Limitation on foreign companies
to submit customs declaration in Russia

This important limitation is provided for by articles 126 and 16 of the Customs Code of the Russian Federation.

Article 126. Declarant

1. A declarant is any person specified in Article 16 of this Customs Code, as well as any other person authorised to dispose of goods in the customs territory of the Russian Federation in accordance with the Civil Code of the Russian Federation provided he or she abides by the terms and conditions set forth in Item 2 herein.

2. A declarant may only be a Russian person except in the following cases of conveyance of goods across the Customs border:

- by natural persons for personal, family, household and other needs which are not associated with any entrepreneurial ventures;

- by foreign persons who enjoy customs privileges as per Chapter 25 of this Customs Code;

- by foreign organisations which maintain their representative offices registered (accredited) on the territory of the Russian Federation according to the established order, in instances of their declaring goods for the customs procedure of temporary importation, re-export, or transit, as well as for the customs procedure stipulating release for internal consumption of the goods which are imported for fulfilling needs of such representative offices;

- by foreign carriers declaring the customs transit procedure;

- other cases when a foreign person has the right to dispose of goods in the customs territory of the Russian Federation beyond the provisions of an external economic transaction involving a Russian person as party to it.

Article 16. Obligations Pertaining to Customs Clearance Procedures

The obligations pertaining to customs clearance procedures, unless this Customs Code contains other provisions thereto, shall be borne:

(1) by a Russian person, who has effected a foreign economic transaction or in whose name or upon whose instructions said transaction has been carried out provided the conveyance of merchandise across the customs border is performed in accordance with the terms and conditions of the external economic transaction made by a Russian person;

(2) if conveyance of merchandise across the customs border is not stipulated by an external economic transaction made by a Russian person:

- by the person who possesses the ownership rights and/or the right to use given merchandise in the customs territory of the Russian Federation;

- by other persons who in accordance with Civil Code of the Russian Federation and/or this Customs Code have sufficient powers for performing legally significant transactions in their own name with the merchandise placed under customs control.