International Affairs Resources for the Russian Federation

• Labeling Requirements
• Required Documents
• Licensing
• Import Procedures
• Taxes/Tariffs
• Contacts

Please note:

Russian regulations on alcoholic beverages are currently (as of October 4, 2011) undergoing review by the relevant authorities, as part of the integration process of the Customs Union between Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Russia.  TTB will update this page once the Customs Union publishes new regulations on alcohol product safety.  In the meantime, it is strongly suggested that exporters arrange to have their products imported by an experienced Russian importer as regulations are subject to change quite frequently, as well as to ensure that shipments have all their required documentation.

LABELING REQUIREMENTS

All products are required to have labeling and relevant information in the Russian language.  Russian law requires that the following information be placed on the label of all alcoholic beverages:

• Product name;
• Producer’s name, country, and address;
• Importer’s name and address;
• Product volume;
• Storage conditions;
• Food additives and flavorings;
• Mark of Conformity
• Health Warning, stating, “Alcohol is not for children and teenagers up to age 18, pregnant and nursing women, or for persons with diseases of the central nervous system, kidneys, liver, and other digestive organs.”

The following information must also be placed on the label, depending on the commodity of the product:

Beer:

• Type of beer;
• Alcohol Content;
• Bottling date;
• “Use-by” date;
• Extractability of original wort;
• Composition of primary raw materials and ingredients;
• Nutritional values.

Distilled Spirits:

• Bottling date;
• Alcohol content;
• Sugar content (if applicable);
• Composition of primary raw materials and ingredients;
• “Use-by” date, if alcohol content is less than 10% by volume.

Wines:

• Bottling facility name;
• Bottling date;
• Alcohol content;
• Sugar content (if applicable);
• Harvest year (for appellation-controlled wines);
• “Use-by” date, if alcohol content is less than 10% by volume.

Packaging:

Product information must be placed directly on the package in a convenient location.  The bottling date of transparent colorless liquid products that are bottled in colorless containers may be marked on the reverse side of the label.

When the package cannot accommodate the complete text of the required information, the manufacturer can, at its discretion, place all or part of the product information on an insert that accompanies each product unit or on a group package.  Consumer information shall also be supplied with each unit of group consumer packaging used to retail food products in sets.

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REQUIRED DOCUMENTS

In order for the product to be released from Customs, importers must provide copies of the following, in Russian:

• Import license;
• License of the Customs warehouse;
• Contract between supplier and importer;
• Transport document (i.e. bill of lading);
• Invoice;
• Excise stamps document set;
• Certificate of Origin;
• Hygienic Certificate;
• Certificate/Declaration of Conformity.

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LICENSING

In order to engage in the alcohol business in the Russian Federation, the importer is required to obtain a General License for the Import of Ethyl Alcohol and Alcohol Products from the Ministry of Industry and Trade and a license for the circulation of alcohol products from the Federal Service for the Regulation of the Alcohol Market.

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IMPORT PROCEDURES

Pre-Import Certification

Prior to the release of alcoholic beverages from Customs, regulations in the Russian Federation require that the following certifying documents be obtained, confirming that the products meet Russian standards of safety and quality: Sanitary-Epidemiological Conclusion Certificate (Hygienic Certificate) and Certificate/Declaration of Conformity.

The importer is responsible for acquiring both certificates.  To facilitate this, the foreign supplier should expect to provide the following to the importer:

• Product samples for testing (typically at least 2 liters in total volume, i.e. 4-750 mL bottles or 6-500 mL bottles);
• A copy of the contract between supplier and importer;
• Samples of the label;
• Power of attorney ot the Russian form to carry out the certification.

Hygienic Certificate

The Federal Service for Supervision in the Area of Consumer Rights and Welfare Protection (Rospotrebnadzor) tests samples of the product and issues a Hygienic Certificate, which indicates compliance with Russian standards.  The Hygienic Certificate is valid for up to five years.

Certificate/Declaration of Conformity

The Federal Service for Technical Regulation and Metrology (Rostekhregulirovaniye) issues a Certificate of Conformity, based on testing from accredited laboratories.  Products must then display the Mark of Conformity on the consumer packaging.

Governmental Decree No. 982 of December 1, 2009 replaced the Certificate of Conformity for alcoholic beverages with a Declaration of Conformity.  The Decree intends to ease requirements on business by eliminating mandatory certification.  However, at the date of publication of this webpage, procedures for registering the Declaration of Conformity have yet to be fully provided by Rostekhregulirovaniye.

Product Registration

In the Russian Federation, alcoholic beverages exceeding 9% alcohol by volume must be registered through the Unified State Automated Information System (UFAIS).  Importers are responsible for registering the product and placing excise stamps with required data on the consumer packaging.  The following information is required to appear in the UFAIS system and on the excise stamp of each alcoholic beverage container:

• Name of alcoholic product;
• Type of alcoholic product;
• Ethyl alcohol content;
• Volume
• Producer;
• Country of origin;
• Identification of the Special Economic Zone.

Customs Clearance

Customs clearance typically takes two to four days, assuming certification and duties/fees/taxes have been arranged in advance.

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TAXES/TARIFFS

Customs duties, fees and taxes depend on the type of the product and are calculated based on customs cost of the product, i.e.: cost of the product plus transportation expenses.

Taxes (per liter of ethyl alcohol content):
Spirits of more than 9 percent ethyl alcohol: 210 rubles
Spirits of less than 9 percent ethyl alcohol: 158 rubles
Table wine: 3.5 rubles
Sparkling wine: 14 rubles
Beer with less than 8.6 percent ethyl alcohol: 9 rubles

Please note: Each bottle of spirits or wine is required to carry an excise stamp before it can be sold in Russia.

For the most current tariffs and taxes applied to imported products for this country, please visit export.gov. Please ensure you have a 10-digit HS classification code in order to obtain tariff information.  Also see the Census Bureau’s Schedule B search function ( https://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/schedules/b/index.html), which allows you to classify your product according to United States export codes. Simply click "Search" and enter the keyword (i.e. beer) that best describes your product.

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CONTACTS

The information in this guide was obtained from external sources, including the websites of various governmental agencies and organizations, direct contact with those agencies and organizations, and from Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) Attaché reports.  Consequently, the accuracy of this information depends upon the accuracy of the sources.

TTB is not responsible for the content of external websites.

This page was last reviewed on October 04, 2011.

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