Traceability of goods from 2021: what will be monitored and how to live with it

Duty-free import of goods for personal use to Russia

The rules for importing items are regulated by the Customs Code and international legal acts, since the Russian Federation is a member of the EAEU. Import of goods without state duty is possible only for personal use. To recognize items as not a consignment intended for sale, a citizen must inform the customs officer about the imported goods or fill out a declaration indicating the items being transported.

Requirements for duty-free import into Russia depend on the method of crossing. Throughout 2021, goods worth up to 1 thousand euros and weighing up to 50 kg are allowed to be imported duty-free by car, train, or sea transport. When traveling by plane, importers do not have to declare personal belongings whose value is up to 10,000 euros and weight up to 50 kg. Through a private carrier, the post office in 2021 is allowed to send duty-free goods that do not exceed the limit of 500 euros and weighing up to 31 kg.

The standards for importing goods for personal use are different for citizens who are voluntary or forced migrants. To import things without collecting a mandatory payment, citizens are required to present documents confirming their political status or participation in a state program legalized in Moscow. The benefit is valid only for the first border crossing. Duty-free entry with personal items is allowed for Russian citizens who have lived in a foreign country for more than six months.

Limits for transporting alcohol and tobacco

You can import 3 liters of alcoholic beverage per person without paying state duty. When several citizens enter, luggage is checked in separately for each person. The maximum quantity of liters is 5, of which 2 are allowed to be imported after paying 10 euros for each liter. For ethyl alcohol the rate is 22 euros per liter.

It is allowed to transport duty-free into the territory of the Russian Federation 200 cigarettes, 100 cigarillos, 50 cigars, 250 grams of tobacco per passenger. You cannot import several categories of products in the maximum quantity at one time. Only an adult individual can transport cigarettes.

Import of food products to Russia

Before entering the Russian Federation with purchases, you need to know what you can import into Russia. Import of food products weighing up to 5 kg is not subject to duty. It is allowed to transport meat, dairy products, and cheese in original packaging, where the manufacturer’s details are indicated. Regardless of weight, customs officers may temporarily restrict the import of products from places where a virus epidemic has been detected. Before entering, it is better to familiarize yourself with the list of prohibited goods on the electronic portal of Rosselkhoznadzor.

What is considered a “sanctioned” product?

A sanctioned product is food that is subject to a food embargo due to restrictions imposed by foreign countries due to the inclusion of the Crimean peninsula into the Russian Federation. Russia began to ban the import of certain categories of vegetables, fruits, meat and other food raw materials produced in the USA, Canada, Australia, Norway, and EU countries. The restrictions do not apply to citizens transporting goods for personal use. An individual has the right to cross the border with food raw materials that are subject to sanctions if the transportation meets customs requirements.

Import of medicines for individuals

Citizens can bring medicines to Russia for personal use. There are rules specified in PP No. 771:

• availability of the name of the drug in the state register of drug registration;
• confirmation of compliance of a drug unregistered in Russia with the requirements of a document establishing drug quality standards;
• transportation of prohibited medications with a doctor's prescription.

Individuals have the right to transport medications prohibited for import into Russia upon presentation of a prescription. The document must indicate the disease, the amount of the drug, and the prescribed dose. If the certificate is issued in a foreign country, the citizen is required to provide a legally certified translation.

Import of animals and plants

For the smooth import of a pet, you must have an international passport for it, which is issued by a veterinarian from the country of entry. An alternative document confirming the animal’s identity is a certificate indicating information about vaccinations and clinical condition. The last vaccination must be recorded from 3 to 12 months before entry. A mandatory condition for import is the presence of a chip in which the animal’s personal information is entered. For cats and dogs that need to be exported from the CIS countries, a built-in sensor is not required. The maximum weight of the animal should not exceed 50 kg, the cost should not exceed 1000 euros.

Importing plants from a foreign country requires a phytosanitary certificate of international standard. The validity period of the document is limited to 15 days after issue. To cross the border smoothly, the plant should not be planted in the ground. The exception is confirmation of one’s own status as a collector.

Shipping

Transportation and storage of meat products is complicated by the need to maintain a certain temperature regime. It is important to check whether the temperature requirements are indicated in the invoice, since warehouse employees rely on them when placing goods on the temporary storage warehouse. For example, the optimal storage temperature for chilled beef is 0-2 degrees.

Transportation of chilled and steamed meat is possible over short distances. Meat can be transported over medium distances in chilled or frozen form. In this case, the temperature is maintained from -5 to +5 degrees. If meat is transported over long distances, it is frozen at a temperature of -18 degrees and the specified temperature regime is observed during transportation.

In view of these requirements, meat is transported using refrigerated units and insulated vans, carefully disinfected and prepared, in which ventilation of the internal space is ensured.

What is prohibited from importing into Russia

In addition to the category of goods that can be brought from another country without paying state duty, a prohibited list of things has been established. Before visiting Russia, you need to know that citizens cannot bring into Russia:

• food products without phytosanitary certificates;
• printed and electronic materials related to pornography, disclosure of state secrets, incitement to conflict on ethnic grounds, propaganda of terrorism, Nazism, racial hatred;
• animals and plants that are on the verge of extinction;
• psychotropic drugs;
• prohibited substances;
• cold steel, firearms, gas, pneumatic weapons with ammunition without permission;
• human organs, biological materials.

Sanctioned goods for trade are prohibited. Meat, fish, seafood, vegetables, fruits, nuts, and dairy products cannot be imported to Russia from America or EU countries.

Will there be fines?

At the moment, fines for non-compliance with the order of traceability of goods have not yet been fixed, but are expected. In this regard, changes are being prepared to the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.

Indicative violations and sanctions:

• failure to submit and violation of deadlines for submitting documents on the traceability of goods - a fine of 1,000 rubles for each document not submitted;
• false information or lack of information in invoices or UPD in the part related to traceable goods - a fine of 1,000 rubles for each document.

In any case, the system will be tested in 2021, and fines are unlikely to be approved immediately. Therefore, in 2021 we are getting used to the new system. Most likely, fines for violations will become official no earlier than in 2022.

How to declare goods

Declaration – registration of vehicles and goods transported across the border. The procedure is provided for the control of the Federal Customs Service over cargo transported across the border territory. Based on the document presented, customs officers check the compliance of the declaration data with the goods delivered to the Russian Federation. There are several forms of baggage registration:

• oral;
• written;
• electronic.

An oral declaration is acceptable for the transportation of goods for personal use. The conclusive form allows citizens to undergo control along the “green” corridor. A written declaration is presented upon receipt of goods on the list for mandatory registration. A citizen can indicate imported items in free form or on a legal form. The electronic form involves filling out an application on the Internet and passing control automatically.

Filing a customs declaration

When crossing the border, customs control is required. If a citizen is carrying goods that are subject to registration, he is required to present a completed application and documents for the imported items. Declaration stages:

1. Submission of documents.
2. Presentation of transported goods specified in the declaration.
3. Payment of state duties and taxes.
4. Registration of the declaration by a customs inspector.
5. Documentary control to identify the correct assessment of the weight and cost of the transported cargo.
6. Obtaining entry permission.

After submitting an application, a citizen may be denied the status of a customs declaration. The main reasons are violation of the established requirements for filling out documents, discrepancy between the data and the real situation. In case of refusal, the citizen must receive a corresponding notification indicating the grounds for rejecting the application. If the decision is positive, the FCS inspector is obliged to release the cargo within one day after registration.

What needs to be declared

When planning a trip, a citizen must know what can be carried across the border according to the declaration. There is a list of products that are required for registration:

• money, securities;
• jewelry, metals;
• radio-electronic devices;
• weapons, ammunition;
• nuclear materials;
• goods representing cultural heritage;
• psychotropic, narcotic substances, potent medications;
• materials related to state secrets, research work;
• car, moped, motorcycle;
• more than 10 liters of combustible fuel, located in a separate container;

Before entering the regions of the state, you need to find out how much cash you can carry. Traveler's checks, the amount of which exceeds 10 thousand dollars, cash over 3 thousand dollars, bonds, bills, must be declared. The total cost of precious metals, stones (gold, silver, platinum, etc.) is no more than 10 thousand dollars. Radio-electronic devices with a frequency of no more than 9 kHz and a power of 10 MW are subject to declaration. Weapons and ammunition can be imported only upon presentation of permits and certificates.

Products made more than 50 years ago are recognized as cultural heritage goods. To import antiques, you must present a certificate confirming or refuting the national value of the item. Psychotropic and narcotic substances are prohibited for transportation to Russia. But if a citizen needs drugs to maintain his health, then he must present a prescription from the attending physician. Data on vehicles for personal use that crosses the border must be reflected without fail.

Traceability and labeling

Trade turnover control in one form or another is actively developing in the Russian Federation. Along with the traceability of goods, we can recall the labeling of goods. What are the differences between these control systems?

Firstly, we note that it is unacceptable to control the same product using several systems. And if you pay attention to the lists of goods subject to labeling and traceable goods, there will be no overlap in them.

Let's highlight the main differences:

• Labeling requires quite serious preparation from entrepreneurs and additional material costs. For traceability, it is enough to have an electronic signature and access to electronic document management, which many businessmen already have.
• Each unit of goods is marked, each batch of goods is traced.
• The introduction of labeling is gradual; different types of goods begin to be labeled without fail at different times. Traceability begins for all types of goods from July 1, 2021 (the list of traceable goods may change in the future).
• Control over labeled goods is carried out through the “Honest Sign” system, and traceability is monitored by the Federal Tax Service.

We wrote more about labeling in the article “Which products are subject to mandatory labeling from 2021” .

Methods of importing goods from abroad

Those crossing the border should know what and how they can bring into the country. Citizens have the right to import things in different ways:

• automobile;
• train;
• sea ​​transport;
• aircraft;
• carriers, post office.

Individuals can accompany their luggage themselves or use post offices or private carriers. Regardless of the method of import, uniform requirements are established.

Determination of the HS code

Meat belongs to product group 02. In accordance with the classification code, the rate of customs duty and VAT is determined. The VAT amount ranges from 10 to 20% of the customs value, varying depending on the preferences provided to the import country. The duty rate varies from 0 to 80%.

HS table for meat

Rules for the import of goods into Russia by legal entities

Commercial organizations and private enterprises should know what is and is not allowed to be imported into Russia from abroad. Firms engaged in export and import must register as an object of foreign economic activity when creating a company. The main stages of processing cargo baggage for legal entities:

• filling out a declaration in written or electronic form;
• assigning a personal code for the foreign economic activity product range;
• calculation of the cost of registration;
• documentary control;
• customs inspection of cargo, vehicle trunk.

In case of rare trips outside Russia, registration and customs clearance is carried out independently. If the export of goods occurs regularly, it is recommended to enter into an agreement with a broker who will represent the interests of the company when interacting with FCS employees when importing or customs clearance of cargo.

Basic provisions of the Customs Code of the Customs Union

The Customs Union is an agreement that is concluded between countries for the duty-free import of goods for trade. Russia is a member of the CU EAEU together with Kazakhstan, the Republic of Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Armenia. Basic provisions of the Labor Code:

• abolition of registration procedures;
• lack of control by customs officers in the country of departure;
• establishment of uniform safety rules and phytosanitary requirements for goods of CU participants;
• shared distribution of the tax amount for the CU countries.

When importing goods, tax rates established by Russian law are applied. Carriage of cargo from the EAEU CU member countries is regulated by the EAEU Labor Code, Federal Law No. 289.

Declaration of goods

Legal entities engaged in foreign economic activity are required to declare goods transported and vehicles crossing the border. The maximum permitted cargo weight is 20 tons. Along with the declaration, you must present a certificate of state registration, a certificate of conformity, and licensing documents. For goods that will be used for advertising or personal needs of the organization, a declaration of conformity is not required.

Customs payments

Registration of goods that are not on the list of duty-free transportation involves payment of money. The payment consists of state duty, tax, which is calculated when importing cargo into Russia, and customs duties. The cost is determined by the price of the goods with additional charges. The maximum fee is 100 thousand rubles.

Before entering another state, citizens should check the country's legislation. Russia has introduced restrictions and bans on certain categories of imported goods. Failure to comply with the established requirements of the Customs Code may result in the imposition of an administrative fine, confiscation of property, or criminal liability.

SB Cargo services

SB Cargo specialists know how to transport and clear meat through customs so that it does not spoil on the way. We work with all types of meat products. We know all the intricacies of its storage and customs clearance, including ensuring the necessary conditions during transportation and ending with placement in a temporary storage warehouse.

The customs clearance process is controlled by experienced licensed customs brokers who are ready to fully represent the interests of the customer in customs. SB Cargo works in accordance with established schemes, carefully checks and prepares all documents, so force majeure circumstances are practically excluded. We act within the framework of the law. Call us by phone or write by email. SB Cargo specialists will advise you free of charge on all issues and calculate the exact amount of services for your order.

What changes when filling out an invoice?

From July 1, 2021, in connection with the introduction of goods traceability, there was a need to improve the invoice, as well as its sister document - UPD.

The changes are obvious - goods traceability details have been added to these forms:

• line 5(a) is entered - shipping document (date and number);
• Column 11 has been changed - registration number of the goods declaration or RNPT;
• added columns 12 and 12(a) - quantitative unit of measurement of the product (code and symbol);
• added column 13 - quantity of goods in quantitative units of measurement.

ConsultantPlus experts spoke about how to issue an invoice according to the new rules. Get free trial access to the system and go to the Ready-made solution.

The UPD form has been similarly changed.

Let us add that simplifiers and other VAT non-payers, when participating in the circulation of traceable goods, must use the UTD, and not other primary documents. This is due specifically to the obligation to reflect traceability details. This also applies to those who work under agency or commission agreements.