Prepared by Igor Petrov
Customs regulations for individuals
Smashwords Edition
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Copyright © 2011 by Igor Petroff
Smashwords Edition License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with.
The information is prepared on the basis of the existing customs legislation with the use of the Memo for international flights passengers crossing the customs border of the Customs Union (Letter from the Federal Customs Service of Russia No. 16-26/55640, d/d 16/11/2010), the Memo for international trains passengers crossing the customs border of the Customs Union, and the Memo for individuals crossing the customs border of the Customs Union in automobile vehicles (Letter from the Federal Customs Service of Russia No. 04-30/34327, d/d 19/07/2011).
The procedure of transportation of goods for personal use is regulated by the provisions of Chapter 49 of the Customs Code of the Customs Union (CC of CU), the Agreement "About the procedure of transportation of goods for personal use by individuals crossing the customs border of the Customs Union and the customs procedures related to release of such goods".
Cash and/or monetary instruments shall be transported by individuals across the customs border of the Customs Union according to the procedure defined by the Agreement "On the procedure of transportation of cash and/or monetary instruments by individuals crossing the customs border of the Customs Union" from July 5, 2010.
You can find the details of the customs regulations on the official website of the Customs Union Commission (www.tsouz.ru). In case any changes are made to the regulations after publishing of the present booklet, we will immediately put the information on these changes on the website of CASTO company (www.castospb.ru or касто.рф).
General information
At present the Russian Federation is a member state of the Customs Union (CU). The CU single customs territory consists of the territories of the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Russian Federation. The border of the single customs territory of the CU is the customs border of the Customs Union. Transportation of goods across the customs border of the Customs Union is regulated by the customs legislation of the CU.
The following concepts are identified by the customs legislation of the Customs Union.
Goods – any movable asset crossing the customs border, including information media, currencies of the member states of the Customs Union, securities and/or currency valuables, traveler’s checks, etc.
Goods for personal use – goods designed for personal, family, home and other needs of individuals, not connected with entrepreneurial activity, crossing the customs border as a part of accompanied or non-accompanied luggage or by any other means.
Accompanied luggage – goods for personal use, including hand-luggage, directly transported by an individual, crossing the customs border.
Non-accompanied luggage – goods for personal use belonging to an individual and handed over to the cargo operator under an international shipment agreement (transport shipping) for actual transportation across the customs border in connection with the arrival of this individual to the territory of the Customs Union or his departure from the territory of the CU.
Inseparable goods for personal use – goods for personal use weighing more than 35 kg, consisting of one unit or one set of goods, including goods transported in disassembled, unassembled, incomplete or unfinished state, on the assumption that the goods have the basic property of assembled, completed or finished commodity item.
Transport for personal use – auto-, motor-vehicle, trailer, hydro-, aircraft together with spare parts thereof and regular accessories and equipment thereof; petroleum, oil, lubricants contained in its regular tanks, being in ownership or possession of an individual transporting these transport vehicles across the customs border exclusively for personal purposes, but not for third-parties personal transportation for a fee, industrial nor commercial transportation of goods for any fee or free of charge.
Goods for personal use can be transported across the customs border of the CU as a part of accompanied or non-accompanies luggage, as goods transported by a transport operator and as an international postal shipment.
Customs operations with goods for personal use depends on the means of transportation at the place of arrival on the customs territory of the Customs Union or the place of departure from this territory or may be carried out in the customs authority of a member state of the Customs Union, on which territory the individual resides permanently (or temporarily) and has the right to act as a customs applicant for such goods.
Double corridor system
The double corridor system can be applied at places of arrival to the customs territory of the Customs Union or departure from this territory for the purpose of declaration of goods for personal use. It provides individuals crossing the customs border a choice of declaring goods for personal use in writing and selecting an appropriate corridor ("green" or "red") for carrying out customs procedures.
"Green" corridor is the special marked facility at arrivals and departures places intended for individuals transporting goods for personal use not subject to declaration across the customs border as a part of accompanied luggage, providing that these persons don’t have any non-accompanied luggage.
"Red" corridor is the special marked facility at arrivals and departures places intended for individuals transporting goods subject to customs declaration across the customs border as a part of accompanied luggage, as well as goods that are declared optionally at the discretion of the individual.
Written declaration
The following items are subject to customs declaration when crossing the customs border of the Customs Union (a passenger customs declaration shall be filled in):