Russian Parliament Considering New Rules on Taxation of Gains from Indirect Sales of Real Estate through Foreign Companies

The Russian parliament is considering draft Law no. 985268-7, which was submitted on 8 July 2020 and provides a new mechanism for the taxation of gains from the indirect alienation of real estate in Russia through a foreign company.

Currently, gains from the alienation of shares in a company deriving more than 50% of their value from real estate situated in Russia may be taxed at the standard 20% tax rate. However, this only applies where the buyer is a Russian company or a foreign company o…