Adjustment of the state's criminal policy in the field of tax crimes: topical enforcement issues

Introduction. The article examines the specifics of law enforcement in criminal cases initiated in the field of legal relations related to the calculation and payment of legally established taxes. Since 2001, the state's criminal policy in the field of tax crime has been consistently adjusted towards liberalization. Complex legislative formulations, procedural procedures, the need for interdepartmental coordination of materials containing signs of tax crimes significantly reduce the preventive significance of the criminal law prohibition, as well as provoke taxpayers to use illegal tax minimization schemes.
Materials and methods. In the course of writing the work, a set of general scientific, formal-logical methods was used (including methods of cognition, description, analysis, induction, deduction, comparison, analogy, systematization, modeling) and special methods (formal-legal, historical, comparative-legal, structural-legal methods; the method of content analysis of official documents that determine the procedure and grounds for initiating criminal cases on tax crimes).
Research results. An analysis of criminal and
criminal procedure legislation in the field of tax crimes showed the low efficiency of operationalsearch and criminal procedure activities, as well as the presence of constant «windows» of opportunities for taxpayers to evade liability provided for by law.
The constant increase in the thresholds of large and especially large tax evasion, more than modest statute of limitations for criminal liability for tax crimes, as well as other factors, indicate that the priority is the financial and economic component, namely, compensation for damage caused to the state, and not means of criminal repression.
Discussion and conclusion. The study showed that a number of current legislative norms of Russian legislation in the field of tax crimes create conditions for the use of schemes for illegal tax optimization. In the context of unprecedented sanctions pressure on the economy and financial system of the Russian Federation, compliance with tax discipline, as well as timely and full payment of taxes, become a condition for the survival of the state and the preservation of its sovereignty.
In connection with the above, amendments to the current legislation have been proposed aimed at increasing the effectiveness of measures of criminal law protection of the tax sphere.

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