When concluding a contract, it is very important to secure your company as much as possible from all possible risks. For this, the counterparty is checked on specialized sites for the presence of tax debts, participation in arbitration courts, the presence of claims from its partners, buyers or customers. Be sure to request the following package of documents.
Requested documents
Any limited liability company or joint stock company has a Charter, which is not a trade secret and will allow you to find out the goals and types of activities, the size of the authorized capital, the names of the founders and other useful information. In order to completely protect yourself from risks in the framework of a long-term relationship, it is better to request copies of the requested documents with the seal and signature of the manager. The last page must be stamped by the tax authority.
Copies of the OGRN (certificate of state registration) and TIN (tax registration) are also required. If a potential partner is interested in serious cooperation, he will also provide a fresh extract from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, the original or a certified copy. Such a document can be signed both with the handwritten signature of an authorized official in combination with the seal of the department, and with an enhanced electronic signature - in accordance with Law No. 63-FZ, they are equivalent.
If the company is unfamiliar, it is worth asking for information on the average number of employees, copies of licenses for various types of activities, certificates of ownership or a lease agreement for premises, documents for equipment, vehicle passports.
Documents requested during the audit by the tax authorities
To fully protect yourself during a tax audit, it is important to make sure that all counterparties are “clean”. Before concluding an agreement, as well as once a quarter, you should request a certified copy of the VAT declaration with a mark on delivery to the tax authority, information on the status of payments for taxes and fees. It is also initially important to clarify, and it is better to get an official letter about the applied taxation system.
Knowing whether a counterparty pays value added tax is necessary to know not only in order to make sure of his honesty before the law. If the transport company, supplier or contractor does not pay VAT on time, its payment can be collected from the consumer of services or the buyer, and it is quite difficult to argue with the tax authorities in this case.
What to look for when concluding a contract
To prevent the supplier, contractor or transport company from being able to withdraw from the terms of the contract in a dispute, it is important to make sure that all signatures have been provided by authorized persons. Often, a contract, specifications, applications, powers of attorney, UPD, invoices, certificates of completion and other documents are signed by managers or accountants. If it comes to court, the management simply shrugs its shoulders and relieves itself of any responsibility for the activities of its employees, even if by that time they are still working in the organization.
Careful control over signatures in documents will help to avoid this situation. In advance, it is necessary to request certified copies of decisions (minutes) on the appointment of a manager, an order on the appointment or recruitment of a chief accountant. If the leader has the right to sign for him, then the corresponding order. If necessary, obtain powers of attorney for the persons authorized to sign the requested documents on behalf of the enterprise.
