Receiving part of one's salary "in an envelope" may seem advantageous at first glance. In reality, both the employer and the employee are at risk—from financial losses to criminal liability.

An attorney from the Minsk Regional Bar Association, Zakhar Ladutko, discussed the potential consequences on STV.

Companies face taxes, penalties, and liability.

According to the attorney, paying salaries "in envelopes" allows companies to save on taxes and contributions to the Social Protection Fund. However, if such violations are discovered, the consequences can be severe.

Modern methods used by law enforcement agencies allow them to quickly establish facts about the payment of unofficial income. If it is determined that a company has been paying employees' salaries outside of official records, it may be charged with unpaid income tax and Social Protection Fund contributions.

Furthermore, penalties will be applied to the additional amounts. Administrative liability is also provided for both the legal entity and its head.

In some cases, criminal liability may apply.

There are even more serious consequences. As noted by Zakhar Ladutko, if the amount of tax evasion exceeds 1,000 base values, and the debt for Social Protection Fund contributions is more than 2,500 base values, criminal liability may be incurred.

In such cases, the guilty parties face punishment, including imprisonment for up to three years.

Additionally, regulatory bodies may pay attention not only to the fact of unofficial salary payments but also to the source of the cash used for payments to employees. If questionable transactions are discovered during an inspection, liability may also be imposed on the head of the company and the legal entity.

The employee loses more than just some social guarantees.

According to the attorney, the consequences of receiving a salary "in an envelope" affect not only the employer. The employee themselves also risks losing some social guarantees.

If the official salary is minimal, the contributions to the Social Protection Fund will accordingly be small. In the future, this can affect the size of pension payments and limit social guarantees related to unemployment benefits and temporary incapacity.

There is another problem. When a person's official income is significantly lower than their actual expenses, tax authorities may question the sources of the funds they have available.

In addition, low official income may affect the ability to obtain a large loan.

Unofficial salaries can be reported anonymously.

The lawyer also reminded that if an employee is aware of salaries being paid "in envelopes", they can report this anonymously to the Department of Financial Investigations of the State Control Committee through the organization's official website.