Can facsimiles be used on invoices?

Facsimile - from antiquity to the present day

The ancestor of the modern facsimile can be considered an ancient sign (often with an image of an animal) that our ancestors placed on property or livestock to indicate their ownership.
This helped in resolving disputes and disagreements regarding the determination of the owner of any material value. Gradually, the seals acquired a more civilized appearance; instead of signs and pictures, personalized coats of arms began to appear on them, identifying the identity of the owner of the seal. They were used for certification of various documents. Seals of this type, to which we are all accustomed, first appeared in the Ancient East, where trade was well developed - they were used to seal trade agreements.

Nowadays, you can find a huge variety of seals and stamps - from the “Redeemed” stamp used in cash documents to official seals that crown important government regulations.

One of the varieties of modern printing is facsimile. Dictionaries decipher this term as “an exact reproduction of a graphic original by photographic or printed means.” Businessmen by this word mean a cliché seal that reproduces the signature of an official.

Facsimile signature and seal in BP 3.0

A facsimile of the logo, seal, signature of the head of the organization and the chief accountant in 1C 8.3 is configured in the organization card ( Main - Organizations

). Facsimiles of other employees are configured in the “Employees” directory using the “Signature” link. To display a facsimile in documents, you must open the printed form of the document (click the “Print” button) and check the “Signature and stamp” checkbox. Please note: if no facsimiles have been set in the organization card, this checkbox is not active (therefore, to display an employee’s facsimile in documents, at least one fax signature must be configured in the organization card).

To install the main facsimiles, go to Main - Organizations

, let’s go to the desired organization and open the “
Signatures
” section; responsible persons for whom you can add fax signatures should be configured there.
After that, open the “ Logo and Printing
” section.

To create files with samples, you can use the instructions “ How to create a facsimile signature and seal

", opening it here via the hyperlink. You can print it out, put a stamp on it, sign it, scan it, bring the facsimile to the appropriate form (cut to size, crop the background).

To edit signature and print designs, you can use any graphic editor. The image format must be PNG and no more than 500 KB. Once you have your seal and signature files ready, return to the Logo and Stamp

» in the organization card and using the download buttons, select the appropriate files.

After downloading, you will see the invoice to the buyer with a stamp and signatures using the hyperlink “ Preview of the printed form “Invoice to the buyer”

».

Finally, click the Record and Close

to save changes.
To set up facsimiles of other employees, open the “Employees” directory ( Salaries and Personnel - Employees

Signature
link . Upload a pre-prepared single signature image file in PNG format.

After setting up signatures and printing in documents where they can be displayed, you will be able to check the box for their appearance.

To display the signature of an employee whose facsimile signature was installed in his roll, click on the link “ Signatures”

» indicate it in any of the fields: manager, chief accountant or took leave.

Facsimile of the contract

Let us explain with an example whether it is possible to put a facsimile on an invoice and what surprises may await him if he decides to use it.

Director of Household Appliances LLC Konstantinov R.P., due to his job responsibilities, is forced to sign hundreds of documents every day (contracts, agreements, invoices, invoices, acts, etc.). To reduce his labor costs for signing a mountain of documents, he ordered himself a facsimile and began to use it. In addition, when leaving on a business trip, he left it in the accounting department so that the papers would not accumulate in his absence, but would be signed in a timely manner.

Such frivolity of the director turned into serious problems for him: one of his counterparties did not repay his debt for a long time, but when applying to the judicial authorities to collect the debt from him, Household Appliances LLC turned out to be the losing party, and the debt was hopeless for collection. The reason is the affixing of a facsimile on the agreement and act with the specified counterparty, while there was no agreement on the use of the facsimile, and the agreement did not contain a corresponding clause.

The court declared the agreement signed in facsimile invalid (clause 1 of article 160, clause 1 of article 162 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation) due to the lack of adequate evidence of the existence of contractual legal relations (see, for example, the resolution of the Federal Arbitration Court of the Volga District dated May 26, 2008 in case No. A55-16332/2007).

Important! Facsimile can be used to sign those documents that do not impose financial liability on the signatory (part 2 of article 160, paragraph 3 of article 2 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).

Electronic and handwritten signature: instructions for use

A signature is one of the most important details of a document. In a number of countries, a document becomes legitimate only if it has the signature of an authorized person, without putting the organization’s seal on it. Something similar occurs in our country. For example, when issuing an invoice, the legislator does not require the signatures of persons to be certified with the seal of the issuing organization or individual entrepreneur.

Kozlova S.Yu.
But the development of modern technologies makes its own adjustments to this area of ​​relations. On the one hand, such innovations are designed to facilitate the process of signing documents and expand the possibilities of using signatures to authenticate, for example, electronic documents. On the other hand, it is very important to act in accordance with the law in order to avoid situations where the legal validity of a document can be challenged due to the unlawful use of one or another analogue of a handwritten signature.

Who and on what basis

A signature as a document attribute performs at least three functions:

• it verifies the identity of the signatory;
• guarantees that he will not be able to refuse what he has signed;
• is confirmation that the sender has properly certified the document that he sent, and not any other.

According to the Civil Code, a citizen’s personal signature is required to certify any transactions. The list of cases when a document can be signed by another person is exhaustive: the citizen has physical disabilities, serious illness or illiteracy. In this case, the signature of another person is certified by a notary. However, the Civil Code stipulates situations when a document can only be signed by the person from whom it originates. Thus, a closed will must be written in his own hand, and signed by the testator. Failure to comply with these rules entails the invalidity of the will. Its signing by any other person, even a person authorized by the testator, is not allowed.

In an organization, only the manager and chief accountant have the right to sign documents. This list can be expanded by decision of the manager, which is issued in the form of an appropriate order or power of attorney, depending on whether the person with the right to sign is on the staff of the organization. Since the order is an internal document, the right to sign on it can only be transferred to an employee of the organization. A power of attorney presupposes such a possibility in relation to a person not connected with the organization through labor relations. A power of attorney on behalf of a legal entity can only be issued by the head or a person authorized to do so by the constituent documents.

Judicial and arbitration practice

Between ProLed LLC and Politex LLC, an agreement was concluded for the supply of materials and components dated November 28, 2005 No. DP234, under the terms of which the seller undertakes to transfer the ownership of the goods to the buyer in accordance with the buyer’s written orders, which are an integral part of the agreement, the buyer undertakes to accept and pay for the goods.

The plaintiff justifies the fulfillment of its obligations under the contract with the corresponding invoices. However, these invoices do not have a reference to agreement No. DP234 dated November 28, 2005, and were also signed on the part of the defendant by an unauthorized person, since there is no corresponding power of attorney or other basis.

In accordance with Article 53 of the Civil Code, subparagraphs 12–14 of the Regulations on maintaining accounting and financial reporting in the Russian Federation, Article 9 of the Law “On Accounting”, documents confirming the transfer and acceptance of goods are an act of acceptance of goods or a consignment note signed by the manager enterprise and chief accountant or authorized persons. Moreover, by virtue of Articles 182, 186 of the Civil Code, such powers of the representative must be confirmed in a power of attorney issued to the represented (resolution of the Ninth Arbitration Court of Appeal dated January 30, 2007 No. 09AP-18701/2006-GK).

As a rule, the founders, when developing the charter of the future company, do not attach much importance to resolving this issue. As a result, a situation arises where the right to issue powers of attorney will belong only to the head of the organization. And this is not always convenient, since in any organization circumstances may develop in such a way that the manager is temporarily absent, and a power of attorney, for example, to receive inventory items, must be signed here and now. In other words, it would not be superfluous to indicate in the charter the positions of persons who have the right to sign powers of attorney. If there are several such officials, it makes sense to clarify which powers of attorney a particular authorized person has the right to sign.

Analogues of a handwritten signature

In the activities of any organization, a situation is possible when the manager (or other authorized person) is absent, and documents must be signed immediately. In this case, a facsimile can come to the rescue. The need to transmit the document via electronic communication channels cannot be ruled out. However, scanning cannot ensure its security. In this case, in order to preserve the original meaning and details of the document and eliminate the possibility of third parties reading it, you should use an electronic digital signature (EDS). Only facsimiles and digital signatures are currently enshrined in Russian legislation as analogues of a handwritten signature.

The right to use an analogue of a handwritten signature when making transactions has a number of restrictions. In particular, such use is permitted only in cases and in the manner provided for by law, other legal acts or agreement of the parties. However, the legislator has not yet developed a clear and unambiguous position regarding the use of facsimiles and electronic digital signatures.

Facsimile

Facsimile reproduction of a signature using mechanical or other means of copying is mentioned in the Civil Code. But, as stated in the letter of the Ministry of Taxes and Taxes of the Russian Federation dated 04/01/2004 “On the use of a facsimile of a signature”, since the current legislation does not regulate this issue, the use of a facsimile is allowed only with mutual agreement of the parties, which can be expressed either directly in the contract (by clause that documents certified in this way have legal force), or by sending the appropriate letters. But even then, the use of facsimiles is very limited: according to the same letter from the Ministry of Taxation, it is not allowed on powers of attorney, payment and other documents that have financial consequences.

Judicial and arbitration practice

In its claims, the State Unitary Enterprise refers to the contract and the acceptance certificate of the project documentation. As a result of the analysis of the presented documents, the court found that the contract, annexes to the contract (work schedule, summary estimate, estimates No. 1–3) and the acceptance certificate for project documentation on the part of the defendant ZAO Setstroy were not signed directly by General Director S. These documents were prepared using a facsimile of the General Director.

In accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 160 of the Civil Code, a transaction must be signed in writing by the person or persons entering into the transaction, or persons duly authorized by them; When making transactions, the use of a facsimile reproduction of a signature or another analogue of a handwritten signature is permitted in cases and in the manner provided for by law, other acts or agreement of the parties.

The plaintiff has not presented any evidence indicating that the use of a facsimile signature on contractual documentation in this case is provided for by agreement of the parties. The procedure for using a facsimile signature when registering transactions is not defined by law or other legal acts. Consequently, when drawing up the agreement, the will of ZAO Setstroy was not expressed in the prescribed manner, and therefore the court made a reasonable conclusion that the specified agreement is not considered concluded.

The plaintiff’s reference to the acceptance certificate of the project documentation is untenable, since the specified act is drawn up in the same way, that is, using a facsimile image of the signature of the defendant’s general director (resolution of the Ninth Arbitration Court of Appeal dated November 4, 2004 No. 09AP-3722/04GK).

During inspections of the activities of organizations by tax authorities, the question most often arises about the legality of using a facsimile on an invoice.

The Federal Tax Service, in a letter dated May 17, 2005 No. MM-6-03/ [email protected] , invalidates invoices issued in this way and denies the taxpayer the right to present them for the purpose of deducting or refunding the amount of VAT, citing the fact that in accordance with the Tax Code, an invoice is signed by the head and chief accountant of the organization or other persons authorized to do so by an order (other administrative document) for the organization or a power of attorney on behalf of the organization. There is no indication in the Tax Code of the possibility of facsimile signing of an invoice.

However, arbitration courts have not yet developed a unified position on this issue. In court practice, there are both decisions in favor of the tax authorities in this matter, and against them.

Judicial and arbitration practice

The current tax and accounting legislation does not specify how invoices should be signed. Facsimile reproduction of a signature is analogous to a handwritten signature. Since the law does not provide for the negative consequences of deducting VAT on the basis of invoices signed in facsimile, the court came to the conclusion that the Company has the right to deduct on the basis of Articles 171 and 172 of the Tax Code (resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Moscow District dated April 26, 2005 No. KA-A40/2975-05).

Judicial and arbitration practice

The tax authority’s argument that the invoices submitted by the applicant were issued using a facsimile reproduction of N.’s signature as the head of the organization and the person who authorized the release of goods from the warehouse of PTK Mashprofil LLC, which casts doubt on the objectivity of the existence of these documents, is not accepted attention, since the law does not contain restrictions regarding the method of executing the manager’s signature on the invoice. A facsimile signature, that is, an imprint of a signature using a cliche (seal), is a method of making a handwritten signature. Issuing a facsimile does not indicate non-compliance with the requirements of Article 169 of the Tax Code regarding the signing of an invoice by the head of the supplier (Resolution of the Ninth Arbitration Court of Appeal dated August 23, 2006 No. 09AP-10337/2006-AK).

Judicial and arbitration practice

The legislation on accounting, as well as on taxes and fees, does not provide for the use of facsimile reproduction of the manager’s signature when preparing primary documents and invoices. Since the case materials confirm the presence of signs of bad faith in the actions of the applicant and his suppliers, the refusal to refund VAT is justified (Resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Volga District dated May 3, 2007 No. A57-4249/06).

Electronic digital signature (EDS)

With regard to signing invoices with an electronic digital signature (EDS), the tax authorities take a similar position (declare them invalid). And again, the inspectors refer to the fact that this type of signature is not provided for in Article 169 of the Tax Code.

But, unlike facsimiles, with regard to digital signatures it is possible to challenge the position of the Federal Tax Service, based on the Law of January 10, 2002 No. 1-FZ “On Electronic Digital Signatures”. In accordance with it, the law extends to relations arising during civil transactions and in other cases provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation. Based on this provision, we can conclude that the law applies not only to civil legal relations. However, to use digital signatures in other areas of law, a direct indication of this in the relevant legislative act is necessary.

There is no indication in the Tax Code of the possibility of using an electronic signature when signing an invoice. Based on this, the Ministry of Taxes and Duties, in a letter dated April 21, 2004 No. 03-1-08/1039/17, noted that invoices issued in this way are invalid. On this basis, the taxpayer will be denied the right to present such invoices for deduction or refund of VAT.

In addition, tax authorities, justifying their position, refer to the fact that tax legal relations, the scope of which includes, strictly speaking, invoices, are regulated by the legislation of the Russian Federation on taxes and fees, and not by civil legislation.

At the moment, the Tax Code contains only one mention of the lawful use of information in electronic form - paragraph 2 of Article 80 provides the right to submit a tax return electronically in the prescribed form to the tax authority at the place of registration.

The tax authorities confirmed their position once again in a letter from the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated February 14, 2005 No. 03-1-03/210/11.

On the other hand, paragraph 6 of Article 169 of the Tax Code, which the tax authorities refer to, does not specify that in this case we are talking specifically about a personal signature. There is no direct prohibition on the use of analogues of a handwritten signature. As well as direct permission.

And therefore, the position of the tax authorities looks more convincing - after all, the Tax Code does not provide for the possibility of using digital signatures on invoices.

It should be noted that the courts adhere to the same position. Some lawyers cite the following resolution as an example to justify the opposite position.

Judicial and arbitration practice

The court recognized the tax inspectorate's argument about a violation of the procedure for signing invoices as illegal, since the right to tax deductions for a number of property purchase and sale transactions was confirmed by the company by submitting invoices with an electronic digital signature (Resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Ural District dated May 11, 2006 No. F09-3600/06-S2 No. A47-8175/05).

But they forget about the main thing - when considering the case in court, the taxpayer presented invoices with the handwritten signature of the manager and chief accountant. Perhaps this played a decisive role when the court made its decision.

What is an electronic digital signature?

According to the law, an electronic digital signature is recognized as a requisite of an electronic document, intended to protect this electronic document from forgery, obtained as a result of cryptographic transformation of information using the private key of an electronic digital signature and allowing to identify the owner of the signature key certificate, as well as to establish the absence of distortion of information in the electronic document.

The essence of digital signature can be expressed in a few words: if the sent document is changed in any way, then the verification of the signature will be unsuccessful and, therefore, the attempt to open the document itself will also be unsuccessful.

Closely related to the concept of digital signature is the concept of a signature key certificate, the effect of which determines the equivalence of the digital signature to a handwritten signature. Signature key certificate is a paper document or an electronic document with an electronic digital signature of an authorized person of the certification center, which includes the public key of the electronic digital signature and is issued by the certification center to a participant in the information system to confirm the authenticity of the electronic digital signature and identify the owner of the signature key certificate.

The certificate is issued by a certification authority and contains the following information:

• unique registration number of the signature key;
• start and end dates of the signature key certificate;
• last name, first name and patronymic of the owner of the signature key certificate;
• public key of electronic digital signature;
• name of the certification authority that issued the signature key certificate;
• EDS value under the public key of the owner’s signature, generated using the private EDS key of the certification authority.

The certification center already mentioned above is of no small importance for persons planning to use digital signatures in the future. The law does not indicate that only a state body can be a certification center. The only requirement is that it must be a legal entity performing the functions provided for by law.

The certification center carries out a full range of activities aimed at streamlining relations in the field of using digital signatures.

A certification authority can be either a third-party organization in relation to the owner of the signing key certificate, or it can be created within the organization that owns the certificate. It all depends on the purpose of using the digital signature. If we are talking about the use of digital signatures in documents transferred to counterparties, then the participation of a third-party certification center is necessary. Only in this case will the parties not have further accusations of bias in the internal certification center of the counterparty. In this case, the decision of the parties to choose one or another certification center must be documented, for example, in an agreement.

If digital signature is necessary primarily for organizing internal document flow, then it makes sense for the company to create an internal certification center. Especially when it comes to large companies with a wide branch network.

Regulations for the use of digital signatures

In any case, perhaps the main document that will streamline relations related to the use of digital signatures, and, as a result, will further allow the use of documents signed with digital signatures to resolve controversial situations, including in court, is a kind of regulation for the use of digital signatures. Moreover, not only developers of software necessary for the implementation of digital signatures, but also lawyers should take part in the development of this document, since there are a number of issues that cannot be resolved without coordination with the current legislation. What should you pay attention to first of all when preparing such regulations?

1. The regulations must clearly define the scope of application of the digital signature and its place in the company’s document flow. It is necessary to clearly define when signing which documents the digital signature will be used. Undoubtedly, the greatest effect from the use of digital signature is possible with its maximum application in the company. However, here it is worth proceeding from the requirements of the law - certain documents are recognized as legally significant only in paper form (for example, an invoice, as already mentioned).

2. As in the case of documents, it is necessary to determine the circle of persons authorized to use the digital signature. Persons authorized to use digital signatures should remember that they cannot simply take and transfer their key certificate to another person in the event of, for example, illness or vacation. Firstly, the key certificate contains information about the last name, first name and patronymic of its owner, and if it is used by someone else, the document will still be signed by the owner of the certificate. And, secondly, the certificate contains information about digital signature keys, which is confidential information. Therefore, the transfer of authority to use digital signatures must be clearly stated in the regulations. For example, it is necessary to provide that a key certificate can be transferred to a certain person, and the transfer itself must be formalized by an appropriate administrative act.

In this regard, the lawsuit is noteworthy, which is just one example in a whole series of similar proceedings.

Judicial and arbitration practice

OJSC Rostelecom filed a lawsuit against OJSC Savings Bank of Russia for damages in the amount of RUB 29,580,850. According to the plaintiff, a bank account agreement with amendments to it was concluded between the parties, as well as an annex to this agreement for the provision of services using the Client-Sberbank system for carrying out transactions on the account in the form of electronic documents and transferring statements in the form of electronic documents. On 08/02/1999, 29,580,850 rubles were debited from the plaintiff’s account by electronic payment order. However, the plaintiff did not transfer the specified payment order in the form of an electronic document to the defendant, and a criminal case was initiated regarding the unjustified write-off of funds.

When considering the claim, it was proven that the payment was made from the company’s terminal connected to the Client-Bank system, and the authentic electronic key of the Deputy General Director of Rostelecom OJSC was used. The plaintiff did not provide evidence of unauthorized intervention, as well as evidence of the loss or other disposal of the floppy disk containing the digital signature by a person entitled to use it. The results of the examination showed that the bank’s information system worked normally and there was no unauthorized access to it.

As a result, the arbitration court rejected the company's claim, and the attempt to compensate for the damage at the expense of the servicing bank failed (Resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Moscow District dated November 5, 2003 No. KG-A40/8531-03-P).

What actually happened is not stated in the arbitration court decision, but one can only guess. Most likely, the busy head of the company did not have time to sign financial documents to be sent to the bank and transferred this responsibility, along with his electronic digital signature, to one of the employees. At some point, an employee used the manager’s digital signature to steal the company’s money.

3. Both of the above conditions (defining the scope of application and the circle of persons) must be interconnected - it is necessary to determine who has the right to put their digital signature on which documents. This will also help to avoid situations with the simultaneous signing of the same document using an electronic digital signature by different persons.

So, the use of facsimiles and electronic digital signatures requires compliance with a number of rules, ignoring which may result in the invalidity of documents with such details.

The legality of using digital signatures on certain documents remains a rather controversial issue today. We can say that the legislator did not pay due attention to resolving this issue. He limited himself to only adopting a law containing general provisions. In this situation, each body has the right to independently decide whether to allow the use of digital signatures in documents related to its field of activity or not. The lack of a unified legal position makes the use of digital signature extremely problematic. And this not least affects the entry of Russian companies into the world economy as full participants.

It is no secret that in Russian, as well as in any other legislation, the presence of relevant documents is recognized as evidence of a particular operation.

And if previously we were talking exclusively about documents in paper form, now the development of information technology has led to the fact that electronic documents have equal rights with their paper counterparts.

In May 2007, Russia signed the UN Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Agreements, thereby becoming the tenth country to recognize documents in electronic form on an equal basis with traditional paper form.

Electronic messages in international agreements

The UN Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Agreements came into force for our country in December 2007 (signed in New York on November 23, 2005). From this moment on, Russian companies received the right to use electronic messages when working with international agreements.

What should you pay attention to when deciding whether to use electronic communications in contractual relationships?

First of all, it is worth noting that the Convention has a limited scope of application. It applies only to international agreements, that is, to agreements whose parties (commercial enterprises) are located in different states. Moreover, the latter must be confirmed by a corresponding clause in the contract itself.

Only an indication in the contract itself of the location of the parties can serve as evidence of such location. In the event of a dispute, the burden of proving the contrary lies with the other party. Thus, a party's place of business is the place designated by that party unless the other party proves that the party making such designation does not have a place of business at that place.

An important point that parties to an electronic contract should pay attention to is that the mere use by either party of a domain name or email address associated with a particular country does not indicate that the business enterprise is located in that country. This provision practically calls into question the need to register a domain name outside the country in which the business is registered.

Also, the fact that in this place there are equipment and technical means supporting the information system used by the party in connection with the conclusion of the contract is not evidence of the location of the commercial enterprise.

The only evidence of the location of the parties is a direct indication of this in the contract. It seems that in this way the developers of the Convention tried to avoid the mandatory application of the Convention to all international treaties. The parties themselves have the right to decide whether, in the process of concluding and executing the contract, they will be guided by the provisions of this Convention. Acceptance of the Convention does not mean its mandatory use. The Convention does not require any party to use or accept electronic communications. However, a party's consent to this can be inferred not only from the terms of the contract, but also from the behavior of that party.

In other words, the actual acceptance by a party of electronic communications and a response to them may already indicate its consent to the application of the Convention to the contract within the framework of which this electronic correspondence was carried out. Therefore, in order to avoid the application of the Convention to their contract, the parties should either include a clause in the contract or avoid exchanging material information by email.

In addition, the Convention provides for cases when it does not apply regardless of the will of the parties. This applies to the following documents and actions:

• contracts concluded for personal, family or household purposes;
• stock market transaction;
• transactions with foreign currency;
• interbank payment systems and agreements, settlement and clearing systems for securities or other financial instruments;
• transfer, sale, loan, possession of security rights in securities or other financial instruments held by an intermediary, as well as an agreement to repurchase them;
• bills of exchange and promissory notes;
• bills of lading, bills of lading, warehouse receipts and any other negotiable documents that give the bearer or beneficiary the right to demand delivery of goods or payment of a sum of money.

The Convention effectively recognizes the legal force of electronic communications by making them usable in court, since a communication or contract cannot be rendered invalid or unenforceable simply because it is in the form of an electronic communication.

But what about documents for which, for example, Russian legislation requires a mandatory written form or for which original storage periods are set for up to 30 years?

According to the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the norms of international law take precedence over the norms of domestic Russian legislation. Therefore, it seems that the courts, when considering controversial situations, will still be guided by the provisions of the Convention, which, by the way, provides for ways to resolve these issues.

Thus, in cases where, in accordance with the law, a document must be drawn up in writing, failure to comply with which the document is considered invalid, it is considered that the legal requirement is fulfilled by submitting an electronic message if the information contained in it is accessible for its subsequent use.

In cases where the contract must be signed by a party and only in this case, according to the law, acquires legal force, the legal requirement is considered fulfilled in relation to an electronic message if a method that is reliable is used to identify the party and indicate the intention of this party with respect to the information. The reliability criterion in this case is determined by the purpose of preparing and transmitting an electronic message. In other words, the higher the value of the information being sent, the higher the level of reliability of the method for identifying the sending party should be.

What methods are we talking about? Unfortunately, the Convention itself does not contain at least an approximate list. However, based on practice, we can assume that we are most likely talking about an electronic digital signature (EDS). It is this method of identification that not only guarantees the immutability of the transferred document, but also allows you to accurately determine the person who signed the sent document.

Simply scanning a document cannot provide a 100% guarantee of the safety of the document’s contents during storage, much less during forwarding. Therefore, the use of this identification method is justified only for unimportant documents. On the other hand, can the documents related to the contract be of minor importance? We believe not. After all, everything that is contained in these documents is in one way or another connected with the fulfillment of contractual terms.

Therefore, we have to admit that at the moment the only way to identify the person who signed the document is to use an electronic digital signature.

It is also possible that, in accordance with the law, a document must be stored for a certain period of time, and in its original form. In this case, the legal requirement is considered fulfilled in relation to the electronic message if it simultaneously meets two conditions:

• there is reliable evidence of the integrity of the information from the moment the electronic message is created in its final version and
• It is possible to provide information if requested by an authorized person.

At the same time, the degree of reliability is also determined by the purpose for which the information was prepared, and the criterion for assessing integrity is the preservation of information in complete and unchanged form, without taking into account any changes that are usually made to the document during the process of its transmission, storage and display.

These are just the main provisions of the UN Convention on the Use of Electronic Communications in International Agreements. Its relevance in practice will be confirmed or refuted in the future.

It goes without saying that the UN Conventions are, as a rule, advisory in nature and are rarely used in practice. However, it is they and the provisions enshrined in them that provide the incentive to make appropriate amendments to national legislation and international law in general.

It is still difficult to talk about the significance of the Convention for Russian companies, since there are no precedents. In any case, Russian companies should be prepared for the fact that certain foreign partners will come up with a proposal to use electronic messages in contractual relations. And therefore, it is now necessary to prepare for such use, including by resolving the issue of using an electronic digital signature in one’s activities.

The author is a leading lawyer at Optima iKSchange Services OJSC (OXS).

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Facsimile on primary documents and invoices

But these were not all the surprises associated with facsimiles: the chief accountant of Household Appliances LLC was also poorly informed about the legality of using facsimiles on invoices and primary documents, so he allowed such documents from counterparties to be recorded. For this reason, after an audit by the tax authorities of Household Appliances LLC, part of the tax deductions and expenses was removed, with additional VAT and income tax charged.

In the opinion of the Ministry of Finance, primary documents must exclusively bear the handwritten signature of the manager (letter of the Ministry of Finance dated April 13, 2015 No. 03-03-06/20808).

The Tax Code does not provide for the use of facsimiles on the invoice. This is confirmed by officials (letters from the Ministry of Finance dated April 10, 2019 No. 03-07-14/25364, dated December 8, 2017 No. 03-03-06/1/81951, etc.).

From 07/01/2021 a new invoice form is in effect, incl. adjustment, as amended by the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated 04/02/2021 No. 534. The update of the form was caused by the introduction of a goods traceability system. All taxpayers are required to use the new form, even if the goods are not included in the traceability system. We described in more detail the changes made to the invoice here.

You can download the new invoice form by clicking on the image below:

ConsultantPlus experts have prepared step-by-step instructions for preparing each line of the updated invoice. To do everything correctly, get trial access to the system and go to the Guide. It's free.

Facsimile in contracts and DMPs

Question : Is it legal to use facsimiles in contracts and primary accounting documents (hereinafter referred to as PUD) - acts of transfer of property rights, acts of work performed, services rendered, invoices?

Answer: In contracts - it is possible, if it is provided for by agreement of the parties, in PUD - no.

Rationale:

1. Facsimile in contracts

Legislation allows the use of facsimile reproduction of a signature using mechanical or other copying means, or another analogue of a handwritten signature, when concluding contracts only in cases provided for by law or by agreement of the parties <*>.

Since the legislation does not define cases in which the specified reproduction of a signature is possible, signing an agreement with facsimile signatures will be legal only if this is provided for by agreement of the parties. At the same time, in our opinion, the inclusion of such an agreement in an agreement that will be signed with facsimile signatures will not constitute a proper agreement on the possibility of signing the agreement with facsimile signatures. This is due to the fact that this agreement will be signed with facsimile signatures, and the specified agreement, which in essence is also a transaction, must be concluded in writing and signed with the handwritten signatures of the parties <*>. After all, since the agreement is a transaction, it can be signed with facsimile signatures only if the parties agreed on this in writing, sealing this agreement with handwritten signatures <*>.

At the same time, in the materials of judicial practice there is the following position of representatives of the Supreme Economic Court of the Republic of Belarus. “According to paragraph 2 of Article 161 of the Civil Code, the use of facsimile reproduction of a signature using mechanical or other copying means when making transactions is permitted in cases and in the manner provided for by law or by agreement of the parties. In relation to this norm, the execution by one party of a signature on an agreement in which the signature of the second party is reproduced by facsimile with this condition reflected in its text, indicates its agreement with this and does not contradict the current legislation, since when concluding a transaction, the parties have the right to establish the procedure for its certification.

However, we still recommend that the agreement be signed by facsimile signatures with the handwritten signatures of both parties. This recommendation is based on the fact that, as we said above, an agreement to sign a contract with facsimile signatures is, in fact, a transaction <*>. Therefore, it, like other transactions, must be signed with the handwritten signatures of the parties <*>. And in order to sign such an agreement with facsimile signatures, you need to conclude another agreement and sign it with your own signatures. It's a "never ending story".

Based on the above, signing contracts with facsimile signatures makes sense when the parties have a long-term contractual relationship and they periodically enter into contracts. In this case, the parties can enter into an agreement to sign with facsimile signatures all agreements that will be concluded between them by signing this agreement in their own hand. If this is a single agreement, there is no point in such execution, since the agreement will still need to be signed in person, and the same two signatures can be added to the agreement.

2. Facsimile in PUD

As we noted above, the possibility of using facsimiles when making transactions is discussed in the provisions of the Civil Code. In this case, the parties have the right to use this procedure for making transactions only if they have entered into an appropriate agreement between themselves.

In this regard, the question arises: can these norms be applied to PUD?

Next, we will look at the question of whether the above provisions of the Civil Code apply to the DMP and, accordingly, whether it is possible to use a facsimile when drawing up the DMP.

Thus, in the provisions of the Civil Code, which provide for the possibility of using facsimiles, we are talking exclusively about transactions using a facsimile signature. Consequently, these provisions of the Civil Code can be applied to DMPs only if DMPs are transactions. However, in our opinion, PUDs are not transactions. PUD are documents confirming the fact of business transactions. They reflect the fact that the terms of the transaction have been fulfilled. Transactions are contracts, agreements and other similar documents (hereinafter referred to as the agreement).

The DMP can be considered as an agreement in cases where an agreement has not been concluded between the parties, and the DMP contains all the essential terms of the contract. At the same time, in such cases, PUDs not only act as an agreement, but are also the primary accounting documents confirming the fact of a business transaction. Consequently, the requirements established by law for the DMP, both in cases where the DMP is not an agreement, and in cases where it is such, must be observed.

Next, we will look at what requirements are imposed by law on the DMP and whether they allow a facsimile signature to be placed on the DMP.

Currently, the procedure for drawing up PUD is established by Law No. 57-Z of July 12, 2013 “On Accounting and Reporting.” Article 10 of this law provides that each PUD must contain, among other information, the signatures of officials responsible for the execution of a business transaction and (or) the correctness of its execution. However, the law does not specify what is meant by signatures. In our opinion, the word “signatures” here should be understood as handwritten signatures. Facsimile signatures are not handwritten; they are only an analogue of a signature. This conclusion follows from paragraph 2 of Art. 161 Civil Code. In this standard, facsimile reproduction of a signature is classified specifically as an analogue of a signature. Other norms of law and other legislation, for example, Instructions on the procedure for filling out TTN and TN, approved. Resolution of the Ministry of Finance dated June 30, 2016 No. 58 <*> also does not provide for the possibility of affixing an analogue of the signature in the form of a facsimile reproduction of it in the PUD.

Let us note that there is a practice for regulatory authorities to qualify PUDs signed with a facsimile signature as having no legal force. The consequences of such qualification may be additional assessment of taxes, payment of penalties for underpayment, and bringing the organization and its officials to administrative liability.

The qualification of PUDs signed with a facsimile signature as having no legal force is not undisputed. However, in order to avoid disputes with regulatory authorities and litigation, we do not recommend drawing up a DMP using a facsimile analogue of a signature.

Please note that some organizations are allowed to issue DMPs by facsimile. However, such a right is not directly enshrined in the legislation. In practice, such a right is granted to certain organizations, for example, by letters from the Ministry of Finance. Such organizations include only a small number of organizations. According to the information we have, these are, for example, cellular operators, Beltelecom. If an organization sends you a PUD with a facsimile signature, we recommend that before accepting them for registration, you request from this organization a document (a letter from the Ministry of Finance or another document) that confirms its right to such registration.

The given justifications and conclusions are applicable both to technical specifications and technical specifications, as well as to acts of transfer of property rights, acts of work performed, services rendered. This is due to the fact that the requirement for the mandatory inclusion of signatures of responsible persons in the DMP are general, that is, they must be applied regardless of the type of DMP. Otherwise may be provided by the President. However, nothing else is provided for these types of DMPs.

Let us note that some experts express the opinion that the use of facsimiles in the PUD is legal if the parties have entered into an agreement on this, for example, they have included a corresponding condition in the contract. However, we do not recommend following this in practice, since, as we indicated above, the legal requirements for DMPs do not allow the use of facsimile signatures in them.

Conclusion: The legislation allows the use of a facsimile signature when making transactions if the parties have entered into an appropriate agreement on this. Moreover, in our opinion, this agreement must be concluded in writing by hand-signed by the parties.

Only handwritten signatures of officials responsible for the execution of a business transaction and (or) the correctness of its execution are allowed in the PUD. This is due to the fact that the PUD is a document that is intended to confirm the fact of a business transaction and must comply with the requirements of the Accounting Law regarding the mandatory inclusion of a signature in it. A facsimile signature, in fact, is not a signature, but an analogue of it. Therefore, signing the DMP with facsimile signatures is not permitted.

We defend the deduction on an invoice with a facsimile

The position of judges on the issue of tax deduction on facsimile invoices is ambiguous. Thus, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, in its ruling dated August 3, 2015 No. 303-KG15-8444, noted that the facsimile on the invoice does not correspond to the order of their completion specified in Art. 169 NK. The Supreme Arbitration Court spoke similarly on this issue in resolution No. 4134/11 dated September 27, 2011 and in a number of other cases (No. A57-8362/2013, No. A57-4665/2013, No. A79-13124/2012, No. A42-3909/2012, No. A72-7108/2012).

At the same time, other courts recognized the legality of the facsimile on the invoice (resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the West Siberian District dated December 3, 2010 No. A45-16746/2009, etc.).

What steps should a businessman take to ensure that the facsimile on the invoice does not present unpleasant surprises?

I dare to assure you: is it safe to use documents with a fax signature?

Despite the obvious advantages of electronic documents, “paper” primary documents still predominate in business transactions. Is it possible to use a facsimile signature when preparing primary documents, what risks arise in this case, and how do tax authorities treat facsimiles - read the article by tax expert Igor Karmazin

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Using a handwritten signature when drawing up documents is associated with certain difficulties. For example, the person authorized to sign may be absent from the workplace, on a long trip, on vacation, etc. Not everyone uses an electronic digital signature either. All these reasons lead to the fact that documents with facsimile signatures are quite widely used in business transactions. Facsimile (translated from Latin as “do something similar”) is an accurate, photographic image (cliché) of a document, seal and signature on it. Simply put, this is a document with a photograph of the signature of an authorized person. By the way, forging such a document is usually not difficult.

The possibility of using a facsimile is established by clause 2 of Article 160 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. According to this norm, the use of facsimile reproduction of a signature by copying when making transactions is permitted in cases and in the manner provided for by law, other legal acts or agreement of the parties.

Cheat sheet on the article from the editors of BUKH.1S for those who do not have time

1. The possibility of using facsimiles is established by clause 2 of Article 160 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. When making transactions, this norm allows the use of facsimile reproduction of a signature if the parties have agreed on this in advance.

2. Despite all the risks of use, facsimiles are used quite often in business.

3. Arbitration practice shows that judges have a favorable attitude towards facsimile signatures in relations with counterparties, even in the absence of a corresponding agreement between the parties.

4. The Ministry of Finance and the Federal Tax Service believe that document execution with a facsimile signature does not give rise to tax consequences. Departments agree that facsimiles should not be used on powers of attorney, payment and other documents that are used in the field of tax relations.

5. The use of facsimiles in the field of tax legal relations can lead to serious problems, for example, fiscal authorities may not accept expenses for the purpose of calculating income tax or refuse tax deductions for VAT.

This is all the law has to say about facsimile documents. The legislation does not contain any rules for handling facsimiles, nor the conditions for the validity of its use to complete a transaction. This state of affairs leads to a very ambiguous attitude towards such documents.

Imp of ink

With all the existing risks of using facsimiles in business transactions, this method of preparing documentation is quite common - many people find it convenient. Moreover, arbitration practice testifies to the favorable attitude of judges towards such a “signature” in relations between counterparties.

Thus, if the court comes to the conclusion that the contract was actually executed, work was performed (services were provided) and accepted under it, then signing documents using a facsimile will not play any significant role in resolving the dispute.

This was confirmed, for example, by the Arbitration Court of the Moscow District in its Resolution dated December 12, 2016. No. A40-10028/16. The court indicated that the signing of the agreement, as well as acts of KS-2, certificates of KS-3 by facsimile does not entail a refusal to collect the debt under the agreement. Having partially paid for the work, including not only in advance, but also after completion and delivery of the work, the defendant actually approved their implementation. Under established circumstances of approval of transactions and acceptance of work, the method of execution of documentation does not matter. Moreover, even in the absence of an appropriate agreement between the parties, a document with a facsimile reproduction of the signature does not cease to be evidence in the case. Such a document is subject to evaluation by the court along with other evidence.

In the Resolution of the Arbitration Court of the Ural District dated December 27, 2016. No. A60-7397/2016 considered a situation where the parties did not enter into any agreement on the possibility of using scans. At the same time, as part of cooperation, when concluding application agreements, managers affixed a facsimile stamp of the director’s signature. The court recognized that such practice in itself does not indicate falsification of documents and does not entail the exclusion of such documentation as not meeting the requirements of reliability. In this case, the court continues to evaluate the written document, taking into account all the evidence presented by the parties to the dispute. If witnesses (employees of the enterprise and its counterparties) can confirm the reality of the transaction, there are no grounds for refusing to collect the debt on it.

On the other hand, if the established practice of relations between companies does not allow the use of facsimiles, documents signed in this way will be considered falsified by the court. They will not have legal force and will not be able to confirm the fact of the transaction. The Arbitration Court of the Moscow District drew attention to this circumstance in its Resolution dated December 14, 2016. No. A41-56055/14. According to the terms of the lease agreement submitted to the court, all changes to it had to be made in writing and signed by authorized representatives of the parties. At the same time, the parties did not agree on the possibility of drawing up documents using facsimiles. The acceptance certificate presented in the case file was not signed by an authorized person on the part of the plaintiff. Since the case materials did not contain evidence of the transfer of the disputed premises, the court came to the conclusion that the tenant had no grounds for receiving rental payments.

Handles to the side

If in relations with counterparties a facsimile can be used without significant financial consequences (if there is an agreement), then with controllers the situation is much more complicated.

And the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation (letters dated April 13, 2015 No. 03-03-06/20808, dated August 27, 2015 No. 03-07-09/49478) and the Federal Tax Service of Russia (letter of the Ministry of Taxes of the Russian Federation dated April 1, 2004 No. 18-0- 09/000042 “On the use of facsimile signatures”) they agree that such documentation does not give rise to tax consequences.

Agencies note that facsimiles should not be used on powers of attorney, payment and other documents that are used in the field of tax relations. In a letter from the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation dated April 13, 2015. No. 03-03-06/20808 provides the following justification for this position.

In accordance with the norms of the Federal Law of December 6, 2011. No. 402-FZ “On Accounting”, each fact of economic life is subject to registration as a primary accounting document. The forms of primary accounting documents are approved by the head of the economic entity on the recommendation of the official responsible for maintaining accounting records.

The law establishes a list of mandatory details of the primary accounting document (Article 9 of Federal Law No. 402-FZ):

• Title of the document;
• Date of preparation;
• content of the transaction;
• the name of the position of the persons who made the transaction;
• personal signatures of these persons.

Documents used to formalize business transactions with funds are signed by the head of the organization and the chief accountant or persons authorized by them. Thus, a facsimile, electronic copy, or otherwise reproduction of the manager’s signature upon receipt of documents that have financial implications are not supporting documents for accounting and tax accounting purposes.

The Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation, in Resolution No. VAS-15636/13 dated February 18, 2014, indicated that when accepting a facsimile as evidence of a monetary obligation, it is necessary to distinguish between the general provisions of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation and the norms of special laws. In this case, the dispute concerned bills of exchange, the signatures on which were reproduced by facsimile. The Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation clarified that obligations under a bill arise when a document is issued that meets the formal requirements of bill law. Fulfillment of any bill of exchange requisites in a manner not expressly provided for by bill of exchange legislation should be regarded as a lack of requisites. The use of analogues of a handwritten signature, including facsimiles, is not permitted. A bill of exchange cannot be recognized as properly executed if the drawer's signature is made in a manner permitted by the general norms of civil legislation (clause 2 of Article 160 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation), but does not comply with the requirements of special legislation. Consequently, the absence of a handwritten signature on the bill of exchange of the person who issued the bill of exchange is a violation of the requirements for the form of the bill of exchange obligation.

It was smooth on paper

The use of facsimiles in the field of tax legal relations can lead to serious problems, for example, fiscal authorities may not accept expenses for the purpose of calculating income tax or refuse tax deductions for VAT. In matters of obtaining tax benefits, courts practically do not trust facsimile documents at all. This skeptical position was enshrined in judicial practice by the Resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation dated September 27, 2011. No. 4134/11.

The dispute here concerned the possibility of obtaining a VAT deduction when providing an invoice, the signatures of the manager and chief accountant on which were made by facsimile. The Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation indicated that the invoice is signed by the head and chief accountant of the organization or other persons authorized to do so by an order for the organization or a power of attorney on behalf of the organization (clause 6 of Article 169 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). The provisions of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation do not provide for the possibility of facsimile reproduction of a signature when issuing an invoice. Accounting and tax accounting documents must contain personal signatures of the relevant persons. In this regard, deviation from the established rules entails a refusal to apply tax deductions on such invoices.

Meanwhile, in arbitration practice one can also find opposite court decisions, which are not limited to a formal approach to the provision of tax deductions. For example, Resolution of the Arbitration Court of the North Caucasus District dated December 2, 2016. No. A63-12161/2015. The basis for refusing to apply the VAT deduction here was that the manager’s signatures on the invoices were made precisely by facsimile reproduction.

The Inspectorate indicated that the current legislation does not contain provisions allowing the preparation of primary accounting and tax accounting documents using a facsimile signature. Based on this, it was concluded that the director of the company did not sign the invoices, which indicates the presence of unreliable information (signatures) in the invoices.

The court found that during the interview, the director of the counterparty confirmed business transactions with the company. The operations actually took place. Payment for the products was documented, and the goods were accepted for registration. No other violations were found in the preparation of invoices. Moreover, the inspection had no doubts about identifying the person on whose behalf the facsimile was written on the counterparty’s invoices. Consequently, the court concluded, the refusal to deduct VAT is formal and does not comply with the law.

However, it should be noted here that this court decision is rather an exception to the rule. In most cases, judges will not accept facsimile source documents as a basis for a tax benefit. Therefore, when drawing up the “primary report”, it is still recommended to strictly follow the legal requirements for the preparation of such documentation.

For support for documents with facsimiles in 1C: Accounting 8, read the article “Documents with facsimiles in 1C: Accounting 8 (rev. 3.0)”

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Due to numerous requests from users, the developers of 1C: Accounting 8 are considering the possibility of adding facsimiles to primary documents

in a programme. This issue is currently being discussed at the Idea Center. BUKH.1S also decided to ask its readers whether adding a facsimile to the primary is useful and why users need this functionality.

We ask you to participate in the survey, and you can write your opinions and wishes in the comments.

survey
with facsimile

1. Do you find it useful to add facsimiles to primary documents in 1C: Accounting 8?

   Yes, this is the required functionality.	99 (66%)
   No, too many risks!	51 (34%)

Thank you for participating in the survey! Every opinion is very important to us!

We reduce risks when working with facsimiles

To reduce the risk of refusal of tax deductions for the buyer, it is necessary that the seller handles invoices correctly. It is he who is responsible for drawing up invoices that meet the requirements of Art. 169 of the Tax Code and serving as the basis for a deduction from the buyer (Resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court of April 20, 2010 No. 18162/09).

If the manager and chief accountant do not have the ability to sign invoices, you can find other ways out of this situation - for example, entrusting the right to sign invoices to other persons. To do this, you need to draw up a local act (order, instruction, etc.) or secure authority with a power of attorney and indicate the details of the order or power of attorney in the invoice next to the signature and transcript of the authorized person. If the power of attorney for the right to sign invoices is issued by an individual entrepreneur, the invoice will need to indicate the details of two documents at once - the issued power of attorney and the certificate of state registration. IP registration.

IMPORTANT! The tax deduction will have to be defended in court if the invoice is signed by an unauthorized person. The outcome is difficult to predict, since some judges support controllers in this matter and refuse to deduct (resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation dated November 11, 2008 No. 9299/08), while others are in favor of taxpayers (resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation dated April 20, 2010 No. 18162/09 , AS of the Ural District dated November 7, 2014 No. A76-2528/2014).

For more information about what inaccuracies are permissible in an invoice, read the material “What errors in filling out an invoice are not critical for VAT deduction?” .

Wrong signature decoding

The manager and chief accountant can transfer the right to sign invoices to other persons, for example, a deputy manager (for the manager), an ordinary accountant (for the chief accountant). Or one person who can sign for both the director and the chief accountant. By the way, the latter is completely legal and officials confirm this, as can be seen, for example, from the letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated October 21, 2014 No. 03-07-09/53005.

Authorized persons put their signatures in the details “Head of the organization or other authorized person (signature)” and “Chief accountant or other authorized person (signature)”. And often, as a transcript of the signature on invoices, the surname and initials of the manager and chief accountant are left. It would seem like a trifle, but even this can lead to the tax office refusing to deduct tax on such invoices.

Therefore, if from the received invoice it can be seen that the decoding of the signature clearly does not correspond to the signature itself, then this should be a cause for concern. And if the supplier does not agree to bring his document flow into compliance, then you can invite him to put the necessary transcript next to the transcript of the signature of the general director and chief accountant. At least, officials do not see any violation in this (letter of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated October 14, 2015 No. 03-07-09/58937).

By the way, if in the transcript of the signature the surname of the signatory is slightly distorted (for example, instead of “Germantsev I.A.” “Germanueva I.A.” is indicated), this should not become a reason for refusing the deduction (resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the North-Western District on case No. A52-1812/2012 dated November 12, 2012). And if it does, then the company has every chance to challenge the actions of the tax authorities in court.

Facsimile and electronic document management

The use of a facsimile is intended to save time, but at the same time the legal force of the invoice as a document justifying a tax deduction is sharply reduced. In such a situation, the merchant is concerned whether there is a way in which time can be saved and the buyer will not have problems with the deduction.

Today, the problem with facsimiles can be resolved by switching to electronic document management. At the same time, electronic documents exchanged between counterparties must meet all the requirements for primary documents and are signed with an electronic digital signature (EDS).

Electronic invoice - an alternative to facsimile

Electronic invoices (EFIs) are regular invoices that can be transmitted over communication channels. [email protected] dated April 8, 2019 is in effect ), the procedure for issuing them is described in the Order of the Ministry of Finance dated November 10, 2015 N 174n.

The ability to use electronic invoices is enshrined in clause 1 of Art. 169 NK.

ATTENTION! When selling traceable goods to other organizations and individual entrepreneurs, electronic invoices must be issued. Buyers are required to accept them through an EDI operator, even if they are not VAT payers (Article 169 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).

The procedure for issuing and receiving invoices electronically is described in detail in the ready-made solution from ConsultantPlus. Get trial access to the system for free and proceed to the material.

If a merchant decides to switch to ESF, then first of all he needs to agree with his counterparties on the technical feasibility of such an exchange (clause 1.4 of Order No. 174n). Then you will need to obtain a qualified electronic digital signature (letter of the Ministry of Finance dated 05.05.2015 No. 07-01-06/25701) at the certification center and enter into an agreement with an electronic document management operator (clause 1.3 of Order of the Ministry of Finance No. 174n, order of the Federal Tax Service of Russia dated 20.04.12 No. ММВ-7-6/ [email protected] ). Once this is done, all “fax problems” with invoices will be a thing of the past.

Advantages of an electronic invoice over a facsimile

Firstly, to sign the ESF, the personal presence of the manager and chief accountant (or authorized persons) is not required - one qualified electronic digital signature is sufficient (clause 6 of Article 169 of the Tax Code). Facsimile, of course, also did not require personal presence when signing the invoice, however, the risks of denial of VAT deductions were high, while ESF does not have this significant drawback.

Secondly, using ESF saves significantly more time than using facsimiles to sign invoices. In addition, the cost of printing paper copies is reduced and there is no need to spend money on delivering invoices to the counterparty - this is borne by the EDI operator.

Thirdly, when tax authorities request invoices for verification, the ESF can simply be transferred via TKS - in the case of a facsimile, this is impossible.

Speaking about the advantages of ESF, one cannot ignore its possible disadvantages. Since the exchange of ESF is possible only through communication channels through a special operator, in the absence of access to the Internet or a technical failure of the automated systems of the parties to the transaction and the operator, notification of the receipt of ESF by the buyer becomes impossible. In this case, the ESF is not considered issued (clauses 1.10 and 1.11 of the order, approved by order No. 174n), as a result of which the seller has to issue a paper invoice.

Results

1. It is not recommended to use facsimiles on invoices, since in this case the right to a tax deduction will have to be proven in court, the outcome of which is difficult to predict.
2. It is possible to relieve a merchant from signing invoices and at the same time do without facsimiles if you delegate this responsibility to authorized persons (based on an order or power of attorney).
3. Another way to eliminate facsimiles on these documents is to use electronic forms. This will save time, get rid of claims from inspectors, save on printing paper copies, etc.

You can find more complete information on the topic in ConsultantPlus. Free trial access to the system for 2 days.