Police deprived of right to detain grannies selling seeds
Now they will be controlled by the tax inspectorate.
The article about responsibility for trade in an inappropriate place has been changed in the new Administrative Code. The police will no longer detain people selling sunflower seeds in pedestrian subways. At the same time it is still not clear who is going to be happy about the new rules – the police or sellers. Tamara Pyatrouna, a seeds seller working near the supermarket “Riga” told ERB whether grannies felt the changes in the legislation:
“The police are still chasing us. They detain us and say we have to be fined for trade in an inappropriate place. They haven’t detained us this year because we managed to escape. Being 70 years old we still have to run away. Any fine for us is big. Our pension is 260 thousands. Is it possible to survive like that? If you go and sell something you don’t have to beg for money”.
Alyaksandr Lastouskі, an employee of the press centre of Minsk City Executive Committee Department of the Interior, told ERB that the police are no longer allowed to detain grannies selling seeds starting from March 1. They can’t even make them leave:
“The new Administrative Code does suggest any responsibility for trade in an inappropriate place. So the police cannot deal with such cases now. The only thing they can do is inform people about responsibility and ask sellers to leave. Now the cases will be taken care of by the tax inspectorate and the sanitation service”.
Major Kazak, head inspector of the police office near the Kamarouski market, informed that the police only suggest such sellers moving to the market:
“Policemen only warn them about responsibility for tax evasion. They also suggest them moving to the market”.
Granny Zoya, a flower seller working near the Kamarouski market, informed ERB that the police have become less strict this year:
“If they chase us we run. Sometimes they detain somebody and take to the police office. They took away our flowers and made us pay fines. But it has become easier to work this year”.
But it is too early to relax – the tax inspectorate will deal with grannies from now on. There is a special raid department in every district. Several taxi drivers have already been fined according to the article “Unregistered activity” since the implementation of the new Code.
Volha Mulyavіna, the deputy head of the raid department of the tax inspectorate of Savetski District of Minsk (the district where the Kamarouski market is situated), explained to ERB that the tax inspectorate can fine grannies for 1.5 million BRB:
“There is responsibility for illegal business. If you work without registration or permission you will be fined for 10-50 base amounts and your goods will be confiscated”.
The only way out for grannies is to send an appeal to the tax inspectorate and ask for permission to vend 60 days per year without any registration. In this case they will have to pay the state 35 euro per month:
“It is necessary to come to the tax inspectorate, register as an entrepreneur and it will be possible to vend 60 days per year without any registration. But the fixed tax for it is 35 euro per month”.
In this case it will be possible to vend only 5 days per month. If a granny decides to legalize her work she will have to be selling 42 glasses of seeds per day. It will be enough to “return” the money paid for the registration but not the expenses for seeds. It is hardly possible…
The article about responsibility for trade in an inappropriate place has been changed in the new Administrative Code. The police will no longer detain people selling sunflower seeds in pedestrian subways. At the same time it is still not clear who is going to be happy about the new rules – the police or sellers. Tamara Pyatrouna, a seeds seller working near the supermarket “Riga” told ERB whether grannies felt the changes in the legislation:
“The police are still chasing us. They detain us and say we have to be fined for trade in an inappropriate place. They haven’t detained us this year because we managed to escape. Being 70 years old we still have to run away. Any fine for us is big. Our pension is 260 thousands. Is it possible to survive like that? If you go and sell something you don’t have to beg for money”.
Alyaksandr Lastouskі, an employee of the press centre of Minsk City Executive Committee Department of the Interior, told ERB that the police are no longer allowed to detain grannies selling seeds starting from March 1. They can’t even make them leave:
“The new Administrative Code does suggest any responsibility for trade in an inappropriate place. So the police cannot deal with such cases now. The only thing they can do is inform people about responsibility and ask sellers to leave. Now the cases will be taken care of by the tax inspectorate and the sanitation service”.
Major Kazak, head inspector of the police office near the Kamarouski market, informed that the police only suggest such sellers moving to the market:
“Policemen only warn them about responsibility for tax evasion. They also suggest them moving to the market”.
Granny Zoya, a flower seller working near the Kamarouski market, informed ERB that the police have become less strict this year:
“If they chase us we run. Sometimes they detain somebody and take to the police office. They took away our flowers and made us pay fines. But it has become easier to work this year”.
But it is too early to relax – the tax inspectorate will deal with grannies from now on. There is a special raid department in every district. Several taxi drivers have already been fined according to the article “Unregistered activity” since the implementation of the new Code.
Volha Mulyavіna, the deputy head of the raid department of the tax inspectorate of Savetski District of Minsk (the district where the Kamarouski market is situated), explained to ERB that the tax inspectorate can fine grannies for 1.5 million BRB:
“There is responsibility for illegal business. If you work without registration or permission you will be fined for 10-50 base amounts and your goods will be confiscated”.
The only way out for grannies is to send an appeal to the tax inspectorate and ask for permission to vend 60 days per year without any registration. In this case they will have to pay the state 35 euro per month:
“It is necessary to come to the tax inspectorate, register as an entrepreneur and it will be possible to vend 60 days per year without any registration. But the fixed tax for it is 35 euro per month”.
In this case it will be possible to vend only 5 days per month. If a granny decides to legalize her work she will have to be selling 42 glasses of seeds per day. It will be enough to “return” the money paid for the registration but not the expenses for seeds. It is hardly possible…
