Russian Post Faces Parcel Processing Delays Due to Lack of Funds for Customs Duties

Delays in processing parcels delivered by Russian Post have been recorded since April 30 due to a lack of funds in the operator’s account to pay customs duties, the Federal Customs Service (FTS) reported. «Delays are due to a lack of funds placed on the account of Russian Post for the payment of customs duties for imported parcels», - the publication said. The service added that the share of such parcels does not exceed 0.2% of all imported international parcels. They will be reprocessed when funds are transferred to the Russian Post’s account, and declarations are submitted to the customs, the agency explained. «Decisions to return parcels to the country of origin by customs authorities are not made», - the service emphasized. All FTS services are operating normally, parcels that do not require payment are automatically released, they concluded. Earlier, the Russian Post press service told RBC that «all systems» of the company are working steadily. «Information exchange with the FTS of Russia is proceeding as usual», - the message said.



As of April 1, the threshold for duty-free imports of parcels into Russia has been reduced from € 1,000 to € 200. In case of exceeding this threshold, the buyer will have to pay a duty of 15% of the value, but not less than € 2 per 1 kg. Experts told RBC that with the change in the duty-free threshold, «nothing fundamentally will change, except for the increase in the load on customs authorities and brokers». For buyers, the cost of the goods will increase, not at the time of purchase, but at the time of passing through customs or in the case of postal delivery at the time of receipt due to the need to pay duty. State Duma deputy and member of the board of directors of Russian Post Alexander Khinshtein warned that the decision will lead to «higher prices for imported goods» and an increase in «social discontent». In addition, this will lead to citizens refusing to make purchases and a decrease in the company’s revenue by approximately 20%.