from a global database of organizations, and also offers to order analytical services and conduct assessment activities to avoid credit risks.

Specialized databases of countries around the world for checking foreign counterparties

The maximum information about a foreign company can be found in specialized foreign databases. Relevant sources include:

• dnb.ru is a global network founded in 1841 that allows you to find information about any enterprise from all countries of the world and draw conclusions on the basis of the possibility of beneficial cooperation. The advantages of the network are the huge volume of data on 200 million enterprises, as well as unique verification and standardization of data.
• creditreform.com is a resource of the credit information agency Creditreform. Contains ready-made credit information and up-to-date information on 85% of European enterprises.
• kompass.com is a business-to-business database with data on more than 3 million companies from 60 countries. It is also possible to search by classifier of services and products. The user can submit a request for the supply of products and download a demo version of the directories.

  Information about companies is quite detailed:

  • activities,
  • range of goods and services,
  • trade marks,
  • management composition,
  • directions of export and import.
• europages.com.ru is a large-scale European information system in business-to-business format. It has data on enterprises from 36 European countries, presented in 26 languages. On the website you can find a list of European suppliers of any business sector.

List of tax administrations of countries around the world on the Federal Tax Service website

An audit of the organization of interest can be carried out through the official website of the Russian tax service by opening the special section “International cooperation” and following the corresponding link to the website of one of the tax administrations of other states. There it will be possible to check the scope of services of foreign resources available to the user.

To communicate with tax administrations from abroad, it is enough to go online. On the portal of the Federal Tax Service of the Russian Federation they are systematized in tabular form for the convenience of the applicant.

Register of accredited branches and representative offices of foreign legal entities (RAFP)

In August 2016, the Federal Tax Service introduced a new online service “Register of accredited branches and representative offices of foreign legal entities (RAFP)”, which provides free access to information about all registered foreign branches and representative offices.

To send a request, just specify any of 3 search parameters:

• branch name,
• state number of the accreditation record (NRA),

Using the search, you can find out:

• full name of the foreign company,
• legal address,
• the date of receipt of the state number of the record of successful completion of accreditation,
• date of termination of accreditation.

This service expands the capabilities of Russian enterprises when checking the reliability of foreign companies and demonstrates how to check a foreign company for reliability for free.

Appeal to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation

Before concluding an agreement on international cooperation, you can contact a reliable intermediary to check the foreign counterparty - the regional Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The process of applying for a service includes the following steps:

1. Drawing up an application.
2. Receive a work cost approval sheet.
3. Receive an invoice for payment and transfer the amount indicated in it to the Chamber of Commerce and Industry account.
4. Waiting for confirmation of successful payment.
5. Waiting for a business certificate to be issued.
6. Receive documentation and reports.
7. Signing the act of providing the ordered service in full.

The result of the work of Chamber of Commerce and Industry employees will be a issued business certificate for a legal entity from abroad. It will contain:

• registration information;
• legal status;
• date of foundation;
• size of the authorized capital;
• financial statements;
• financial stability analysis report;
• information about the founders;
• data on the presence of subsidiaries;
• Contact details.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry may refuse in the following cases:

• provision of an incomplete set of papers by the applicant;
• refusal to make an advance payment.

Services of local specialized companies

To contact a specialized organization offering services for checking foreign companies, you must provide:

• details of the company being inspected;
• power of attorney to represent your interests.

Companies specializing in providing legal services, in addition to collecting all the information necessary to verify a foreign counterparty, often offer to draw up their own written advisory opinion regarding the company in respect of which the research was conducted. Some agencies undertake the translation of documents, the development of a foreign trade agreement and its legal examination.

What information about foreign companies can be obtained?

From the documents requested by a Russian company to conduct verification of a potential foreign partner, you can obtain information about:

1. The authenticity and relevance of the registration information of the foreign company.
2. Compliance of the address designated by the partner with the legal address of the enterprise.
3. Liquidation, bankruptcy or operation of the company, as well as compliance by its employees with the requirements established by the laws of the country.
4. Types of activities carried out by the organization.
5. Management bodies of the company.
6. Conducted reorganizations of the enterprise.
7. Financial performance indicators of a foreign company.
8. Existence of debts to counterparties, tax authorities and banking institutions.

Remember that if a potential partner refuses to provide any information, answer your questions in detail, confirm his words with documents, and also postpones the transfer of papers for unknown reasons, this should raise suspicions. You should not make concessions, no matter how attractive the terms of the deal are offered to you: the reputation of your company is more valuable than dubious cooperation.

What to pay special attention to when checking foreign companies

Signing an agreement with a foreign organization is associated with great business risks, and therefore it is necessary to protect yourself with all your might by organizing legal checks of the foreign counterparty itself and the terms of the transaction in which it is involved. To do this you need:

• Determine the legal status and personality of the potential partner, as well as the person signing documents on his behalf.
• Identify a foreign counterparty, find out its business reputation and the relevance of information about its property status:
  • determination of solvency,
  • revenue volumes,
  • number of employees
  • sales channels,