Increasingly, citizens complain: "Sold the car, but the tax comes!" What to do in this situation? How can such a phenomenon be considered legal? In fact, everything is simpler than it seems. It is enough to understand some features of the transport tax, as well as Russian legislation. And then citizens will have no problems. What to look for? Why may the tax on the sold vehicle come? Where and in what order should I turn in a similar situation?
About transport tax
The first step is to understand what kind of payment is involved. Transport tax is an annual tax that is paid by all vehicle owners. It is calculated at the regional level, taking into account many features.
Accordingly, you will have to pay for a car that is owned from year to year. But you can get rid of this payment. How exactly? Change car owner. And not only actually, but also documented. The only way it turns out is not to pay money for the car legally. And no other way.
When changing ownership
If the seller suddenly received a tax on the sold car, do not panic. According to the rules established in Russia, a change of ownership of property removes tax liability from the previous owner. This prerogative passes to the new owner. The rule is relevant for any property.
That is, as soon as the owner of the car changes, the previous owner should not receive taxes for the vehicle. But there are exceptions. In any case, there is no reason to panic. Did you get tax on the car sold? To pay or not? The answer depends on the specific situation. What scenarios can take place?
About payment features
In order to fully understand how legitimate the claims made by tax authorities are, it is necessary to learn about some of the features of tax payments. What is it about?
The fact is that if a citizen sold a car, and the tax comes, then the phenomenon can be considered legal. Especially in situations in which the sale took place recently. Why?
According to the established rules, a citizen pays for his property in the year following the one in which the property was acquired. In other words, if you bought a car in 1999, then the tax will come in 2000.
Accordingly, this feature should be taken into account by every citizen. So, if a transport tax has come on a recently sold car, one need not be surprised. The requirement is legal. Indeed, in the coming year you will have to pay for the previous 12 (or less) months of ownership of property. In this situation, you have to pay.
By proxy
Now in Russia very often property becomes property by proxy. That is, the buyer and the seller conclude an unspoken transaction with settlement, but the power of attorney is drawn up according to the documents. In fact, the purchase and sale of a vehicle takes place.
If this is the case - a person sold a car, and the tax comes, then such actions can also be considered legal. After all, the transfer of property to property by proxy is the granting of temporary rights to a car. According to the documents, the real owner of the property remains the previous owner.
Accordingly, you will have to pay for the car in full. That is why it is not recommended to conclude an imaginary sale by proxy. Such frauds cause a lot of problems to sellers.
Under contract
And if the transaction was concluded in accordance with all established rules? What if the tax on the sold car came under a sales contract? It has already been said - it all depends on the specific situation.
In the year following the year of the transaction, the tax will have to be paid in full, but taking into account the number of months of ownership of the car. It is worth noting that even if in a given month the transport was in ownership for several days, rounding will occur in a larger direction. In other words, the month is set off as a full one when calculating the tax.
But if, after the specified period, transport taxes continue to come, you do not need to pay them. But you should not leave the phenomenon unattended either. It is the property owners who must pay for their car!
Excluding
Did you get tax on the sold car? This is a common occurrence that should not cause panic. If the transaction was officially concluded, then the reason for this phenomenon may be that the buyer did not register with the traffic police within 10 days. That is how much time is allotted to a citizen to place a car in the traffic police after concluding a purchase and sale transaction.
In this situation, it is recommended to contact the tax service at your place of residence, as well as the traffic police. Employees will have to provide evidence of the transfer of the car into the ownership of another citizen. And then taxes will stop coming in the name of the seller.
Causes of Incidents
And why can the situation under study arise at all? All problems have their own reasons. In the case of taxes, they are more than enough. Why does the tax on the car that he sold comes?
Among the most common causes are the following:
- The deal was fraudulently executed. For example, property is transferred by proxy to the property of the buyer. Taxes come to the seller lawfully.
- We are talking about tax in previous years, in which the seller still owned a car. Also quite a legal requirement. Paying such a tax is necessary in any case.
- Failure in the tax service. Sometimes tax notifications come to citizens by mistake. It is not necessary to pay in this situation, but it is necessary to clarify all the nuances regarding the invoice.
- The buyer did not register on time in the traffic police. If the tax on the sold car came under a sales contract that was legalized, you won’t need to pay. All responsibility for the property will be borne by the buyer. It is enough to prove the legitimacy of the transaction.
- Failures in the traffic police system. They are equivalent to failures in tax authorities. As a rule, they are not found too often. No pay required.
From now on, it is clear for what reasons a notification of payment of a transport tax may come. This situation requires great attention from both the buyer and the seller.
Where to go
The car is sold, but the car tax comes? If the transaction was legal, and payments for all previous months of ownership of a vehicle have been paid off, the seller must contact certain authorities. Where exactly?
Several options are suggested.
- Handling documents confirming the transaction and transfer of property to another owner to the tax authorities at their place of residence. The citizen in this situation confirms the fact that the car no longer belongs to him. And so he should not pay for it.
- Writing a statement of the established form in the traffic police. The process is not much different from contacting the tax authorities. The tax on the sold car came, the contract is lost? Then you have to either prove in other ways the fact of a deal or pay. More often than not, it is possible to realize precisely the first option.
They rarely go to court in the circumstances under study. As a rule, they sue mainly buyers who have not fulfilled their obligations.
How to act if taxes come
So, the citizen received a tax on the car sold. What to do? You can use a few tips to help get rid of unnecessary problems.
More specifically, a citizen can:
- Deal with the buyer personally. For example, call and find out what’s the matter. It is required by all means to try to contact the buyer. If the number is unknown, a notification letter will be sent. It describes in detail the situation, as well as the request to arrange a car according to the law. All documents that can confirm attempts to communicate with the buyer must be retained.
- Contact the traffic police with documents confirming the transaction, as well as paying tax for the period of ownership of a vehicle before sale. Usually after this step, the search for the buyer will begin with the aim of imposing liability on him for the illegal use of the car without registering it.
- Break a previously concluded contract. Did you get tax on the sold car? What to do? As an option - refuse the transaction, pay the tax and then either use the transport, or draw up a similar transaction with a responsible person. Money for the car will have to be returned to the buyer.
All these are the most common options. Obviously, one should not leave the situation unattended. And pay on all tax notifications that came too.
Before decisive action
If a citizen received a road tax on a sold car, there is no need to rush to collect documents proving the concluded car purchase and sale transaction. The first and very important point will be a careful study of the receipt received.
It is likely that the period for which the tax is accrued is the time in which the citizen owned this or that property. For him, as has been repeatedly said, you will have to pay. Failure to pay threatens not only a fine, but also penalties that are accrued for late tax payments.
Accordingly, before you go to the tax or the traffic police, you need to make sure that the payment is not legal. Only in this case can decisive action be taken. Otherwise, all manipulations will only take the time of a citizen. And in the end, taxes will still have to be paid in full.
Tips & Tricks
Each vehicle seller can be given several recommendations that will help to avoid future problems when concluding transactions. A citizen sold a car, but the tax comes? To avoid such situations, it is enough:
- Conduct a transaction only with bona fide buyers. It is recommended in advance to find out all the contacts for communication with a citizen. This applies to registration and phones.
- At the same time, de-register vehicles and require the buyer to register the property with the traffic police on the day of the transaction, for example. Most often, this is the scenario.
- Remember that there is no legal wording "proxy sale" in Russia. In such circumstances, property is transferred only temporarily. And payments (fines, taxes, and so on) will lie legally on the potential seller. Therefore, it is best to exclude transactions related to the power of attorney.
- It is advisable to accompany the sale by a lawyer. So both parties will be protected from unfair behavior of sellers or buyers.
- Put all documents in one place, store them, make copies and certify with a notary. It is important not to lose evidence indicating that the property has been transferred to the new owner. Otherwise, taxes will come in the name of the seller. And evade them will not work.
All these are wonderful ways that will protect both the buyer and the seller from unnecessary problems. In fact, everything is simpler than it seems. In fact, only the right preparation helps solve tax problems.
Summary and Conclusions
From now on, it is clear what to do if the car is sold, and the tax on the car comes. In fact, everything is simpler than it seems. A car sold in accordance with all the rules will not cause inconvenience to the seller.
No need to be afraid to claim your rights and the deal. After all, these or other bodies do not always work properly. And everyone should remember this. If a citizen can definitely say that the tax comes illegally, you do not need to pay it. Will have to take decisive action to achieve justice.