Alex Ovechkin had Russian bank accounts frozen due to accountant not submitting tax returns since 2023

Alex Ovechkin faced sanctions from the Russian Federal Taxation Service for not submitting tax returns since 2023 tied to an individual entrepreneur registration used to rent intellectual property and sell merchandise. Russian tax authorities systematically blocked several of his bank accounts across 2023, 2024 and July 2025 because individual entrepreneur registration merges personal and business liability. Reports indicate no outstanding debts and attribute the account blocks to missed declarations or an accountant filing error. Match TV stated the filing omission caused the block and that the matter will be resolved soon. Multiple Russian and Belarusian outlets covered the incident.

According to the Russian sports tabloid "Mash on Sports", Ovechkin was sanctioned by the country's Federal Taxation Service (FNS) after not submitting tax returns since 2023. The punitive steps were reportedly taken because Ovechkin operates as a "self-employed individual" in Russia, primarily engaging in the rental of intellectual property to sell merchandise, and failed to meet tax declaration deadlines. "The hockey legend forgot about his individual entrepreneur and has not sent declarations since 2023," the outlet's Telegram post reads, as translated by Google Translate.

After that, the tax service systematically blocked all of his accounts: two in 2023, two more in 2024, and one very recently - at the end of July 2025. "Ovechkin has no debts, only problems with the individual entrepreneur. Ovi once sold his merch through it." In Russia, any individual can become an "individual entrepreneur" ( also known as "Individualny Predprinimatel" or IE), a common legal structure for freelancers and contractors seeking to essentially become a sole proprietor. Given how the account is registered, there's no legal distinction between the individual and the business, hence why Ovechkin's personal accounts were impacted.

While the issues have persisted over multiple years, Match TV reported on August 12 that they will be resolved shortly. "There are no problems, no debt either," a Match TV source said. "But the accountant did not submit the report on time, so the account was blocked. This issue will be closed soon."

Read at RMNB