My bank account has been frozen: what to do? What to do if the tax office has frozen the company's accounts The current account has been frozen, what to do

FROZEN ACCOUNT

FROZEN ACCOUNT

1) bank accounts whose use is restricted by the government (usually accounts for transferring funds abroad);

2) An account freeze occurs when a client sells previously purchased but unpaid securities and then either fails to make payment (made within seven days of the transaction) or withdraws part of the proceeds from the sale of securities from the account before payment for the purchase. If an account is frozen for 90 days, the client cannot make any payments until the previous transaction is paid in full. Synonym: blocked account.

Raizberg B.A., Lozovsky L.Sh., Starodubtseva E.B.. Modern economic dictionary. - 2nd ed., rev. M.: INFRA-M. 479 pp.. 1999 .

Economic dictionary. 2000 .

See what a “FROZEN ACCOUNT” is in other dictionaries:

1) a bank account whose use is restricted by the government (usually an account for transferring funds abroad); 2) freezing of accounts occurs when a client sells previously purchased but unpaid securities, and then either not... ...

frozen account- 1) bank accounts, the use of which is limited by the government (usually these are accounts for transferring funds abroad); 2) freezing of accounts occurs when a client sells previously purchased but unpaid securities, and then either... Dictionary of economic terms

blocked, frozen account- Banking transactions, a bank account from which funds cannot be withdrawn until the forfeiture order is reversed and a court order is obtained clearing the account. A bank account may also be frozen by court order in... ... Financial and investment explanatory dictionary

A bank account, the use of which is limited by government agencies. Dictionary of business terms. Akademik.ru. 2001... Dictionary of business terms

- (see FROZEN ACCOUNT) … Encyclopedic Dictionary of Economics and Law

- (see FROZEN ACCOUNT) … Encyclopedic Dictionary of Economics and Law

See Frozen Account Dictionary of Business Terms. Akademik.ru. 2001... Dictionary of business terms

ACCOUNT FROZEN- 1. a bank account whose use is restricted by the government (usually for transferring funds abroad); 2. Accounts are frozen when a client sells previously purchased but unpaid securities, and then either cannot... ... Great Accounting Dictionary

ACCOUNT BLOCKED- see ACCOUNT FROZEN...

ACCOUNT FROZEN- 1. a bank account whose use is restricted by the government (usually for transferring funds abroad) 2. freezing of accounts occurs when a client sells previously purchased but not paid for securities, and then either cannot ... ... Large economic dictionary

Now settlement, current, budget, loan and other accounts are opened to store customer funds and carry out all types of settlement, credit and cash transactions. When starting a conversation about the procedure for suspending account transactions, you need to clearly understand what kind of accounts we are talking about.
Let's remember what an “account” is for the purposes of using it in the practice of tax legal relations. The definition of the concept of “account” is given in paragraph 2 of Article 11 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation: accounts (account) are settlement and other bank accounts opened on the basis of a bank account agreement, to which funds of organizations and individual entrepreneurs are credited and from which funds can be spent. When concluding an agreement, a bank account is opened for the client on the terms agreed upon by the parties, and the bank undertakes to accept and credit funds received to the account opened for the client, carry out the client’s orders to transfer and withdraw the corresponding amounts from the account and carry out other operations on the account (clause 1 Article 846, paragraph 1 Article 845 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).
From the definition of a bank account provided for by the Tax Code, it follows that not all accounts opened by taxpayers in credit institutions are accounts for the purposes of applying tax legislation.
The concept of “account” used in tax legislation implies the presence of the following necessary features:
- existence of a bank account agreement on the basis of which a bank account is opened or closed;
- the possibility of transferring funds from organizations to it;
- the ability to spend money from it.
The absence of any of the listed characteristics of an account does not allow such an account to be classified as the accounts provided for in Article 11 of the Tax Code for the application of tax legislation.
Many accountants often ask the question: do deposit, loan and clearing accounts meet the concept of “account” used in tax legal relations?
A deposit account of legal entities is based on a bank deposit agreement, according to which funds are placed on deposit for a certain period and can only be withdrawn in full, that is, the organization does not have the right to carry out current settlements from such an account and spend funds from it, as well as transfer funds held by other persons.
Thus, deposit accounts opened by an organization do not meet the characteristics of an account established by Article 11 of the Tax Code, and the tax authorities cannot make a decision to suspend operations on deposit accounts.
A few words about loan accounts.
As noted in the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated July 1, 1999 No. GKPI99-484, when lending, the bank opens a loan account for the borrower, which is not an account in the sense of a bank account agreement. The loan account is not intended for settlement transactions, but serves to reflect the debt of the borrower to the bank for loans issued, being an internal tool for the bank, with the help of which the status of debt under the bank’s loan agreements is reflected.
A bank client who has received a loan under a loan agreement cannot dispose of funds from the loan account, since they are not located in this account, but are credited to the client’s current or other account.
Consequently, a loan account does not fall under the concept of an account given in Article 11 of the Tax Code, and it is not subject to the decision of the tax authority to suspend transactions on the accounts.
This conclusion is confirmed both by arbitration practice (see, for example, the resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Moscow District dated August 18, 2005, August 15, 2005 No. KA-A41/7704-05), and by the Ministry of Finance of Russia (letter dated November 21, 2007 No. 03-02-07/1-497).
As for the legality of tax authorities accepting the suspension of transactions on taxpayer accounts opened by a non-bank credit organization under an agreement on settlement and clearing services for a legal entity, to date neither the Ministry of Finance nor the Federal Tax Service of Russia have formed any position on this issue.
Arbitration practice on this issue is very scarce, and judges make opposite decisions. Some say: since an account opened under an agreement on settlement and clearing services for a legal entity is passive and does not meet the criteria of an account in the sense of Article 11 of the Tax Code, then the decision of the tax inspectorate to suspend operations on such an account in accordance with Article 76 of the Tax Code is not lawful (see resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the North-Western District dated April 12, 2005 No. A05-12530/04-19). After 3.5 years, judges of the same FAS came to a different conclusion: the tax authority has the right to suspend operations on a taxpayer’s clearing account opened with a non-bank credit organization, since such an account can be classified as a settlement account (see the resolution of the FAS North-Western District dated October 17 2008 No. A42-723/2008).
It can be added that another type of account that does not correspond to the concept of an account defined in Article 11 of the Tax Code is an account intended for transactions with funds owned by third parties and used for their intended purpose. Therefore, such an account is also not subject to the provisions of Article 76 of the Tax Code on blocking (see letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated April 27, 2007 No. 03-02-07/1-208).

The only reason

From the literal interpretation of paragraph 3 of Article 76 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, it follows that the suspension of transactions on a taxpayer’s bank accounts can be applied in the event that this taxpayer-organization fails to submit a tax return to the tax authority within 10 days after the expiration of the established deadline for submitting such a return. It would seem that this legal norm deals exclusively with a document such as a tax return.
Tax authorities probably think differently. How else can we explain their actions to block accounts for the failure of taxpayers (tax agents) to submit such tax reporting forms as information on the average number of employees or Form No. 2-NDFL.
Thus, tax inspectors, identifying information on the average number of employees with a tax return, equate the obligation to provide information with the obligation of taxpayers to submit a declaration, for failure to comply with which within the prescribed period it is lawful to make a decision to block the account in accordance with paragraph 3 of Article 76 of the Tax Code.
The arbitration courts of the Moscow region are literally inundated with applications from taxpayers to invalidate such decisions of the inspectorate.
By the way, almost all legal proceedings end in victory for taxpayers: judges recognize decisions of tax authorities to block an account as illegal if the organization provides information on the average number of employees for the previous calendar year with a delay of more than 10 days from the deadline provided for in paragraph 3 of Article 80 Tax Code (January 20 of this year).
For example, judges of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Moscow District, in a resolution dated March 12, 2009 No. KA-A40/1265-09, emphasized that information on the average number of employees for the previous calendar year is not a tax return in the sense of Article 80 of the Tax Code and the presentation of this information is not named by the legislator as the submission of a tax return. This means that for their untimely submission, the sanctions provided for in paragraph 3 of Article 76 of the Tax Code cannot be applied.
Tax authorities are also trying to freeze taxpayers’ accounts if the company, as a tax agent, has not submitted Form No. 2-NDFL. We hasten to reassure taxpayers: the courts invariably come to the conclusion that such decisions of tax authorities do not comply with the current tax legislation. Regarding them as violating the rights of taxpayers, judges ultimately cancel the decisions of tax inspectors (see resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Moscow District dated March 19, 2008 No. KA-A40/1702-08 in case No. A40-28489/07-98-168).
It is also illegal to block accounts if the taxpayer fails to submit calculations for advance payments. If your company nevertheless has a conflict situation with the tax authorities regarding this issue, then as evidence of the illegality of the actions of the tax authorities, we recommend citing the letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated July 12, 2007 No. 03-02-07/1-324, in which in black and white it is written that the Tax Code does not provide for the suspension of transactions on a taxpayer’s bank accounts in the event of his failure to submit calculations for advance payments.
Let's summarize briefly: the Tax Code does not provide for the possibility of suspending transactions on a taxpayer's bank accounts for failure to provide information provided in addition to the tax return.
And one more important aspect that we focus your attention on:
the legality of the decision to block an account if the tax authority determines that the information in a timely submitted tax return is incomplete, for example, if the submitted income tax return does not contain Appendix No. 2 to sheet 2. The position of Moscow judges, set out in the resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Moscow District dated January 13, 2009 No. KA-A40/12742-08: failure to submit the required sheet as part of the declaration does not affect the very fact of submitting the tax return to the inspectorate, but only indicates the non-reflection or incompleteness of the information in the declaration. The court also noted that Article 76 of the Tax Code does not provide for the suspension of transactions on accounts if the tax authority allegedly determines that the information reflected in the declarations is incomplete.

In a month, in a year

Taking into account paragraph 3 of Article 76 of the Tax Code, a decision on suspension cannot be made earlier than the 10-day period has expired from the date of submission of the declaration. But the deadline within which such a decision can be made is not defined in tax legislation. Experts from the Ministry of Finance decided to fill this legal gap, explaining to taxpayers that the Tax Code does not have provisions establishing specific deadlines for making this decision by the head (his deputy) of the tax authority (letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated May 5, 2009 No. 03-02-07/1 -227).
It turns out that officials actually give tax authorities the right to block taxpayers' accounts at any time, for example, several years after the deadline for submitting a tax return.
By the way, there are such precedents in judicial practice. For example, the tax inspectorate made a decision to suspend transactions of a taxpayer-organization on its bank accounts one year and seven months after the deadline for conducting a desk audit of the VAT tax return. Representatives of Themis emphasized that the decision was made without all reasonable deadlines for its adoption and declared it illegal (see the decision of the Moscow Arbitration Court dated April 7, 2008 in case No. A40-5585/08-4-23).

Bring your account back to life

The mechanism for blocking an account, established by Article 76 of the Tax Code, provides for the unconditional execution by the bank of a decision sent by the tax authority, regardless of the legality and legality of this decision. And even if the taxpayer is absolutely sure of the illegality of the decision to block his account, he cannot point out to the bank its failure to comply, and the bank, in turn, has no right not to comply with it.
It is clear that blocking bank accounts has negative consequences for any company, effectively paralyzing its activities. A long-term blocking can cause irreversible and enormous financial damage to the company, which ultimately threatens the company with the cessation of its business activities: the company can simply go bankrupt.
Moreover, the blocking of the account will remain in effect until the bank receives a decision from the tax authority to cancel the previously made decision to suspend operations. And the tax authorities will not make such a decision until the reason for the blocking is eliminated.
Therefore, the taxpayer needs to submit the unsubmitted return to the tax authority as quickly as possible: after all, then the tax office will be obliged to unblock the account no later than one day following the day the tax return is submitted.
However, tax inspectors often ignore the deadlines established by law, delaying the adoption of such a decision. And if at present the tax authorities do not face anything for such a violation, then from January 1, 2010, for violation of the deadline for canceling the decision, interest will be charged, payable to the taxpayer for each day of delay. Although the fine is small: the interest rate is taken equal to the refinancing rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, which was in effect on the days the tax authority violated this deadline (Federal Law of November 26, 2008 No. 224-FZ).
It should also be borne in mind that if the bank has received from the client a copy of the tax inspectorate canceling the decision to block the account, then the bank does not have the right to accept the copy for execution (see letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated May 31, 2007 No. 03-02-07/ 1-266). Consequently, until the bank receives the original decision of the tax inspectorate to lift the suspension of operations on the account, there is no hope of unblocking the account.
At the same time, the taxpayer, on the basis of a power of attorney received from the bank, can himself pick up the original decision to lift the suspension of operations on the account from the tax office, promptly delivering it to his bank. This completely legal way to speed up the process of unblocking an account was offered to taxpayers by the Russian Ministry of Finance in letter dated January 16, 2008 No. 03-02-07/1-16.

Olga Timanova, 3rd rank tax service advisor,
(Material provided by the Moscow Accountant magazine)

To begin with, an allegory, with your permission... Various folk legends tell of an interesting way of “re-educating” sinners in the “booths of hell”: they sail in a fragile boat on the sea, exhausted from thirst... And it seems like there is water overboard - even if it gets wet, they just try to scoop it up with a ladle, and she, mother, just walks away from them, just recoils. With finance, it often happens by analogy: the main client transfers you a very large (and very long-awaited) sum of money. It's time to finally pay your suppliers, but, alas, you won't be able to complete the expense transaction you need. The account is blocked due to your “unseemly behavior”. And there seems to be no one to blame but himself. Your counterparties are nervous, you are nervous, and the company’s activities are practically paralyzed. If one of our readers has never been in such a situation when there is money “as if there is”, but it “seems to be not there”, he is very lucky.

“You are to blame, correct yourself...”

The tax authority has the right to “freeze” the accounts of taxpayers for several reasons: failure to submit a tax return on time, even a “zero” one (the account is blocked completely, but taxes and salaries of employees can be paid from it) and failure to comply with the requirement to pay taxes, penalties and fines. In the latter case, the suspension of expense transactions is limited to the amount of taxes, penalties and fines specified in the tax demand. But the limitless imagination of tax officials is difficult to limit to any limits. A couple of years ago, a complete orgy was going on - local inspectors used this measure of influence even when there was a delay in submitting advance tax payments, certificates in Form No. 2-NDFL and financial statements. They were “frozen” for everything - no matter the inspection, it was the Snow Queen. Nowadays, such nonsense seems to almost never happen (the penalties for them have become more severe), but sometimes the accounts of organizations are completely blocked, while the total amount of funds on them exceeds the amount specified in the decision to block the account. Without going into an analysis of the specific situation as to whether the bank or tax authority is to blame in such circumstances, the organization has the right to contact the Federal Tax Service with a request to unblock the account in accordance with clause 9 of Art. 76 Tax Code of the Russian Federation. Of course, if the basis for suspending transactions on accounts was the taxpayer’s failure to comply with the requirement to pay a tax (fee).

They can still “freeze” it on the basis that the declaration submitted by the taxpayer seems “somewhat dubious” to them. That is, the presentation of such a declaration in their view cannot be considered a presentation. And letters from the Ministry of Finance dated July 12, 2007 No. 03 02 07/1-324 stating that defects in the submitted calculations do not in themselves indicate a failure to submit a declaration, as if they did not exist at all.

From theory to practice

The inspectorate has the right to block the company's account after the expiration of the 10-day period allotted for submitting the declaration. There is no restrictive period for such actions in the legislation. Even in 2012, any Inspectorate of the Federal Tax Service, which suddenly realizes that the insidious company “Romashka” owes it declarations for, say, 2007, can temporarily make it insolvent. However, if declarations are unexpectedly found, the inspectorate will respond with rubles.

In defrost mode

Well, if you are guilty, you need to correct yourself - the sooner the taxpayer files a tax return or pays the tax (fee), the faster it (the tax office) will unfreeze the account. The decision to unblock the account is made no later than the next day from the day of submission of outstanding declarations. And here - attention! Of course, “hurry slowly,” on the advice of the unforgettable Kozma Prutkov, is more expensive for yourself, because time in this case is money in the literal sense of the word. But it’s still worth “hurrying thoughtfully” so as not to create even bigger problems for yourself.

Make sure you are really at fault. After all, the decision to collect taxes may be made illegally. However, its invalidity must be challenged in a higher tax authority or in court, and this is already a long story.

"Frosty" penalty

From January 1, 2011, for illegal blocking of an account in favor of a taxpayer-organization, interest is accrued for each calendar day of the bank’s execution of the illegal decision (clause 9.2 of Article 76 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). The interest rate is taken equal to the Central Bank refinancing rate in effect on the days of the unlawful suspension of operations.

During your visit to the inspection, clarify the entire list of unsubmitted reports, and do not limit yourself to just a telephone conversation with the inspector - you may get confused or leave something unsaid, with or without intent. A copy of the decision to suspend account transactions is sent to the violator’s legal address, so at some point it will reach you and whether it will reach you at all. In addition, the decision may contain only one or a few declarations, but as soon as you rush headlong to correct the situation, more may emerge.

Black Friday

Natalia Nesterova, chief accountant:

“Our account was blocked for the first time (you have to start somewhere, why are we better than others), and I found out about this almost by accident, from the bank, and not from the inspectorate - we have not yet received any paper. I'm calling the tax office. They explain: for the absence of this and that... To the point, in general. I confess I didn’t notice. I find the necessary declarations, arrive, hoping that everything will soon return to normal, but a horror film begins. It turns out that the tax office does not have information about submitting a whole list of declarations for some obscure year. I’m trying to argue something like “but you told me on the phone yesterday...” To no avail. Yes, in the decision to block only two declarations are indicated, which they informed me about over the phone, but take them out and put everything else in, otherwise they won’t unblock them. I, being of sound mind and sober memory, and confident that what is required of us has already been handed over, nevertheless I go back to the office, find what is supposedly missing, together with the director (I had to involve him too) we bring the originals. Suddenly it turns out that this is not all. We understand that we have been “hit” specifically, so we will not argue, but humbly do everything that they want from us. Our courier delivers the missing items in two trips. We pay fines without trying to challenge their legality - God forbid we have to prove anything to them, as long as they open an account. One day was not enough for us - this whole epic began on Friday and ended by Wednesday. And they say we are lucky.”

“And do whatever you want with her...”

Really lucky... Ms. Nesterova escaped with a slight fright. It could be worse. Allow me one more allegory: everyone has probably seen on TV in the program “In the Animal World” how various game rangers and other forest orderlies, in company with veterinarians, immobilize various animals - from roe deer to tigers. They shoot at them from a special gun with an ampoule containing a “sedative”, and everything is fine - the tiger lies there, alive and relatively unharmed, and mercifully allows all sorts of manipulations to be done on itself - to measure from head to tail, to look into its mouth, to attach a tag to its ear. And I would be glad to bite or run away, but the fang is numb and the paws are weak. It’s very similar with companies that were blocked. In this case, the tax authorities have a reason to thoroughly delve into the ins and outs of the company - after all, at the moment, businessmen and accountants are entirely in their power and can “give up the slack.”

The chief accountant of the Utera company stirs his soul with memories Svetlana Koprisova: “Before I signed the decision to unblock, I was bullied for a very long time. I felt like I was being interrogated without a protocol or like a spy during a re-recruitment. We were wondering why our actual and legal addresses do not match? And where do we get these losses from (according to their calculations, there should be no losses at all, which means we are deceiving our native state). We checked whether VAT deductions and expenses attributable to profit were normal, and whether we paid all our employees a salary not lower than the subsistence level. They asked about the leadership casually. They just didn’t ask for a list of contractors.”

The quieter you go, the further you'll get...

After successful submission of declarations and payment, the decision to unblock the account is agreed upon with inspection officials and presented to the head of the inspection for signature. Then, according to Article 76 of the Tax Code, it is “transferred by an official of the tax authority to a representative of the bank at the location of this bank or sent by electronic channel or transmitted by other means, no later than the day following the day the decision is made.” In practice, tax authorities often distort this requirement: the “tail” of the words “no later than the day following the day the decision is made” is simply cut off, and sending the decision by mail is chosen as “other methods”, which has long become the talk of the town regarding its "efficiency".

There is money!

The request submitted to the inspection to cancel the blocking in relation to the excess of the amount of funds specified in the decision to suspend transactions on the bank accounts of the taxpayer-organization must be accompanied by documents confirming the availability of funds in the accounts specified in this application. Otherwise, the reversal of the decision will be delayed.

A representative of the company at fault can obtain a power of attorney from the bank to receive the decision of the tax authority and deliver it to the bank independently, but sometimes this also poses certain difficulties.(they can, for example, instead of a power of attorney, issue a certain covering letter with which they will “send you away” to the inspection). So the likelihood that the unblocking order will have to be delivered to the bank by a person “with a thick bag on his belt” is very high, especially if the inspectorate has a grudge against the company. Well, or just so that they stay on their toes and don’t break the law next time. When it will be delivered is a rhetorical question. A letter from one point in Moscow to another point in Moscow can take 15-20 days (tested on the author of the article, who received a congratulation on Defender of the Fatherland Day sent on February 10, exactly a few days before International Women’s Day). And letters have a bad habit of getting lost. So it’s good if your counterparties, to whom you will not pay for the delivery, are patient people...

The norm of paragraph 9.2 of Article 76 of the Tax Code, according to which “in the event of a violation by the tax authority of the deadline for sending to the bank a decision to lift the suspension of transactions on the organization’s accounts for the amount of funds in respect of which the suspension regime was in effect, interest is accrued to be paid to the taxpayer for each calendar day of violation deadline”, the tax authorities are not afraid. If they “squeeze”, everything will be sent to the post office. They say, but we thought that it would be delivered on the same day. That's bad luck...

The fact that the described difficulties with “unfreezing” still remain an objective reality and not “horror stories” is evidenced by the abundance of companies offering their mediation in resolving such problematic situations. The price varies from 20 to 40 thousand rubles. depending on the specific situation.

Has the ice broken?

Back in February 2011, the then member of the State Duma Banking Committee and also the Financial Ombudsman of the Russian Federation, Pavel Medvedev, tried to speed up the actions of tax officials regarding the unfreezing of bank accounts, proposing to include in the Tax Code a rule stating that the tax authority is obliged to transfer decisions on suspension to the bank. and the resumption of transactions of a taxpayer-organization on its accounts only in electronic form, no later than the day following the day such a decision was made. Document No. 500686-5, which provides for corresponding amendments to Article 76 of the Tax Code, lay motionless in parliament for a year and only very recently was finally adopted only in the first reading. However, the joy that soon the “unlock extension” through paperwork will finally sink into oblivion may turn out to be premature. The fact is that representatives of the Russian government, having supported the document conceptually, proposed making certain adjustments to it. Namely, to delay “the entry into force of the provisions of Article 76 of the Tax Code on the exclusion of tax authorities from submitting to banks decisions on suspension (cancellation of suspension) of transactions on the accounts of taxpayer organizations in banks on paper.” The reason given is that not all banks are yet connected to the electronic document management system.

Hello Ms. Logic

In letter dated January 19, 2012 No. 03-02-07/1-21, the Ministry of Finance recognized the right of banks to “independently” close the seized accounts of organizations excluded from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities. Previously, they could do this only after completing such a formality as the inspectorate making a decision to cancel the blocking. The inspectors, in turn, insisted that the Tax Code does not provide for such a basis for lifting a seizure from an account as “liquidation of a legal entity.” The Ministry of Finance restored the interrupted logical chain, indicating, with reference to Art. Art. 61, 62, 419 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, that the liquidation of a legal entity in itself implies the termination of its obligations. Therefore, the tax authority’s decision to lift the suspension of transactions on the accounts of this organization is unnecessary.

The fact is that such amendments will be proposed for the second reading, and more than one, Mosbukh’s interlocutor, deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Budget and Taxes Sergey Shtogrin, has almost no doubt. The author of the bill, Pavel Medvedev, has already resigned as a deputy, without waiting for the “trial” of his brainchild; the composition of the government, which sent a “conceptually positive” review, tantamount to a negative one, should also change soon. Consequently, there are several options for the development of events: either the deputies will launch the bill for approval with officials in the second round, to clarify, so to speak, the position (which will take a lot of time), or already in the spring session, having cast aside all doubts and the fear of angering officials, they will boldly accept... the bare concept, to the delight of the tax authorities, postponing the entry into force of the innovation itself for an indefinite period. Or they will simply put the document on a shelf and forget about its existence for the time being. So the thaw may not come as soon as we would like, apparently. In the meantime, don’t let yourself “freeze”...

Recently, cases of blocking funds of individuals who have been found guilty or suspected of extremist activities have become more frequent. At the same time, “salary” and “social” cards were also distributed. What should clients do if their bank account has been frozen?

Legislation

The legal basis is laid down in Federal Law No. 115 “On Combating Money Laundering”. In part 1 of Art. 7 of this document states that banks are obliged to freeze funds of persons suspected of involvement in extremist activities. In this case, the basis for including a person on such a list is a corresponding court decision. In other cases, you don’t have to worry about whether your bank accounts will be frozen. carry out these operations without communicating with the client, but on the basis of entering his data into the list of suspects. As practice shows, filing complaints and applications does not lead to the release of funds.

Roughly speaking, the law prohibits the “suspect” from using money that belongs to him. But the same document states that benefits and pensions that are guaranteed by the state, as well as salaries that are regulated by the Labor Code, should not be subject to the law. But practice shows that if a bank account is frozen, the person will not gain access to it until he is excluded from the Rosfinmonitoring list. The source of funds is not taken into account.

The bank has frozen the account: what to do?

In accordance with the “Regulations on the Rules for Transferring” benefits guaranteed by the state, which older people receive by mail, do not apply to Another thing is that many pensioners today receive money on a credit institution card. If such a person has his bank account frozen, he must write an application to the Pension Fund branch with a request to deliver the benefit through a postal organization. If the registration address does not coincide with the place of residence, then this information must also be conveyed to the government agency.

For “extremists” who receive cash benefits through the Social Insurance Fund (maternity leave, sick leave, etc.), it is necessary to follow the same steps: write an application to the Social Insurance Fund with a request to receive payments through post offices. Then it doesn’t matter whether bank accounts are frozen. A person will still receive money guaranteed by the state.

If it doesn't work

First, it is important to remember that failure to receive benefits for 6 consecutive months will result in a suspension of benefits. Therefore, if the scheme described above does not work, you must immediately contact the branch of the government agency at the place of service and report this problem. In practice, such cases have not yet occurred.

They don't give out salaries

This issue is resolved even faster. The Labor Code of the Russian Federation states that remuneration for work is paid at the place of work. The transfer of funds to the card must be justified by an appropriate statement or Therefore, if a bank account is frozen, in the first case it is necessary to write an application addressed to the employer with a request to receive wages from the company's cash desk. The copy of the paper indicates the number and date of recording. The application can also be sent with acknowledgment of receipt. In the second case, it is necessary to write a paper addressed to the director with a request to make changes to a specific paragraph of the Labor Code of the latest edition. A draft additional agreement and the text of the amended clause are attached to it. The employer has the right to refuse the employee this request. Then you need to close the “salary” account. The employer will not be able to fulfill its obligation and will be forced to sign an additional agreement. As a last resort, you will have to go to court. Such a decision will definitely have consequences for the employee.

There are different rules abroad

A few months ago, Spanish authorities blocked Russians’ access to funds. Why did banks freeze accounts? Citizens of the Russian Federation did not explain the origin of the capital in time. According to the law of the country, foreigners are required to justify the appearance of income invested in real estate or assets. Sanctions fell on people who did not respond to relevant requests from the authorities in a timely manner. The authorities also require that property outside Spain be declared. Violators face a fine of 10 thousand euros. But many victims do not even try to correct the situation, because they are afraid to request such certificates in Russia.

What is the reason

Persons classified as “rich” must pay the difference between income tax in the Russian Federation and Spain. And this is 13% and 52%, respectively. The basis for calculations is the income certificate. This is where all the problems come from. If a person’s bank account has been frozen, in order to regain access to funds, you need to bring a certificate, accordingly, notify the authorities about the ownership of property abroad, pay tax in the Russian Federation and the difference to the Spanish budget.

Conclusion

Rosfinmonitoring compiles a list of persons suspected of carrying out extremist activities or terrorism. It is regularly reviewed by credit institutions, and if there is a match, access to funds is blocked. In this case, all receipts on the card are distributed. The good news is that a person can regain access to their pension, benefits and salary. Which banks froze the accounts does not matter in this case. These payments are guaranteed by the state and the labor code, and therefore are not subject to the law on money laundering.

It’s quite unpleasant to find out one day that your bank account is frozen. This can be either a salary card, a deposit account or even a current account. For some reason, it suddenly turns out that money can flow into this account. And perhaps you can even find out about this through SMS notifications. But you cannot use this money - neither withdraw nor transfer. The first thing to do in this case is to contact the bank. There are several reasons for freezing an account, and the reverse process will certainly require some action from you.

You are suspected

One of the main reasons for freezing business accounts is suspicion of illegal activity. Money laundering, tax evasion, terrorist financing, all this becomes a reason for a criminal investigation and until its completion the account owner does not have access to it. Suspicious payments from abroad, an unusual large transfer from an unfamiliar account, too much cash deposit, if this is unusual for this account, the bank may consider it a sign that you are engaged in illegal activities.

It happens, although extremely rarely, that the accounts of individuals are frozen for this reason, and sometimes it happens that such suspicions of banks are unfounded. They are simply trying to play it safe so that in the event of a criminal investigation against their clients, they will not suffer. If a mistake occurred, you will need to prove it to the bank.

Bank account blocked due to debts

The easiest way to return the money lent out, if the borrower voluntarily refuses to do so, is to collect the collateral. Or collect this money from the guarantor, who will have to pay someone else’s debt. Or recover any other property belonging to the debtor. But selling any property, even the most liquid, will require time and some effort. This is why banks are so willing to lend against deposits. If the collateral is already money, it is enough to cancel the debtor’s rights to it, and that’s it.

To be fair, it should be said that until a court decision, any accounts and money on them can only be frozen. But the bank will be able to collect them in its favor only by winning a court case.

And don’t be fooled by the fact that you took out a loan from one bank, receive your salary from a second, and have a deposit in a third. In such cases, banks always cooperate with each other, which means that if necessary, they will certainly exchange all information.

You owe the state

The third case where your account may be frozen is tax evasion. You probably simply forgot to indicate on your tax return that you received a car as a gift, or that you worked two jobs and paid taxes on only one paycheck. And the state fiscal service works diligently to identify such “forgetful” citizens. After the warning, if it is not heeded, such a service will instruct bailiffs to search for all your assets. And if they are found, your accounts will be the first to be frozen.

When the card is blocked

Account freezing should not be confused with. In fact, plastic is only a tool that allows you to use money from your account without visiting the bank. You can pay by card, withdraw cash, and check your account status. But losing the card or blocking it will in no way affect the account balance, you will still be able to use it, and the bank will re-issue the card.