Article 3. Basic Principles of Tax and Fee Legislation1. Each person shall pay taxes and fees imposed in a lawful way. Tax and fee legislation shall be based on recognition of universality and equality of taxation. Upon the introduction of taxes it is necessary to take into account the taxpayer's ability to pay the tax. 2. Taxes and fees may not be discriminatory or applied differently depending on social, racial, national, religious and other similar criteria. It shall not be allowed to set differential tax or fee rates or grant tax benefits depending on the form of ownership, citizenship of individuals or origin of capital. It shall be allowed to impose special types of duties or differential rates of import custom duties depending on the country of origin of goods In accordance with this Code and customs legislation of the Russian Federation. 3. Taxes and fees shall have an economic basis and may not be arbitrary. It shall not be allowed to impose taxes preventing individuals from exercise of their constitutional rights. 4. It shall not be allowed to impose taxes and fees which violate the single economic area of the Russian Federation and in particular restrict free movement, either directly or indirectly, of goods (works, services) or financial resources within the Russian Federation; nor it shall be allowed to restrict or hinder the economic activity of natural persons and organisations, which is not banned by law, in any other way. 5. Federal taxes and fees shall be imposed, amended or revoked by this Code. Taxes and fees of Russian Federation member territories, and local taxes and fees shall be imposed, amended or revoked by laws of Russian Federation member territories relevant to taxes and fees or regulatory legal acts of representative local self-government bodies relevant to taxes and fees, respectively, in accordance with this Code. No one may be charged with an obligation to pay taxes and fees or other contributions and payments having characteristics of taxes as defined by this Code which are not provided by this Code or are imposed in a way which is different from the one provided by this Code. 6. Upon the introduction of taxes it is necessary to define ail the elements of taxation. The legislative acts on taxes and dues shall be formulated in a way to enable each person to know exactly which taxes or dues he should pay, when and in which procedure, 7. All unremovable doubts, contradictions and ambiguities of legislative acts relevant to taxes and/or fees shall be interpreted in favour of taxpayers (payers of fees).
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