New Tax: €25 for Parcels from abroad

The Eurasian Economic Commission discuss introduction of new duties.

Russian Vedomosti reports.

Vice Premiers of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia will discuss the tax on purchases abroad. The Working Group of the Council of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) has developed a project on reduction of the threshold of duty-free e-commerce from €1000 up to 150. The document will be discussed at the EEC Council, its representative told. Arkady Dvorkovich will represent Russia, a government's employee informs. The representative of the Deputy Prime Minister did not comment on it.

The EEC proposes to amend rules for cross-border e-commerce: to reduce the duty-free threshold up to €150, and the total weight of parcels up to 10 kg. Thus, it wants to introduce a fixed fee of €25 within the limits mentioned. If the maximum number size is exceeded, both customs duties and the tax will have to be paid. Now in Russia it's allowed to receive duty-free parcels up to €1000 and 31 kg per calendar month. If the maximum is exceeded, the duty equals to 30%, but not less than €4 per 1 kg (valid for excess amount of the threshold).

Since the last year the government has discussed a reduction of the threshold of duty-free e-commerce. Figures discussed fall within €150-500. But in February, 2015 the board of the EEC has decided not to change the rules before the entry into force of the Customs Code of the Eurasian Economic Union, but retain national level standards until 2016.

Members of working group from Kazakhstan and Belarus support the idea, Armenia has not yet presented its position.