On July 21, the State Duma adopted in the second and third readings a package of amendments to the Tax Code aimed at stabilizing the situation in the fuel market. The document was published in the Duma database on the same day.
The key change is the expansion of the fuel damper to medium distillates. From July 2026 to June 2027, inclusive, the payment of a damper will be introduced for the sale of medium distillates on the domestic market, a fuel similar in characteristics to diesel, in the amount provided for diesel fuel itself. But the condition is fundamental: payments will be made only during those tax periods when restrictions on the export of both diesel fuel and aviation kerosene were in effect in the previous month. If at least one of the two restrictions is lifted, the average distillate damper is not charged for this period.
A separate set of amendments concerns the adjustment of exchange regulations and the expansion of the capabilities of refineries that have concluded agreements on capacity modernization. According to the State Duma, the changes are designed to boost fuel supplies to the domestic market and ensure the emergence of additional strategic fuel reserves.
The second block of the law, which is not directly related to fuel, regulates the taxation of digital financial assets. The specifics of taxation of transactions with shares of economically significant organizations and the accounting procedure for interest on debt digital financial assets when calculating income tax are determined. The law also excludes from the income tax base the income and expenses of administrators of incentive programs for international companies related to the acquisition and transfer of shares to participants in such programs.
For oil refiners, a practical conclusion is that the damper for medium distillates should be calculated monthly and with a condition check — whether both export restrictions were in effect at the same time in the previous month. There will be no automatic payment, as for conventional diesel fuel. Companies working with digital financial assets and owning shares in economically significant organizations should review the income tax calculation model for the new rules for accounting for interest and transactions with shares before the end of the current tax period.
