Customs Service Opens New Clearing Centers
A letter by customs official Sergey Alexeev published yesterday contains a list of 170 customs divisions that will clear imports and exports from Russia. Previously their number had been 70. According to the Customs Code, the Federal Customs Service has the exclusive right to clear imports and exports, and it has 70 clearing points. But now all customs checkpoints on the border will have that right. This move is intended to encourage exports in the manufacturing and processing sector of the economy.
Central Fuel Customs and Central Excise Customs (for the export of tobacco products, alcohol and gasoline) will remain the exclusive clearers of the products they control. The share of other products in Russian export is comparatively low.
In May of this year, 150.2-million rubles worth of fuel and energy products were exported from Russia, along with mineral products worth 15.7 billion rubles, chemical products worth 13.5 billion rubles, metals worth 3.9 billion rubles, and food products worth 319 million rubles.
Experts say that the new customs points will allow exporters to save on shipping costs. They identify the main barrier to exports not as customs formalities, but as complications with receiving a refund on export VAT, however.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of July 10, 2007
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