Uncleared car: how to drive in Russia?

Possibility of importing non-customs cleared cars into Russia

All vehicles (VVs) crossing the customs border of the Russian Federation are required to undergo inspection at a customs point.
The person responsible for the import is given only 24 hours to deliver the car to this point. At customs, the car will be checked, registration fees will be deducted, and after payment they will issue documents confirming the legal crossing of the Russian border. Customs security must be paid before leaving abroad. After this, the vehicle is registered with the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate and can be in Russia legally. Such a car has passed customs clearance, has Russian state marks and is not classified as non-customs cleared.

It should also be taken into account that the imported car must comply with the EURO-5 environmental standard, which significantly reduces the choice of used cars. Moreover, the requirement has now come into force that imported cars must be equipped with the ERA-GLONASS emergency call system, which must be provided by the manufacturer. In fact, fulfilling this requirement completely blocks the possibility of legally importing used cars from abroad into Russia.

But let's return to the question about uncleared cars. They are on the roads of the country, which means their import is possible. There are two legal ways of long-term operation in Russia of a vehicle with foreign license plates:

The car was imported by a foreigner who has the right to legally stay in Russia for a long period. He can use a car in our country for no more than a year. It is prohibited to issue a general power of attorney for such a vehicle and sell it on Russian territory.
The car crossed the border of the Russian Federation as a temporary import. This type of vehicle registration is not free. In this case, the maximum service life of the machine in Russia is 6 months. Theoretically, it is possible to extend the period of temporary import, but in practice this possibility cannot be realized. After 6 months, the car must be taken abroad, and for the next six months it must remain abroad. It is impossible to legally sell such a car in Russia.

But there are many advertisements on the Internet that a car that has not been cleared through customs can be bought at half price. The answer is simple - it's deception.

What are non-customs cleared cars?

According to the legislation of the country, a car imported from abroad must be submitted for customs inspection within 24 hours. Customs officer:

inspects the vehicle;
prepares permits;
reports the amount of duty and tax.

Only after such a procedure can the car be driven on Russian roads. Otherwise, during the first inspection by traffic police officers, a violation of the law will be revealed.

The law allows you to drive a car with foreign license plates only in two cases:

Foreigners who have a temporary residence permit in the Russian Federation. A permit to import a vehicle is issued at customs. Operation is carried out during the citizen’s stay in the country, but not more than 1 year. In this case, payment of taxes and customs duties is not required.
Citizens of the Russian Federation who bought a car and registered it abroad. A temporary import permit is issued at customs. The period of stay on the territory of Russia is 6 months for 1 year with payment of customs duties.

Important : the rules for importing cars into the country are established by the “Agreement on the procedure for moving ...” and “Instructions on the procedure for performing customs actions ...” dated June 18, 2010 No. 311.

Is it possible to purchase a non-customs cleared car?

Ownership of property provides the owner with the opportunity to dispose of it within the framework established by law. Property can be gifted, sold, or otherwise disposed of legally.

When it comes to buying a car that has not cleared customs, a substitution of concepts occurs. They promise to give you the opportunity to legally use a car with foreign registration in Russia for a certain fee. But since the sale of non-customs cleared cars is prohibited, you will not acquire ownership of the vehicle.

Deal Features

When concluding a purchase and sale agreement for a car, ownership rights are transferred to another person. This fact must be recorded in the traffic police within 10 days. The new owner will be entered into the vehicle’s passport and another vehicle registration certificate will be issued in his name. It is these documents that confirm ownership of the car.

When “selling” a car without customs clearance, a purchase and sale agreement is most often not concluded; the scheme works differently. There is no actual purchase taking place. The client is offered to pay for the cost of the car abroad and, for an additional fee, certain services that will allow the car to be used in the Russian Federation without customs clearance.

Options for purchasing a car abroad

There is only one way to legally buy a car abroad, which initially involves its further customs clearance. Representatives of the intermediary company, at the client’s request, select a car abroad, purchase it, deliver it to Russia, carry out customs clearance in a legal way and transfer the car to the client. All expenses and cost of services are paid by the buyer. But the main purpose of driving with foreign license plates is to save on government payments for customs clearance of cars.

What do sellers of non-customs cleared cars offer? They will provide vehicle selection for a fee. Then there are 2 options:

After making all payments, the client is given the car, foreign documents for it, keys and papers that supposedly allow the vehicle to be operated in Russia. The package obviously includes documents on the legal import of a car into the territory of the Russian Federation by a foreigner or Russian, a power of attorney for the use of the car and, possibly, for its sale. Today, a power of attorney also does not have to be certified by a notary, and when executed, you can write whatever you want on your knee. In addition, documents confirming legal border crossing may turn out to be fake.
For an agreed fee, a car is selected for the client and offered to come to the country where it is located. Upon arrival, he is helped to prepare foreign documents confirming the right to use and dispose of the vehicle. Next, the buyer drives the car to Russia and arranges temporary importation in his name. After this, he can actually legally drive a car in the Russian Federation for six months, after which he must take it abroad and leave it there for six months. Theoretically, one can imagine purchasing two cars, which they then leave abroad in turn. You can only sell a car in the country where it is registered.

Is it worth buying a non-customs cleared car?

Purchasing a non-customs cleared car has its advantages and disadvantages. The positive aspects of the purchase include:

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Low cost of the vehicle due to the fact that customs clearance is not required.
No transport tax is charged.
Exemption from mandatory technical inspection.
Problems with bringing to administrative responsibility for violation of traffic rules. The absence of foreign license plates in the Russian Federation database complicates the identification of the offender.
Buying unique car models.

Flaws:

Repeatedly crossing the border to renew a residence permit in Russia.
The risk of numbers being stolen for ransom.
Restoration of license plates and all documentation for cars at the place of registration.
Border crossing and re-import costs.
Bringing to criminal and administrative liability for violation of customs import rules.
Confiscation of a non-customs-cleared vehicle when imported with violations.

Making a deal

The second way to buy a car, described in the previous section, is to complete the transaction according to the procedure provided for by the legislation of the country where the car is registered. But this has nothing to do with the legal stay of the vehicle on the territory of the Russian Federation. Legality in this case is ensured by temporary import.

A general power of attorney or a purchase and sale agreement will not help either - these documents will initially be illegal.

How to drive a non-customs cleared car in Russia?

As mentioned above, you can drive a non-customs cleared car in Russia if you follow certain rules. The person must carry with him:

your passport;
vehicle passport;
insurance policy of the country where the car is registered;
declaration for the import of vehicles.

See also: Penalty for overloading a vehicle on axles

Another option is to clear the car through customs. In this case, costs increase significantly.

Important : a foreigner cannot issue a general power of attorney to drive a vehicle in Russia. Moreover, the rule also applies if a foreign citizen is in the Russian Federation. For example, a father (living in Spain) who came to Russia with his car cannot issue a power of attorney for his son to drive it. By law, only he can drive a car.

Responsibility for purchasing a vehicle that has not been cleared through customs

According to Chapter 16 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, a fine is imposed for the following violations:

Failure to comply with the deadlines for transferring payments to customs – 50-2.5 thousand rubles.
Failure to submit a customs declaration on time – 1-2.5 thousand rubles.
Violation of established import bans – 1-2 thousand rubles. In some cases, the vehicle may be confiscated.
Failure to pick up a car on time – 1.5-2.5 thousand rubles. The car may be confiscated.

Criminal liability arises for citizens if evasion of customs duties has reached large (1 million rubles) or especially large (3 million rubles) proportions.

If there is a large debt to customs, the following types of penalties are possible:

A fine of 100-500 thousand rubles or in the amount of income for 1-3 years.
Mandatory work. The maximum period is 480 hours.
Forced labor – up to 2 years.
Imprisonment for up to 2 years.

If the debt to the state has reached particularly large sizes, liability becomes stricter:

Fine 300-500 thousand rubles or the amount of income for 1-3 years.
Forced labor – up to 5 years.
Imprisonment for up to 5 years.

Why do you need a non-customs cleared car?

These cars are much cheaper than similar ones officially imported. Even used cars in Russia are more expensive than new ones like those in other countries. This is due to the current legislation.

Russia has introduced high customs duties in order to officially drive a foreign car. Therefore, motorists are constantly looking for some workaround to operate a vehicle that has not been cleared through customs in Russia. These payments can be up to 50% of the cost of the new vehicle.

Unfortunately, there are no official methods for operating non-customs cleared cars in Russia. Nevertheless, you can increasingly see cars with foreign license plates on the street. Therefore, there are workarounds on how to register a vehicle that has not cleared customs. There are several ways.

Purchasing a car from a foreign relative

The action plan here is as follows:

buying a car in another country and registering it in the name of a relative;
a relative gives a power of attorney for a long term (more than a year);
the car can drive across Russia for six months;
After this, the car must cross the border of the country where the car was purchased. This sequence can be performed many times.

The advantage of this method is that there is no legal basis for presenting objective claims. The downside is that an uncleared car and its owner are legally completely defenseless. In addition, all fines are international and will be sent to the relative abroad.

Uncleared car – what could this mean?

Despite the fact that car owners are aware of the possible consequences of driving such cars, quite often they are sold to citizens of the Russian Federation. The new owners are not even aware of this fact, and then, when the truth becomes known, they get into big trouble.

If it can be proven that the owner knew nothing about the smuggling method of importing a car into Russia, there will be no liability and the car will not be confiscated. However, a fine cannot be avoided in this case. This is the best outcome of events. But this happens quite rarely.

In the worst case, when the owner cannot prove that he knew nothing about the uncleared car, then he will be fined and the vehicle will be deregistered. The worst thing is that subsequently such a car cannot be sold even to the state. The only way out is to pay the customs duty in full - in fact, half the cost of the car. To avoid getting into such a situation, you should carefully check the documents for the car, especially information about customs clearance and about the owners according to the title.