An individual entrepreneur in the IT field has to decide to terminate his activities in Belarus in different circumstances. This article considers the main features and procedures necessary for liquidating sole proprietors in the field of information technology in Belarus.
The closing date of the sole proprietor’s activity
Closing an individual entrepreneur’s activities voluntarily is not a quick procedure that can last up to six months. This may be due to a possible inspection of activities by the tax inspectorate and the Social Protection Fund, which have time to draw up an inspection report.
At the initiative of the registering authority, an individual entrepreneur may close their activities if he/she has not been working for 24 months.
What does the closure of an individual entrepreneur mean?
By the decision of the body that registered the individual entrepreneur, sole proprietors are excluded from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities and Individual Entrepreneurs. The payer’s registration number (UNP) can be checked in the Unified State Register. It will have the status “Excluded from the Unified State Register”.
If the sole proprietor had obligations to other persons or companies, these obligations do not cease after the sole proprietor is excluded from the Unified State Register. Obligations are transferred to an individual who, without the status of an individual entrepreneur, must fulfil them.
Where to apply to close the activities of an individual entrepreneur
To close an individual entrepreneur’s activities, you need to apply to the registration authority, which issues a certificate of state registration. The form of such an application has been established and is usually available at the registration authority.
What documents should be applied to the registration authority with
In addition to the application for termination of business activity, the employee of the registering authority must show an identity document and a document on payment for publication on termination of activity in the journal “Justice of Belarus”.
The sole proprietor can apply to the registration authority not independently but through a representative. In this case, you must issue the representative a notarized power of attorney.
Is it possible to close the IP remotely
Submitting documents to start the termination procedure remotely only for sole proprietors with an electronic digital signature is possible. Documents are submitted electronically through the web portal of the Unified State Register of Legal Entities and Individual Entrepreneurs. The application for termination of the sole proprietor’s activity is signed with an electronic digital signature, and the necessary documents are attached in PDF format.
When is it better to wait for the termination of activity
If a supervisory authority plans to inspect an individual entrepreneur’s activities, the registration authority will not terminate them. Therefore, waiting until the end of such a check is better. The sole proprietor is asked for documents for verification to be brought to the inspection body. After verification, the tax inspectorate and the Social Protection Fund of the Population send the registration authority a certificate of absence or the presence of debt.
You can find out about the planned inspection on the State Control Committee of Belarus website. When there is no data on the IP verification in the audit plan, you can contact the registration authority.
Features of termination of the activities of sole proprietors who have employees
Usually, sole proprietors in the IT field do not have employees, simplifying the termination process. However, if there are such employees, they must be fired before sending documents for termination of activity.
There are different ways to fire employees correctly. After employees are dismissed, documents on their work are handed over to the territorial archive.
In addition, regarding employees, you need to submit a report to the Belgosstrakh, forms to the Social Protection Fund, and a confirmation to the registration authority. If this is not done, the registration authority will not terminate the sole proprietor’s activities.
Consult an experienced lawyer about the intricacies of filing dismissals and submitting documents to government agencies and archives.
Is it necessary to conduct a voluntary audit
Sole proprietors have the right, but not the obligation, to audit their activities before terminating them. An audit helps to reduce the likelihood of tax and customs authorities verifying. If a decision is made on an audit, an agreement must be reached with the auditor, and payment will be made according to the auditor’s tariffs.
If it was decided to contact the auditor and his conclusion is reached, it must be transferred to the tax, customs, and Belgosstrakh departments. The conclusion must be submitted to these state bodies within 20 working days after applying for termination of activity.
Payment for the termination announcement
In Belarus, announcements about the termination of the activities of sole proprietors and companies are published on the Justice of Belarus magazine website. To publish, you must pay 32 Belarusian rubles and save the payment document. The sole proprietor does not need to send anything to the magazine’s editorial office. The payment document must be attached to the application for termination of activity and sent to the registration authority. The registration authority itself sends a notice of termination to the editorial office.
Consequences of the publication of the announcement
It is necessary to check the announcement’s publication on the journal “Justice of Belarus” website. It is usually published on the second business day. After the publication of the announcement of the termination of activity, the termination of activity has officially begun. From now on, the sole proprietor can use his bank accounts only for transactions related to the termination of activities. In this case, a problem may arise if the bank account that is used for the sole proprietor’s activities is the only account. Usually, in this case, the usual daily expenses and utility bills are paid from such an account. Therefore, before starting the termination process, we recommend dividing bank accounts into personal and business accounts.
What to pay attention to when you stop working
In the application for termination of activity, you must specify the date from which it is planned to cease operating. The termination process cannot last more than 9 months. This must be taken into account when terminating activities. It is possible to extend the termination of activity later, but with the expectation that the entire process should not last more than 12 months.
What to do when there are debts
The legislation does not define the deadline for payments to creditors upon termination of an individual entrepreneur’s activity. However, it is possible to focus on the two-month period, as it is determined to satisfy creditors’ claims in the liquidation of companies.
Creditors must be settled in order of priority. Usually, individual entrepreneurs in the IT sector do not have creditors, but you need to understand that you need to pay all amounts to contractors and the state. Such payments include payments under contract agreements and taxes. Taxes must be paid by the 22nd of the month following the month when the tax return is filed.
If suddenly the property cannot settle with all creditors, you must go into bankruptcy proceedings.
What to do after applying for termination of activity
A tax return must be submitted to the tax inspectorate within 5 working days of the application for termination of activity being submitted to the registration authority.
The tax return is submitted for the past tax period. If the tax period has not expired, the declaration is submitted from the beginning to the day of applying for termination of activity.
You need to submit a PU-3 report on yourself to the Social Protection Fund.
An individual entrepreneur’s original certificate of state registration must be submitted to the registration authority.
How to contact us
For more information or advice on issues related to the termination of the activity of an individual entrepreneur in the IT field, do not hesitate to contact us. We are here to help and support you.
For your convenience, phone and e-mail communication options are available:
- +375293664477 (WhatsApp/Telegram/Viber);
- info@spex.by.
