Criminological and criminal law characteristics of illegal entrepreneurship

Introduction: This article presents an analysis of the state and dynamics of crime in the sphere of economic activity in the territory of the Russian Federation. The study showed that a significant part of economic crimes, especially illegal entrepreneurship and fraud, remain highly latent, in connection with which the author reveals in more detail criminological and criminal - legal characteristics of illegal entrepreneurship. The article identifies the problems of qualification of the crime stipulated by Art. 171 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation with related compositions. Materials and methods: The Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation "On judicial practice in cases of illegal entrepreneurship" № 23 dated November 18, 2004, the National Security Strategy of the Russian Federation, the Presidential Decree № 400 dated 02.07.2021. The formulated conclusions are based on the presented statistical data and materials of criminal cases. The study has been conducted using the comparative - legal method, as well as cross - sectoral research, generalisation and description. The Results of the Study: established the main determinants of economic crimes, including illegal entrepreneurship. On the basis of the conducted research some questions of qualification of illegal entrepreneurship were disclosed. Findings and Conclusions: On the basis of the studied statistical data, the author concluded that in the structure of economic crimes, acts against property, against the state, the interests of public service and service in local governments still dominate. Illegal entrepreneurship takes a special place in the structure of economic crimes, causing some disputes and difficulties for the law enforcement agencies in qualifying this crime with related crimes, such as art. 235, 233, 198, 199 OF THE CRIMINAL CODE. On the basis of the research the author concluded that there is a need for more detailed establishment of objective characteristics of the corpus delicti, which will better distinguish the related corpus delicti from each other.