Electronic vouchers will not be issued from September 1

On September 1, the Unified information system of electronic vouchers, designed to protect the rights of tourists, will start working in test mode in Russia. In this regard, some media outlets reported that Russians will also start receiving vouchers electronically from September 1, 2022. But it’s not. Why – explained in the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR).

The launch of the Unified Information System of Electronic Vouchers (UISEP) on September 1, 2022 is provided for by the Law “On the Fundamentals of Tourism Activities”. But tour operators can enter data into the EISEP during the test period only on a voluntary basis.

“The mandatory system of electronic vouchers should become March 1, 2023 (that is, the test period is six months), and for tour operators for domestic tourism – only September 1, 2023 (the test period is 1 year),” the source said. ATOR.

In any case, the issuance of electronic tickets from September 1, 2022 is technically impossible, since most market participants are not yet connected to the system and do not have the technological capabilities to work with it. And the system itself needs to be improved, which will be carried out taking into account the identified problems during testing and the proposals of the tourism market participants who will work with it.

Yes, there are a few shortcomings. One of them is that it is not possible to automatically enter information about complex tours into the system – that is, about those when tourists do not stay in one hotel during their holidays, but move from place to place.

Another problem concerns the timing of the publication of information in the system. According to ATOR vice-president, head of Space Travel tour operator Artur Muradyan, information is transferred to the system by the tour operator at the end of the calendar month, no later than the 15th day of the next month. That is, a tourist can buy a ticket, go to rest, return, and there will still be no information about his tour in the system.

“Yes, information about an electronic voucher in the form of an extract can be provided to a tourist upon a separate application, within 5 working days. But if we’re talking about protection [от мошенников]then there should be a deadline for entering data – strictly before the trip, ”Muradyan notes.

Participants of the tourism market also have other questions related to the work of the ENISEP. And all of them have to be solved in the process of testing the system. So, the Russians will have to wait at least another six months to receive electronic vouchers.

Alena Bodrienko.

Photo by Alexander Avilov / Moskva Agency