Not everything is gold that they write about

The high-profile news about the Ministry of Finance’s desire to limit the amount of gold exported by Russians abroad, in the words of Deputy Minister Alexei Moiseev, “in their pockets” (sounds funny, considering that some are carrying tens or even hundreds of kilograms), clearly showed the problems of certain areas of regulation in demonstrated once again that not all questions can be answered quickly.

It would seem that the rules for the import and export of goods for personal use should be clear, understandable and accessible to ordinary citizens who are affected. Yes, but no. When trying to understand customs legislation, it turned out that few people understand it, with the exception of the relevant authorities. Which, however (I hope – only for now), could not clarify all the nuances.

Kommersant’s first appeal to specialists and the Internet did not create clarity. Lawyers answered either evasively or without reference to norms and laws. There were a million articles online that talked about certain restrictions, but the numbers varied and were not supported by anything. In the media, blogs, and forums, lawyers and experts contradicted each other. Even the pages of customs representatives accredited by the Federal Customs Service are full of confused and erroneous advice. To clarify the situation, it took several days of discussions and reading dozens of legal acts (Kommersant will release detailed material about this in the coming days).

There are several reasons for the confusion. Firstly, there is no single law that would set out the rules for the export of goods by citizens. Instead, there are a lot of acts, including the EAEU Customs Code, presidential decrees, government resolutions, decisions of the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC) and annexes to them. Moreover, often the required norm does not give a direct answer, but refers to another document, which refers to a third, the meaning begins to change and get lost.

Some provisions apply to both the import and export of goods, while others apply only to imports. A number of other rules have already lost force and have been replaced by new ones, and sometimes the norm has been canceled without updating, creating holes in regulation. Some rules, although formally existing, do not in fact apply to citizens. Adding to the confusion is that even when moving within the EAEU as a single customs territory, you may encounter the presence of rules from individual countries.

Two conclusions can be drawn from this story. Firstly, Russian regulation in the customs sphere is like a minefield, which is simply dangerous for an ordinary person to enter. And secondly, the posting of information on the Internet by specialized sites and experts does not guarantee its veracity, even if other explanations are not published anywhere. We at Kommersant, of course, are also not without sin, but we will try to check everything more carefully.