On September 30, 2024, the Federal Tax Service of Russia and FinU jointly organized a meeting of the working group of the Public Council on Tax Literacy and Culture. The meeting was held at the FinU, and the results of their work on promoting tax literacy were discussed. Representatives from both organizations shared their experiences and noted the most significant projects they had implemented. They also identified key areas for future development.
During the meeting, experts from the Federal Tax Service and the academic community agreed to collaborate on preparing tax Olympiads for schoolchildren and students. These events will help to promote tax knowledge and understanding among young people and encourage them to become responsible taxpayers.
At the beginning of the meeting, Stanislav Prokofiev, the Rector of the FinU and Chairman of the Public Council of the Federal Tax Service, emphasized the significance of the discussion topic and the importance of expanding educational projects aimed at enhancing young people's confidence in the Service's activities and promoting innovations successfully implemented by the Federal Tax Service.
Speaking about the key initiatives of the FinU in tax awareness, Stanislav Prokofiev emphasized, "Today, the transformation of tax education into a tax culture is extremely relevant. Experts from the Service, in collaboration with faculty from the FinU, have developed a specialized textbook on tax administration for University students. The Federal Tax Service of Russia has organized many intellectual competitions for schoolchildren and university students, and it is important to attract as many talented young people as possible. The Public Council under the Federal Tax Service also does a lot of work in this area, preparing specialized educational materials on tax literacy for high school students."
The Rector of the FinU, in particular, noted the launch of the federal volunteer project "Dobro", which was launched on the basis of the Faculty of Taxes, Audit, and Business Analysis. The project aims to provide students and faculty members with the opportunity to advise citizens on personal taxation, as well as to inform representatives of other faculties and universities about the specific aspects of taxation for startup projects. Additionally, the project seeks to develop communities on social media dedicated to tax incentives for various groups of citizens.
In conclusion, Stanislav Prokofiev emphasized the contribution of the academic community in addressing challenges related to improving tax literacy and tax culture.
During the meeting, Konstantin Chekmyshev, Deputy Head of the Federal Tax Service, summarized the work of the Service's educational ecosystem for 2022-2024 and discussed the most significant achievements of the Department in working with schoolchildren and students. He also spoke about expanding the geography of existing projects, such as the "All-Russia project for schoolchildren 'JUNG'", tax literacy lessons, 'Conversations About Important Things', and the 'All-Russia Tax Dictation', as well as the launch of new initiatives supported by experts from leading Russian universities.
During the discussion, special attention was given to the development of the Olympiad movement in tax law. Experts from the Public Council of the Federal Tax Service, Margarita Paltseva and Sergey Tokarev, presented a concept for developing a specialized Olympiad movement that would expand the geography of interdisciplinary competitions in legal, and tax fields, as well as launch specialized Olympiads for school and university students in tax law.
The experts emphasized the importance of sharing knowledge and working together to train highly skilled professionals in the field of taxation. They also expressed readiness to support new partnerships aimed at promoting tax literacy and culture among citizens.
The event was attended by the Rector of Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, Ivan Lobanov, and the Rector of Russian State Social University, Andrey Khazin. Representatives from the administration of other leading Russian universities were also present, including Bauman Moscow State Technical University, RANEPA, Higher School of Economics (HSE), MGIMO, Moscow Pedagogical State University (MPSU), VAVT, Peoples' Friendship University of Russia (RUDN), MISiS, and SUM.
On behalf of the FinU, Mikhail Eskindarov, President and Academic Supervisor, and Vadim Zasko, Dean of the Faculty of Taxes, Audit, and Business Analysis, attended the meeting. At the end, Stanislav Prokofiev, FinU Rector personally conducted a tour of the University's museum exhibition, which showcased the history of monetary circulation during wartime.
