“Customs Consulting” is a joint project by Deliver Journal and the “Puchkov.net” internet portal, designed for those who have to deal with the Russian customs.

The customs procedure rules are stated in Russian in black and white. However, no one completely understands them. The customs officials and brokers, as well as the participants of the foreign trade industry all interpret these rules differently. How to avoid losses when dealing with the system of customs rules?

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Export [1] Questions concerning customs clearance [3] Incoterms [1] Warehouses of Temporary Storage [1] Customs Payments [1] Temporary import and export [1]

Questions concerning customs clearance

  Question: As a foreign product producer, can I import spare automobile parts to Russia and use them for the warranty service and then store them in a warehouse without paying the customs duties?
  Question: Applying the Letter No.01-06/30199 issued by the Russian State Customs Committee on the 1st of August of 2001 contradicts with the customs tariffs....
  Question: What is the best way to bring dump trucks (approximately 30-40 units) from Kazakhstan to Russia to be used on the Russian territory for 1-1,5 years?

Question: As a foreign product producer, can I import spare automobile parts to Russia and use them for the warranty service and then store them in a warehouse without paying the customs duties? These spare parts will not be resold and will remain in the ownership of my company. Also, can I pass these parts to my business partner who provides the warranty services? Answer: Only Russian juridical persons are allowed to import products and conduct the customs clearance of these products. These spare parts can be imported by your partner. The amount of customs duties depends on the terms of the contract. However, I am more than confident that in your case there are no sufficient reasons for bypassing the import duties. It is not quite clear from the information you provided, what exactly will be serviced? Does this mean that something has already been imported? If yes, then there must be an existing contract, implying that someone already possesses the license to conduct warranty services. This contract should provide for the terms and conditions of importing spare parts. If not, then you would have to pay the customs duty without special preferences. Наверх

Question: Applying the Letter No.01-06/30199 issued by the Russian State Customs Committee on the 1st of August of 2001 contradicts with the customs tariffs. Order No.762 (Section 38), as well as the Government Enactment No.1009, do not allow to “issue regulatory acts in the form of a letter”. But still, an importer is being asked to provide the net weight of a product which has no retail packaging and to separate pickled cucumbers from the pickle, which almost doubles the customs payments. Is there a way to dispute such rules? Answer: Unfortunately, there are no contradictions. Firstly, the Order No.762 has been replaced by the Order No.1057 which was issued on the 4th of September of 2007. Secondly, this is true that the letter you have mentioned is not a regulatory act. It is only an interpretation of the rule which does not contradict with the Order. There is no way to separate pickled cucumbers from the pickle. Even if you are allowed to drain the pickle before submitting the customs declaration, then there is a chance you would want to wring out the cucumbers too? Even in supermarkets such products are sold together with the pickle. But perhaps your case is a special one. Concerning the doubling payments, this is a rhetorical question. Our customs officials are not interested in the real value of the products. The tax is imposed based on the set risks and nominal value. Even the tariff law says that the customs value of a product, not its real value, is used as the base for calculating the customs payments. Concerning disputing rules: one could lower the value of the product and then take the matter to court. However, this method won’t help you. Наверх

Question: What is the best way to bring dump trucks (approximately 30-40 units) from Kazakhstan to Russia to be used on the Russian territory for 1-1,5 years? What customs duties and payments must to be paid? Who will have to pay these duties? The question is asked by a juridical person. Answer: Due to the fact that Kazakhstan is part of the CIS, all goods produced in this country are not liable to the Russian customs duties. If a product comes from outside of CIS, then paying a customs duty may be required. Value added tax must be paid in any case. If I understand it right, the imported equipment will remain in the ownership of the Kazakh juridical person. In this case it will be correct to declare it for temporary import and pay the customs duty in regular monthly installments of 3% from the total amount. Thus, only one third of the total duty payments will be paid after one year. However, only a Russian juridical person can declare the imported products and be the payment protector, although the payment itself can be made by any party. Наверх