An agreement between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Tax Ministry is signed

AN AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH AND THE TAX MINISTRY IS SIGNED

An agreement between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian Federation Tax Ministry was signed by His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia and the Tax Minister Mr. Gennady I.Bukayev at the Patriarchal residence in St.Daniel’s Monastery on October 27.

Addressing the journalists before the signing of the agreement, the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church said: ‘We have established good relations with the Tax Ministry. Today, when we are signing the agreement on cooperation, we express our thanks to the Ministry, which is ready to prepare and hold seminars for our church workers and accountants, who need a clear information from the primary source on taxes paid by the Russian Orthodox Church and all citizens of the Russian Federation. On our part, we are prepared to assist the Tax Ministry in the matters of spirituality and morality.’

According to the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church, there were many different interpretations in the mass media of the registration of the tax-payers. His Holiness thanked Mr. Bukayev and the Tax Ministry for having met the request of the believers. At present it is not necessary to put in an application, and the tax-payers will fill in a questionnaire. ‘There are no pin codes either in a questionnaire, or in a social card’, – emphasised His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II.

Mr. Bukayev expressed his hope that the believing Russians would set a good example of being conscientious tax-payers’ and promised that the Ministry would ‘ render all necessary methodological assistance’ to them.

His Holiness the Patriarch congratulated Mr.Bukayev and all personnel of the Ministry with the 10th anniversary of the Tax Inspectorate and wished them the blessed success. As a sign of his primatial blessing, he presented the Tax Ministry with the icon of St.Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist, who was a publican, or a tax collector, but was called by God and became a disciple and apostle of Christ the Saviour.