In recent years, the volume of goods ordered from foreign online stores and from foreign suppliers has increased sharply. In order to regulate the quantity and cost of cargo, in January 2021, the Federal Customs Service lowered the duty-free threshold for the import of goods for personal use, which are delivered by carrier companies and international post offices. Now it is 200 euros and 31 kg. Therefore, in order to import goods without hindrance, the customer needs to calculate the customs duty on the parcel.
Who is affected by the changes?
Citizens who order goods from foreign online stores (AliExpress, Amazon, eBay) or bring them back from travel are required to pay customs duties. In this case, the cost of the goods is paid to the seller, and the duty for its purchase goes to the country’s budget. Thus, when placing an order on a foreign Internet site, you need to be prepared for the fact that its final price will be higher.
The amount of tax is affected by the weight and cost of the parcel, and the number of orders. The customer will be able to avoid paying only if he meets the duty-free limit. If desired, the order can be divided into several parts, and then sent at another time or paid for by another person.
All about the duty-free limit
Duty-free limit is the weight and amount for which you can order foreign goods without paying tax. Until 2021 it was 500 euros and 31 kg. This meant that by purchasing products costing 450 euros and weighing 30 kg from a foreign online store or from a foreign supplier, the customer could not make contributions to the Russian budget. If, for example, he bought a TV for 550 euros or several cheap TVs with a total weight of 32 kg, then he had to pay tax.
Until 2021, when calculating customs duties on goods from China, the USA or Europe, the total amount of purchases per calendar month was taken into account. Now it is calculated regardless of how many orders were placed during the month.
The import of alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, caviar and cars has its own limits. The same applies to goods that are imported for business purposes. For example, when ordering one fur coat costing more than 200 euros, you need to pay one tax, when ordering five fur coats - import customs duty and VAT. This is due to the fact that a large number of goods are considered by customs officers as a commercial consignment.
Official website of the Federal Customs Service
The original purpose of the above-mentioned information resource is effective control and security for all participants in foreign economic activity. This is the best option for monitoring the overall status of an individual account. It is also possible to receive reports on all movements of funds occurring in the account.
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Any client can request information on bank guarantees, as well as relevant customs receipts. Having our own service at our disposal means that each participant in foreign trade activities can prepare and receive the following reports:
- on the expenditure of funds contributed as an advance;
- on balances on payment orders, etc.
To fill out the required report and static form, you must create a request for the required information. Customs officers will send a response by email: this will appear in the list of requests made. All important information (bank receipts and guarantees) are available on the resource pages automatically.
Limits for different types of transport
The need to pay duty also depends on how exactly the cargo will be imported into Russia. If the same TVs are delivered by air, the customer will automatically be exempt from paying tax. In general, foreign-made goods can be imported into the country:
- on foot,
- by mail,
- by plane,
- on ground transport,
- with the help of a carrier company.
The duty-free limit for cargo delivery by air is 10 thousand euros or 50 kg. If the cost is increased by 30%, you will have to pay tax. If you exceed the weight, you will need to pay 4 euros for each kilogram.
For land transport and cases where goods are imported into Russia on foot, the limit is 500 euros or 25 kg. If it is exceeded, you also need to contribute 30% of the cost to the treasury or pay 4 euros for each kilogram.
These restrictions must be taken into account by tourists and travelers who return to their homeland with suitcases full of souvenirs, clothes, and alcoholic beverages. It is better to distribute them among all participants of the trip, but do not hide them from customs officers, because this may result in a fine.
How to calculate tax
The calculation of customs duty 2021 is carried out taking into account the cost and weight criteria. If any of them are exceeded, tax is charged. At the same time, the Federal Customs Service does not establish monthly standards for ordering goods on foreign Internet sites. Russian citizens can place order after order, the main thing is that the store or supplier does not combine them into one batch.
The weight criterion is rarely applied to postal items. In most cases, online stores send orders in small packages, the weight of which with packaging rarely exceeds 2 kg. Most often, such packages exceed the cost criterion, for example, when ordering digital equipment.
Before ordering a smartphone or jewelry from a foreign online store, you need to find out how much tax will be charged by customs. As a rule, tax is charged on the amount that exceeds the norm. For example, if a product costs 300 euros, tax will be charged on 100 euros (300-200). If it weighs 35 kg, the duty will be calculated for 4 kg (35-31). If the parcel exceeds both limits at once, the tax is not summed up, but is calculated based on the largest excess.
In accordance with the resolution of the Eurasian Economic Commission, the customs duty rate is 15% of the cost or 2 euros for each kilogram that exceeds the weight limit. In the case of our examples, it will be: (300-200)*15%=15 euros (35-31)*2=8 euros.
Here the customs duty will be 15 euros, since the excess value is greater. If a customs officer doubts the veracity of the declared value of the cargo, then, in addition to the basic tax, the customer will have to contribute another 250 rubles to the budget - a fixed fee.
When calculating duties, FCS employees are guided by internal instructions. At the same time, they take into account the information provided by the online store (in particular, Joom and AliExpress are already connected to the information system) or indicated in the customs declaration. If a dispute arises, the recipient must show customs officers a screenshot of his online order page, invoice, online bank statement or order payment receipt. These documents may be required if the customs officer suspects a deliberate understatement of the value of the parcel in the declaration.
If a Russian citizen buys a product at a discount, the duty is calculated based on the amount actually paid. Sometimes customs officers ask for documentary evidence.
Another nuance: when calculating the tax, the cost of delivery of goods is not taken into account. For example, the order amount is 210 euros, of which 16 euros were spent on delivery, which means there is no need to pay duty (210-16=194 euros).
Features of the FCS personal account
The main advantage of your personal account is electronic document management. Users can send documents via the Internet, sign electronically, and save documentation on servers. Through your account you can view responses from customs authorities. Each registered participant receives a personal account with three modes of operation. When switching modes, the functionality changes.
For individuals
- Virtual customs duties calculator;
- Passenger declaration.
For legal entities (without electronic signature)
- Sending preliminary notifications.
For legal entities (using an electronic signature)
- Sending commodity declarations;
- Notifications about the movement of goods;
- Documents receiving;
- Sending statistical declarations;
- View decisions on product classification;
- Creating a personal account;
- Viewing archival documents;
- Checking the status of the declared goods;
- Location of goods in the warehouse;
- View the white list;
- Assigning classification to goods;
- Obtaining customs carrier services;
- Currency control;
- Sending notifications to seaports;
- Purchase of excise stamps;
- Customs check;
- Sending information about copyright holders.
Is it possible to bypass customs limits?
It is in the interests of online stores to maintain and maintain turnover. Therefore, as a rule, they meet foreign customers halfway and offer:
- partially attribute the order price to the delivery cost;
- send the goods in parts;
- send the goods, describing them as “used”;
- reduce the declared amount.
However, even if the seller underestimates the declared amount, the trading platform itself will transmit official data to the Federal Customs Service. It is precisely such cases that make its employees suspicious.
Before paying customs tax, you need to find out whether the supplier or online store has a warehouse in Russia. In this case, the cargo does not need to go through customs, and the customer does not have to pay duties, since they were paid by the seller when he initially imported his products into the country. The cost of parcels delivered from Russian warehouses, although higher, often compensates for the duty.
Tax payment methods
Carrier companies are required to collect data about the buyer for declaration, as well as transfer it to the Federal Customs Service register. As soon as the buyer places an order, the delivery service sends him an invitation to register in his personal account. Here he states:
- passport details;
- TIN (citizens of other countries who temporarily stay or permanently reside in Russia are not required to provide a TIN);
- contact number;
- email;
- link or screenshot of the order with the name and cost of the product.
After the parcel arrives at Russian customs, the customer is sent a message about the need to pay duty. It also contains instructions on how to pay customs tax. This can be done through the Russian Post mobile application or by bank payment. The application is convenient in that it notifies the user about the accrual of customs duties and allows them to pay it immediately.
When paying tax by bank transfer, you need to check that the destination and details entered are correct. If the data is entered incorrectly, FCS employees have the right to demand that the fee be paid again. The previous payment is usually returned, but with a delay.
For citizens who often make purchases in foreign online stores, it is more profitable to cooperate with shipping companies. Many of them can pay the customs duty for the customer. To do this, he only needs to deposit the required amount into the account in his personal account. This form of cooperation makes life easier for both the customer and the courier service.
Personal account functions
The main advantages of the FCS personal account are the ability to send documents online with confirmation by an electronic signature, storage of submitted documents on servers and the ability to receive responses to submitted requests from customs authorities. A user who registers on the official website of the Federal Customs Service - customs.ru, receives a personal account that can work in 3 possible modes with a different set of functions:
For individuals
- customs duties calculator;
- passenger declaration.
For legal entities (without using an electronic signature)
- advance notice;
- advance notice of personal transport.
For legal entities (using an electronic signature)
- submission of commodity and cargo declarations;
- submission of statistical declarations;
- obtaining permits;
- notification of the export of goods;
- customs carrier service;
- decisions on product classification;
- decisions on administrative offenses;
- maintaining an electronic archive;
- maintaining a personal account;
- checking the status of the declared goods;
- placing goods in a warehouse;
- informing about copyright holders;
- classification of goods transported as components;
- access to white lists;
- advance notification at seaports;
- passing exchange control;
- customs transit service;
- submission of various types of reporting;
- passing customs inspection;
- purchase of excise stamps.
https://edata.customs.ru/FtsPersonalCabinetWeb/ - personal account of a foreign trade participant
