Skip to content
banking-and-insurance — Mastering Poker Bankroll Management — Master Poker Tactics

Sberbank's VAT Reimbursement Eases Costs for 4,000 Far East Businesses

A simple Sberbank program is putting cash back in the pockets of small businesses. Could half a million more join by year's end?

,   and  Administrator
2 min read
The image shows an old business card with a stamp on it. The card has text written on it, likely...
The image shows an old business card with a stamp on it. The card has text written on it, likely describing the contents of the card.

Sberbank's VAT Reimbursement Eases Costs for 4,000 Far East Businesses

April 29 — Over 4,000 entrepreneurs in Russia's Far East received a 50% VAT reimbursement on card acquiring fees in the first quarter of this year under a Sberbank program designed to support small businesses, the bank reports.

As a reminder, since January 1, 2026, all companies that accept card payments have been subject to a 22% VAT on acquiring services. Since small businesses—most of which do not pay VAT—cannot reclaim this tax, their operating costs have risen. To mitigate the financial burden, Sberbank launched a special initiative: the bank refunds 50% of the value-added tax on acquiring commissions to entrepreneurs with annual revenues under 20 million rubles.

The program has already proven valuable for small enterprises—neighborhood shops, local cafés, beauty salons, and veterinary clinics among them. Ronta Sokolova, Deputy Head of Sberbank's Chukotka Regional Office, explained: "Joining the program is straightforward: businesses need an active acquiring agreement with Sberbank, a current account, and no VAT obligations. The entire application process takes just a few minutes and can be completed via SberBusiness online banking. Entrepreneurs can enroll or opt out at any time, which is why the program has seen such high demand—more than half of our new acquiring clients took advantage of it in the first quarter alone."

In the Magadan Region and the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, 157 entrepreneurs have already received payments totaling nearly 650,000 rubles. Across the Far East, over 4,000 business owners have used the program to recoup part of their expenses, with total reimbursements reaching 16.5 million rubles. Participants praise the transparency of the calculations and the ease of the application process. Compensation is disbursed quarterly within five business days of the quarter's end.

Bank analysts forecast that up to 500,000 more entrepreneurs nationwide could join the program by year-end. The terms differ for medium and large VAT-paying businesses: they can reclaim the VAT charged by the bank based on invoices received.

Card acquiring is a banking service that enables businesses and organizations to accept payments for goods and services via bank cards, smartphones, and other contactless devices at physical points of sale.

Read also:

Related

Latest