U.S. firms should be aware of the average tariff rates and types when exporting to the Russian market.

In August 2012, Russia became a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), lowering the average bound tariff rate on industrial and consumer goods from almost 10 percent in 2011 to 7.8 percent by 2017.

Food and agricultural exports to Russia from the U.S. are not currently possible due to Russian counter-sanctions. However, if sanctions were lifted and agricultural and food exports resumed with Russia, these would fall under Russia’s WTO Accession Protocol. The protocol establishes tariff rate quotas (TRQs) for agricultural goods such as beef, pork, poultry, and some whey products. Imports entering the market within the quota would enjoy lower tariffs, while imports outside of the quota would face higher tariffs. Some of these TRQ’s could also be subject to member-specific allocations. The current in-quota and out-of-quota rates are as follows: beef – 15 percent duty in-quota, 55 percent duty out-of-quota; pork – zero percent duty in-quota, 65 percent duty out-of-quota (the TRQ for pork will be replaced with a flat-top rate of 25 percent as of January 1, 2020); selected poultry products – 25 percent duty in-quota, 80 percent duty out-of-quota; and selected whey products – 10 percent duty in-quota, 15 percent duty out-of-quota.

On January 1, 2015, the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) was launched, incorporating the tariff regulations previously set forth in the Russia-Belarus-Kazakhstan Customs Union (CU) established in 2010. Armenia’s accession to the EAEU came into force on January 2, 2015, while Kyrgyzstan’s accession came into effect on August 6, 2015. The Unified Customs Tariff of the EAEU/CU has undergone periodic revisions since 2011, with the rates of import customs duties now set in accordance with the obligations outlined in Russia’s WTO Accession Protocol. All issues, such as tariffs, tariff rate quotas, technical regulations, licensing, and certification, are being addressed by the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC), the multilateral entity that was originally established by the member countries to manage the Customs Union and that now oversees the Eurasian Economic Union. Current information on the harmonized tariffs of the EAEU/CU can be found on the Eurasian Economic Commission’s website.

In addition to customs duties, import excise taxes may be applied for limited categories of products, such as luxury goods, alcohol, and tobacco products, cars, diesel and motor oil, and other petroleum products. Import excise taxes range from 20 percent to 570 percent.

The Value Added Tax (VAT) is applied to the sum of the customs value plus the customs duty plus any excise tax. Russian Customs VAT is levied at the same rates as Russian sales VAT, generally 20 percent for most goods, works, and services. A 10-percent rate applies to certain food products, children’s goods, certain medical and pharmaceutical products, pedigree livestock, and certain books and periodicals. Some categories (e.g., medical goods and equipment, goods designated for the diplomatic corps) may be VAT-exempt.

Effective August 2018, Russia began imposing additional tariffs of 25 to 40 percent for a set of United States products ranging from fiber optics to certain equipment for road construction, the oil and gas industries, and metal processing and mining. The Ministry of Economic Development indicated that these tariffs were in response to the United States’ imposition of tariffs on Russian steel and aluminum products earlier in 2018 under the United States’ Section 232 process.