After registering an individual entrepreneur with the tax office, you not only receive the right to conduct business, i.e. engage in entrepreneurial activity, but also have responsibilities, the most important of which are submitting reports and paying insurance premiums for yourself. In addition to these key responsibilities of each individual entrepreneur, there are a number of nuances that you should know about so as not to run into fines in the first month of your official activity. Especially for this article, we have selected seven important issues that an IT freelancer needs to solve immediately after state registration.

1. Choose the right tax system

If, when you registered as an individual entrepreneur, you did not submit notifications about the transition to a simplified taxation system, then you will need to decide on the taxation system within the specified period of time after the date of registration.

The taxation system is the procedure for calculating and paying taxes. Each system has its own rate and tax base, but the main thing is that the amount of tax payable differs significantly. One such illustrative example is in the article “How much does a programmer earn in Moscow according to the Federal Tax Service.”

There are five taxation systems in total, but one of them (Unified Agricultural Tax) is intended only for agricultural producers. You can choose between the main one (OSNO) and special systems (USN, UTII, PSN). In principle, calculating the tax burden is an accounting topic, so if you know a competent specialist, then it makes sense to contact him.

• for OSNO you have to pay 13% of the difference between income and expenses plus VAT;
• under the simplified tax system, income tax will be 6% of income (in some regions the rate can reach 1%);
• under the simplified tax system Income minus expenses - from 5% to 15% of the difference between income and expenses (in some regions the rate can reach up to 1%);
• the cost of the patent is given by the Federal Tax Service calculator;
• calculating UTII is a little more complicated, but it can really be done on its own.

If you don’t want to delve into the calculations, but you can’t get to an accountant, we recommend that you apply for the simplified tax system Income, because This is the most common tax system. Plus, it is the simplest system in terms of reporting with a fairly low tax burden. It can also be combined with any other systems except OSNO.

Why is it important: special (aka preferential) tax regimes make it possible to reduce payments to the budget to a minimum. This right is enshrined in Article 21 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation. But if you yourself do not submit an application to switch to the simplified tax system, UTII, PSN, then no one will persuade you. By default, you will have to work on a common system (OSNO). It is not advisable to forget about the reporting deadlines of your system; tax authorities will very quickly block the current account of an individual entrepreneur for failure to submit a declaration.

Another reason to submit tax reports on time is the risk of receiving a payment from the Pension Fund in the amount of 154,852 rubles. The logic is this: since you have not reported your income to the Federal Tax Service, then its size is simply immodest. This means that contributions will be calculated at the maximum (8 minimum wage * 26% * 12). This is not a fine, the money will go to your pension account and will be taken into account when calculating your pension (if everything has not changed again by then), but still the surprise is not the most pleasant.

2. Take advantage of tax holidays

If you register as an individual entrepreneur for the first time after the adoption of the regional law on tax holidays, you can qualify for a zero tax rate under the simplified tax system and the special tax regime. You can avoid paying taxes for a maximum of two years. Specific types of activities for which tax holidays are established are determined by regional law.

In Moscow, individual entrepreneurs-developers are not entitled to tax holidays, but if your activities are related to scientific research and development, then in most regions, including Moscow, you can receive a zero tax rate.

Tax holidays in detail, as well as the basis of most regional laws, can be found here.

Why is it important: If there is an opportunity to find yourself in a tax haven for some time, why not take advantage of it? In addition, on PSN, in principle, there is no way to reduce the cost of a patent by the amount of contributions. And during the tax holiday, an individual entrepreneur’s patent will not cost you anything.

3. Know and pay your own insurance premiums

Insurance premiums are payments that every entrepreneur is obliged to make for himself to the pension fund (PFR) and the compulsory health insurance fund (MHIF). Starting from the new year, the Federal Tax Service will collect contributions, because... According to the authorities, the funds themselves do a poor job of collecting payments in their favor.

The minimum contribution amount changes every year. In 2016, this is about 23 thousand rubles plus 1% on income over 300 thousand. If you have been registered as an individual entrepreneur for less than a year, the amount is recalculated accordingly. You must pay your own contributions the entire time you are registered as an entrepreneur. Justifications and arguments of the form:

• I don’t conduct any real activities;
• What kind of business is there, only losses;
• The employer pays my contributions according to my work book;
• I’m actually retired already, etc.

funds are not accepted for consideration.

You can avoid paying contributions for yourself if the individual entrepreneur has been drafted into the army or he is caring for a child under one and a half years old, a disabled child, a disabled person of the 1st group, or elderly people over 80 years old. But even in these cases, the accrual of contributions does not automatically stop; you must first provide documents that you are not engaged in real business.

So it’s not worth opening an individual entrepreneur just like that, with the expectation that it might come in handy someday. If you nevertheless registered as an individual entrepreneur, but are now in downtime, then it is cheaper to deregister (the state fee is only 160 rubles), and, if necessary, register again. The number of approaches to the reception desk is not limited.

Why is it important: contributions will still be collected from you, even if you close the individual entrepreneur. Plus, a fine of 20% to 40% of the unpaid amount and penalties will be charged. In addition, by not paying your contributions on time, you deprive yourself of the opportunity to immediately reduce the accrued tax by this amount.

An example of reducing payments under the simplified tax system for insurance premiums

An individual entrepreneur without employees using the simplified tax system earned 1 million rubles in income for 2016. He had no business expenses (but even if he had, no expenses are taken into account for the simplified tax system for income).

Tax amount 1,000,000 * 6% = 60,000 rubles. Individual entrepreneurs' insurance premiums for themselves amounted to 30,153.33 rubles, based on:

• contributions to the Pension Fund - (6,204 * 12 * 26%) + ((1,000,000 - 300,000) * 1%) = (19,356.48 + 7,000) = 26,356.48 rubles.
• contributions to the Compulsory Medical Insurance Fund - 3,796.85 rubles based on (6,204 * 12 * 5.1%) at any level of income.

The entrepreneur took advantage of the right to reduce advance payments for the single tax on the simplified tax system at the expense of paid insurance premiums, so he paid them quarterly (*).

Let's calculate the total amount that went to the budget in the form of tax: 60,000 - 30,153.33 rubles (the amount of insurance premiums paid by which the tax can be reduced) = 29,846.67 rubles. As a result, his entire tax burden, including insurance premiums, is equal to 60,000 rubles. The net income from the business of an individual entrepreneur is 1,000,000 - 60,000 = 940,000 rubles.

(*) If you pay contributions in a lump sum at the end of the year, you will first have to pay the full tax amount of 60,000 rubles, and then submit an application to the Federal Tax Service for a refund or offset of the overpaid tax. Therefore, it is better to pay contributions in installments every quarter and immediately reduce quarterly advance payments under the simplified tax system. The result will be the same, but in the first case there will be more trouble.

4. Submit notice of commencement of activity

Few people know this, but before you begin to provide repair services for computers and communications equipment (OKVED codes 95.11 and 95.12), an individual entrepreneur must submit a notification of the start of business activity to the local branch of Rospotrebnadzor.

This is done in order to include you in the Rospotrebnadzor inspection plan, although they promise not to check you for the first three years after registration of an individual entrepreneur. But if a client complains about you, dissatisfied with the quality of services, then the inspection will be unscheduled. By the way, from January 1, 2017, Rospotrebnadzor will come with an inspection only if the client provides evidence that he has already tried to hold you accountable. Apparently, the department is already tired of checking the reality of all consumer complaints.

Why is it important: If you do not submit a notification, you can receive a fine of 3 to 5 thousand rubles. The mere indication of OKVED codes 95.11 and 95.12 when registering an individual entrepreneur does not oblige you to report anything. You only need to submit a notice if you actually plan to start repairing computers and communications equipment.

5. Open a current account

You can work without a current account if your clients are individuals who pay in cash, and you enter into agreements with other individual entrepreneurs and LLCs for amounts not exceeding 100 thousand rubles. This is the limit that the Central Bank has set for cash payments between commercial entities.

It is quite easy to exceed it, because this is not a one-time payment, but the amount of settlements throughout the entire term of the contract. For example, you entered into a lease agreement for a year, the rent is 15 thousand rubles per month. The total amount of payments under the agreement will be 180 thousand rubles, which means that rent payment is allowed only by bank transfer.

Non-cash payments are, in principle, convenient, not only because they increase the number of payment methods, but also allow the consumer to pay you with a credit card when he has no other free money. Payments with electronic money can be legalized by creating a corporate wallet for individual entrepreneurs.

Why is it important: For violating the cash payment limit, an individual entrepreneur is subject to a fine under Article 15.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation (from 4 to 5 thousand rubles). And we talked about why you shouldn’t accept payments to your personal card in the article 5 reasons not to use your personal account in freelancing.

6. Register as an insurer

If you use hired labor, you must register as an insurer in a timely manner. Moreover, the type of contract with the employee - labor or civil law - does not matter. Even if you enter into a one-time short-term contract for the performance of some services or work with an ordinary individual, you become the insured. That is, in addition to paying remuneration to the contractor, they are required to pay insurance premiums for him at their own expense, withhold and transfer personal income tax to the budget and submit reports.

The obligations of the policyholder to submit all kinds of reports on employees or performers are very depressing - there is really a lot of it, and it is complex. And since 2017, the main functions of administering contributions were transferred to the Federal Tax Service, nevertheless leaving some reporting for the Pension Fund and the Social Insurance Fund.

Why is it important: The deadline for registering individuals as insurers with the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation and the Social Insurance Fund is 30 days from the date of conclusion of the first employment or civil law contract. If you violate the deadline or do not register at all, the Pension Fund will fine you from 5 to 10 thousand, and social insurance - from 5 to 20 thousand rubles. Since 2017, the procedure for registering with the Social Insurance Fund remains the same, and instead of the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation, the application of an individual entrepreneur must be submitted to any tax authority.

7. Obtain a license if your type of activity is licensed

A license is permission to engage in a certain type of activity. In the IT sphere, Law No. 99-FZ dated May 4, 2011 classifies the following areas as licensed:

• Development, production, distribution of encryption tools, information systems and telecommunication systems, performance of work, provision of services, maintenance in this area, with the exception of the own needs of an organization or individual entrepreneur;
• Development, production, sale and acquisition for the purpose of sale of special technical means intended for secretly obtaining information;
• Activities to identify electronic devices intended for secretly obtaining information, with the exception of the own needs of the organization or individual entrepreneur;
• Development and production of security equipment, activities for the technical protection of confidential information.

Licenses are issued by the FSB; advice on licensing issues can be obtained.

Why is it important: for activities without a license or in violation of its terms, an administrative fine may be collected under Article 14.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation (for individual entrepreneurs, the amount is from 3 to 5 thousand rubles); confiscation of manufactured products, production tools and raw materials is also allowed. If, as a result of such activity, large damage is caused or large-scale income is received, then criminal liability is possible.

Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, Article 171. Illegal entrepreneurship

1. Carrying out business activities without registration or without a license in cases where such a license is required, if this act caused major damage to citizens, organizations or the state or is associated with the extraction of income on a large scale, is punishable by a fine in the amount of up to three hundred thousand rubles or in the amount of the wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to two years , or compulsory labor for a term of up to four hundred eighty hours, or arrest for a term of up to six months.

2. The same act:

a) committed by an organized group;

b) associated with the extraction of income on an especially large scale, -

is punishable by a fine in the amount from one hundred thousand to five hundred thousand rubles or in the amount of wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of one to three years, or forced labor for a term of up to five years, or imprisonment for a term of up to five years with a fine in the amount of up to eighty thousand rubles or in the amount of wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to six months, or without it.

Finally, a brief overview of what not to do with IP:

1. An individual entrepreneur cannot be sold entirely as a business. An entrepreneur can sell property, remaining goods, raw materials, supplies, etc. The buyer, if he intends to continue to conduct business, must be registered as an individual entrepreneur or LLC. Documents containing the name of the entrepreneur-seller (licenses, permits, approvals, contracts, etc.) will have to be re-registered to the new owner, and this is not always easy.
2. IP cannot be renamed. Changes in the name of the individual entrepreneur are allowed only if the passport details of the individual have changed. For example, when changing your surname during marriage. But you can’t just call yourself by a different name or come up with a sonorous nickname/name. You can register a trademark or service mark that can be used in advertising, but in official documents the individual entrepreneur will still appear under the full name of the individual.
3. You cannot register two or more individual entrepreneurs at the same time. Registration of an entrepreneur is carried out using his individual tax identification number, which does not change throughout his life, regardless of the change of name. If you are an existing entrepreneur, the tax authorities will immediately see this, so they will refuse to open a new individual entrepreneur. If you want to have several unrelated businesses, register companies, you just need to stop at the number 10, after which the founder is recognized as a mass one.
4. IP cannot be transferred or leased. This is equivalent to renting a passport or work book. There are such offers on the Internet, and they try to convince that everything is within the law: they will show copies or originals of the individual entrepreneur’s registration certificate, issue a power of attorney and even sign an agreement on joint activities. But such an agreement has the right to be concluded by commercial entities, not individuals, so it has no legal force. Everything you earn will belong to the “lessor”; you can only try to prove something through the court.

If you are not an individual entrepreneur yet, but are actively thinking about it, read our complete instructions for registering an individual entrepreneur with all life hacks. We are also ready to advise you free of charge on your choice

Everyone knows about the need to use cash registers when paying in cash. After registering a business, entrepreneurs must conduct all financial transactions through a payment transaction registrar or cash register (cash register). Owners of online stores often have a question: “Do I need a cash register to conduct trading activities?”

According to current legislation, all individual entrepreneurs and organizations must use cash register equipment when selling products, performing work and providing services in cash. At the same time, there are a number of nuances in using a cash register (cash register), which will be discussed in the article.

When an online store may not use cash registers

Internet commerce falls under a simplified taxation system and UTII, which make the process of reporting and paying tax payments simpler.

In some cases, when organizing an online store, you may not need to use a cash register:

• When paying for certain products through a bank account. To do this, the store must indicate its details, to which the buyer will transfer the agreed amount. In this case, the CCA is not needed.

To conduct monetary transactions, it is important to use only the official details of an individual entrepreneur or a legal entity-enterprise. Commercial transactions through bank accounts of individuals are illegal and can lead to fines and restrictions, including termination of the individual entrepreneur’s activities.

In other cases, the use of CCA is mandatory. However, there are also some difficulties.

In what cases is the use of cash register mandatory?

The use of a cash register is regulated at the legislative level very strictly.

It is needed in such cases:

1. Point of delivery of ordered items. When transferring products at the pick-up point of an online store and paying in cash or through a POS terminal, installing a cash register is required.
2. Express delivery. To conduct such a transaction, your company’s courier must have a mobile cash register with him. This will give him the opportunity to transfer the purchase with the provided receipt anywhere.

Don’t forget: if in your case the purchase of a cash register is mandatory, use it for additional benefit. On the payment transaction registrar, launch a loyalty program: a discount on the third purchase, the fourth item as a gift, etc.

Does an online store operating under the simplified tax system and UTII need a cash register? KKM is subject to mandatory registration with the tax office. At the same time, individual entrepreneurs working under a simplified taxation system must punch a receipt even when paying for goods with a bank card via the Internet.

When a store operates under UTII and a patent, the use of cash register is not necessary (but a sales receipt must be provided upon the buyer’s request).

The optional use of a registrar of settlement transactions for UTII makes this tax in demand and beneficial for modern business.

A similar rule applies to the use of receipt-printing cash registers without a fiscal memory module. For enterprises operating under UTII, their use is permissible. Under the simplified tax system, the use of such devices is not permitted.

Basic actions of entrepreneurs

To conduct trade and provide services legally, online store owners must perform the following actions:

1. Review the store's main business processes and decide what type of payment transaction registrar is needed. Perhaps you can limit yourself to purchasing and installing a standard cash register, or it will be more convenient to use a mobile fiscal registrar.
2. Contact a service center to install cash register mechanisms and sign a contract for servicing the registrar.
3. Install the device and conduct trading operations legally, issuing checks to customers.

Features of settlement operations

When setting up an online cash register store, many difficulties can arise. The cost of one portable machine varies from 10 to 20 thousand rubles. Buying a compact recorder for each courier will be expensive, even for a large company. Therefore, many individual entrepreneurs install one registrar of settlement transactions in the warehouse. A receipt for the products is issued to the courier along with the goods, which he transfers to the buyer and charges him the specified amount.

The main thing is that the date the check was punched must coincide with the day the goods were transferred. Inconsistency with time is not a violation.

Which type of cash register to choose for an online store

As in other areas of business, the choice of a cash register depends on the turnover and the specifics of the individual entrepreneur’s activities. For beginning businessmen with a low level of sales, it would be optimal to install a portable cash register - the price of budget options varies between 10 - 15 thousand rubles. Such recorders are easy to use and do not require expensive maintenance.

The middle price segment of cash registers has a capacity for storing money, is equipped with greater functionality and a security system. By using a plastic card or key, you limit the use of the registrar by third parties.

If there is a large turnover, it is recommended to install multifunctional cash register mechanisms. If most buyers prefer cashless payments, pay attention to a cash register with a terminal for processing bank cards.

The cost of servicing the cash register depends on the chosen model and is about 500 rubles per month. For the production of cash registers, imported components are used. This means that the cost of cash register equipment may vary depending on the exchange rate of foreign currencies.

Amount of fines

The absence of a cash register when conducting trading operations, an invalid check, or the use of a payment transaction registrar that does not comply with the standards and basic requirements is an offense. Failure to provide a receipt to a buyer upon request for a product or service sold may also result in the accrual of fines.

Since the requirement to introduce cash register technology came into force not so long ago, in case of minor violations, you can receive a warning for the first time. In another case, a fine of 1,500 to 5,000 rubles will be imposed on individual entrepreneurs, and from 30 to 40 thousand rubles on legal entities.

In addition to meeting the legal requirements for the use of cash register equipment, it is important to evaluate and use all the advantages of cash registers.

Today, it is still possible to open an online store without a cash register, but trade on illegal grounds cannot develop and prosper. Use cash register for convenience and benefit, organizing loyalty programs and showing potential buyers the level of reliability of your company.

Good afternoon, dear readers.

Lately, we have been increasingly receiving questions about whether it is worth opening an individual entrepreneur if the future employer requires it? That is, when looking for a job, you found a suitable vacancy, successfully passed the interview, but at the last moment you find out that a necessary condition is that you must... open an individual entrepreneur.

Very often this is required when hiring taxi drivers, realtors, tutors, and so on. There are plenty of options. It is not by chance that the word “work” is put in quotation marks, since it is not work at all, as many people think.

Is it necessary to do this and why does this happen? We'll talk about this in this short article.

Why does the employer require you to open an individual entrepreneur?

In fact, your future employer is thus avoiding the insurance premiums that he is obliged to pay for each officially registered employee. In addition, for each employee you need to submit a pile of reports.

For obvious reasons, few people want to do this, and, as an option, future employees are encouraged to open an individual entrepreneur.

An agreement is concluded with you as an individual entrepreneur. For example, to provide taxi services for clients, whom he will supply to you as a taxi service dispatcher.

From the point of view of the law, this scheme should not raise questions, since the transaction is carried out at the level between the individual entrepreneur and the company that “hires” you to “work”.

But... they can still find fault with your “employer” for trying to avoid official registration of employees. True, this will be his problem.

But, as they say, there are nuances...

1. Mandatory contributions to be paid:

Firstly, you become an individual entrepreneur, with all the ensuing worries:

You will have to pay mandatory contributions for health and pension insurance. For example, in 2017 you will have to pay for mandatory contributions 27,990 rubles + 1% of the amount exceeding 300,000 rubles of annual income.

You can read more about mandatory individual entrepreneur contributions in a separate article on our website:

2. You will have to pay taxes

Yes, like other individual entrepreneurs, you will pay taxes depending on which taxation system you choose. You can read the relevant sections on the website.

For example, if you open an individual entrepreneur on the simplified tax system, a special article for such individual entrepreneurs will help you figure it out:

3. You will have to submit all individual entrepreneur reports

And you will do this too. For example, if you choose the simplified taxation system (the so-called “simplified” tax system), you can study this article:

4. All responsibility for problems with the individual entrepreneur will fall on you

You need to be fully aware that in case of problems with the individual entrepreneur (for example, you were fined for errors in tax accounting) the burden will fall on your shoulders. You have to be a very naive person to hope that the company where you “work” owes you something.

At the first serious difficulties, the contract for the provision of services will simply be terminated. Please note that it is not the employment contract that has been terminated, but the contract for the provision of certain services between the individual entrepreneur and the company.

5. It is not so easy to close an individual entrepreneur for an unprepared person

Sooner or later you will stop cooperating with such a cunning company. But the individual entrepreneur will not go anywhere...And until you officially close it, you will be required to pay taxes and submit reports for your individual entrepreneur.

Moreover, the procedure for closing an individual entrepreneur is full of pitfalls that you also need to be aware of:

6. And many other “bonuses”

For example, you will not have paid vacation or sick leave. You are not an employee of the company, but a third-party individual entrepreneur who provides services to another company.

Nothing personal, as they say.

Conclusion:

In our opinion, if you are offered to open an individual entrepreneur, instead of officially registering as an employee when hiring, then you need to be fully aware of the risks that arise.

And the best option is to open an individual entrepreneur only if you are really ready to become an entrepreneur, and not due to circumstances or the whim of the “employer”.

Just look for another job where there are no such strange conditions.

We decided to register an individual entrepreneur for the courier, and you understand that it is not advisable to understand the procedure yourself?

That's right- trust the professionals!

Choose a service package convenient for you and send the data to us by email ().

Our advantages

Individual entrepreneur registration period

7 working days

We accompany you
at every stage

5000 ₽ 0 ₽

We will open a current account for FREE
in Promsvyazbank

Plastic bag "Base"

Plastic bag "Base" involves independently submitting documents for registration to the Federal Tax Service, which results in savings on notary services (2800 ₽). Convenient for those who live in close proximity to the tax office.

The service is provided on an advance payment basis.

4900 ₽

For all regions of the Russian Federation

Package includes

• Oral consultation
• Selection of activities
• Preparation of a full package of documents for registration of individual entrepreneurs with the Federal Tax Service
• Clear and step-by-step instructions for further registration of individual entrepreneurs
• For free, we provide verbal consultation at all stages of registration of an individual entrepreneur

Scheme of work

Pay for our services

We are preparing documents

We send you the prepared documents by email, with detailed instructions for further actions.

We provide verbal advice at all stages of registration

Package includes

• Oral consultation
• Selection of activities
• Selection of taxation system
• Preparation of a complete package of documents for registration of individual entrepreneur in the Federal Tax Service
• Submitting documents for registration to the Federal Tax Service
• Receiving registered documents from the Federal Tax Service
• Receiving notifications from the Pension Fund of Russia (for the Moscow region - an additional service)
• Making a seal

Scheme of work

Send us your data by email

Pay for our services

We are preparing documents

Sign documents, including at a notary

We submit documents for registration to the Federal Tax Service

We receive registered documents

We do printing

We receive documents from the Pension Fund of Russia (for the Moscow region - an additional service)

We hand over the documents and stamp to you

Registration of an individual entrepreneur is carried out within one and a half weeks from the moment of contacting us

Additional services for registration of individual entrepreneurs for courier

* if you apply after 12-00 the current day, the service is transferred to the next day

Overhead costs when registering an individual entrepreneur for a courier

State duty for state registration

800 ₽

Notary costs for certification of an application to the Federal Tax Service

1 200 ₽

Notary fees for power of attorney
(when choosing the “Basic” package, there are no notary costs)

1 600 ₽

Notary fees for certification of a copy of the passport
(when choosing the “Basic” package, there are no notary costs)

660 ₽

Documents and information we need for our work

Please send all information in one email
Photos or scans need high quality. This will avoid unnecessary mistakes.

• Contact phone and email (for us to contact you)
• Phone and email (to be included in registration documents)
• Copy of passport (title page with photo and registration)
• INN (or just a number)
• SNILS (or just a number)
• Types of activities (in your own words or OKVED codes)
• Taxation system (simple, simplified tax system 6%, simplified tax system 15%, patent)

Documents of a registered individual entrepreneur that you will receive in your hands

• Notification of tax registration
• Extract from the Unified State Register of Individual Entrepreneurs
• Notification of assignment of statistics codes
• Notification from the Pension Fund of Russia (additional service)
• Application for transition to the simplified tax system with a mark from the Federal Tax Service (if you have chosen the simplified tax system)
• Print (for the “Standard” package)

Registration of an individual entrepreneur for a courier

Couriers can be found in any field of activity. They are exactly what every company needs in order to transport documents, deliver goods, orders, and also transport company specialists to customers. It is worth noting that the main problem of couriers is the quality of work. To be more precise, experienced businessmen prefer to work exclusively with experienced couriers who have not only been engaged in such work for a long time, but have also been able to register an individual entrepreneur for the courier.

This condition is not mandatory, but can provide many advantages and privileges. If you approach the development of your courier business wisely, you can achieve significant profits. Most couriers work without paperwork, which means they do not make payments to the tax and pension fund, which can often create some difficulties when working with clients. For example, an unofficial courier does not have the right to enter into a cooperation agreement with an enterprise, which is prohibited by Russian law. Accordingly, the work will be carried out on trust, and not every entrepreneur can take such a risk.

A courier registered as an individual entrepreneur can calmly work under contracts and not worry about himself, because if problems arise, for example, if the customer violates the terms of the agreement, the courier has every right to file a claim with the bailiffs and may well win the case. In addition, couriers working officially can receive funds not only in cash, but also on a salary card, which again provides other advantages. It is worth noting that it is advisable for a private, or to be more precise, individual courier, to purchase his own cash register, since according to the law, its absence may result in a fine of up to 40,000 rubles.

The benefit is that couriers with individual entrepreneur status can hire employees and gradually expand the boundaries of their business. The hiring of workers will be based on a work book and will require payments to the tax and pension fund accordingly. In other words, there are a huge number of advantages that can bring considerable income, but you will have to work hard to achieve an excellent result. The most important thing is that you need to comply with the terms of service and delivery times so as not to lose customers.

Useful information for a future individual entrepreneur

We also have a transparent pricing policy; we try to post on the website not only the cost of our services, but also related expenses. Do not hesitate, we can help you close or register an individual entrepreneur, as well as other legal services for courier will be predictable in cost. Call the numbers provided! We love to expand our horizons, so we welcome even those clients who don’t let us relax!

High-quality service, including delivery of goods, is the first rule of a successful business. Company owners are interested in ensuring that customers receive their orders quickly and safely. But not everyone runs their own courier service; more often they attract outside companies.

Courier service as a business is one of the options for starting your own business with minimal initial investment. This type of business does not require deep special knowledge, large capacity or complex legal procedures. However, there are nuances, knowing which, it will be much easier to start and succeed in this business.

Logistics trends: business relevance

To understand whether the business of delivering goods is profitable, let’s consider the main latest trends in the field of logistics - the process of moving goods, documents, valuables from the seller (manufacturer, supplier) to the buyer (customer, consumer).

1. According to the research agency Data Insight, online trade is growing by at least 25% per year even during a crisis, at the same time, most online stores use outside courier services to save money. The result is an increase in the number of parcels that require courier services.
2. In 2016, the demand for delivery of goods to pick-up points and post offices increased significantly.

   For example, customers prefer to pick up almost 90% of orders in the Svyaznoy online store from pick-up points. Buyers reserve goods on the website with the opportunity to pick them up within 48 hours from the most convenient store location. Third-party courier services are used to deliver such orders.

3. 2016 was a year of growing demand for the delivery of specialized goods: large cargo, food products (including ready-made meals from restaurants, cafes, and specialty bars).
4. Many large companies announce tenders for courier services.
5. The authorities are discussing the topic of legalizing online trade in medicines, alcohol, and jewelry. If this happens, then a surge in demand for services for the delivery of these goods is inevitable. Some of them require special conditions, for example, temperature conditions for medications.

Business registration

You can work both as an individual entrepreneur and as an LLC. Taxation - simplified tax system - 6% of income or 15% income minus expenses. OKVED codes according to the current classifier: 53.20.3 Courier activities; 53.20.31 Courier delivery by various modes of transport; 53.20.32 Delivery of food to your home (if you plan to deliver food); 53.20.39 Other courier activities. A license is not required for this type of activity.

At first, you can use your own home as an office, and your personal mobile phone as a communication device. In the future, it is advisable to hire a dispatcher (manager) who will take orders and rent office space.

It makes sense to open a courier business in large cities, since in small towns, where everything is within walking distance and there are no constant traffic jams, it is easier for people to pick up the goods themselves or send an employee.

It is necessary to decide on the format: will it be delivery within the city or intercity courier services. Use personal transport for work or hire couriers with their own vehicles: trucks (when transporting large cargo), cars, scooters, bicycles (when organizing the delivery of documents, postal correspondence, printed materials and small goods).

If you plan to deliver by public transport, you need to purchase travel tickets for couriers, this will reduce transportation costs.

Unusual formats - setting yourself apart from competitors

Courier services in large cities are not a novelty, therefore, there is competition, and to successfully enter a niche you need your own “tricks” that allow you to find, and possibly lure away customers from competitors. How to achieve this? For example, a unique unusual offer could be:

Velopochta. Fast delivery of documents by bicycle (or scooters and mopeds). Students can be hired to work during the summer. The disadvantage is seasonality, since it is not very convenient to ride a bicycle in snowfall in winter and in autumn through slush and rain. But you can make this idea an additional service for the warm season. Pros: low costs (no need to spend money on gasoline or travel documents), students are always interested in additional income, and among them there are many cycling enthusiasts.

For example, the American express mail UPS delivers packages not on conventional trucks, but on bicycles with a trailer.

Congratulatory courier service for the delivery of flowers, gifts, sweets, balloons and other holiday attributes. People don’t always have time to congratulate loved ones in person, and with proper advertising, such a service can be in good demand.

24 hour delivery. Not every courier service can boast of 24 working days. This can play into the hands of a novice entrepreneur: orders at night are valued higher and are delivered faster due to the absence of traffic jams. But here you will need to hire additional employees to work in shifts.

Delivery of women's small items or children's goods. Girls can be absent-minded and they have situations when it is not possible to go to the store, for example, tights are torn at work, hairspray has run out, diapers for an infant and many other options. You can position your service as a delivery service for the necessary little things or make it an additional service.

Delivery of auto parts , construction materials or large cargo, help with moving. In this case, additional loaders and cargo transport will be needed.

Delivery of products grown in summer cottages(can be organized in the summer-autumn season) or in greenhouses: potatoes, beets, cucumbers, tomatoes and other crops.

And old as the world, and, nevertheless, working methods of setting yourself apart from competitors - offering a more loyal pricing policy, speeding up delivery times compared to competitors.

Participants in thematic forums, sharing their own experience in opening a courier delivery service, advise the aspiring entrepreneur to “get to know this kitchen from the inside.” That is, get a job for a short period of time in a successfully operating courier delivery service and learn all the nuances of the business.

Where to look for clients

A natural question arises: is it difficult to find clients for a delivery service? We answer: if you know how and where to look for them, then it’s not difficult. Of course, advertising costs need to be included in the courier service business plan, but if you are smart, they will be small.

So, here is a list of options for finding clients that work, and most importantly do not require large investments:

Such customer search channels will definitely help you find customers for the first time; in the future, you shouldn’t stop advertising. It’s better to immediately include an item in your monthly expenses: advertising. When profits begin to grow, you can think about expanding, creating a website, and placing contextual advertising.

Courier service franchises

Another option to simplify your start is to open a franchise business. Below is a brief overview of two franchise offers from Russian companies.

1)CDEC

The Novosibirsk company SDEK Logistics Solutions offers a franchise on the following terms:

• Lump sum payment- 150 thousand rubles.
• Royalty: paid from the 7th month of work - 10%.
• Amount of investment to start: from 200 thousand rubles.
• Return on investment: from 3 months.

You can fill out an application or send a questionnaire on the company’s official website.

2) Express.ru

The company's franchise offer is valid for the cities: Krasnodar, Volgograd, Kazan. The conditions are as follows:

• Entrance fee: from 75 to 200 thousand rubles depending on the city;
• Payback: 14-21 months.
• Royalty: 8% (paid from the 4th month).

The company's head office is located in St. Petersburg. Partners are provided with comprehensive support, consumables, training, descriptions and instructions for all business processes.