What new awaits Russians from November 1: pensions, microloans, marking

Increase in pension payments to miners and pilots

From November 1, the amount of the additional payment to pensions of two categories of citizens will be recalculated: members of the flight crews of civil aviation aircraft and employees of coal industry organizations. Retirees who have the relevant length of service as a flight crew member are entitled to the supplement. For men, this is at least 25 years, and for women, at least 20 years. According to the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation, about 50 thousand aviators will receive an industry-wide increase in pensions, and its size will average 21.2 thousand rubles.

Also, the right to an additional payment from November 1 is received by former miners and employees of mine rescue units, if an application for the appointment or renewal of the payment, as well as the recalculation of its amount, is accepted in the period from July 1 to September 30. More than 35,000 former coal miners are applying for the new payment, who will receive an additional 5,000 rubles on average, according to the Russian Pension Fund.

Andrey Loboda, economist, director of communications at BitRiver, comments:

“It is logical that miners and pilots have a preferential right to additional pay, since these are perhaps the most dangerous professions on the labor market. Creating favorable conditions for retired people in risky professions is an important humanitarian trigger, a litmus test that shows the state’s respect for brave people. An additional payment of about 5 thousand and 20 thousand rubles, respectively, looks very worthy, such support is much higher than the average increase in pensions in the country. Money is never superfluous, especially given to the elderly. They will remain in the country’s economy, since the purchasing power of these categories of citizens will noticeably grow.”

Denial of microloans secured by an apartment

From November 1, microfinance organizations lose the right to issue loans secured by real estate. The exception is loans for entrepreneurial activities. Another change concerns the transfer (termination) of ownership of real estate. Rosreestr was obliged to notify the owners if they received electronic documents to register the transfer or termination of ownership. Recall that for confirmation in such cases, an enhanced qualified electronic signature is used.

Ivan Samoylenko, managing partner of B&C Agency, comments:

“Everyone knows that MFIs often issue loans at extremely high interest rates. As a result, people fall into debt bondage simply because they read the contract inattentively. Meanwhile, as a result of the tightening of the approach of banks to the assessment of the borrower, many people go to MFIs, mortgaging property and real estate. This may lead to an increase in the number of people in Russia who have lost their apartments due to very expensive loans. Therefore, such a restriction is being introduced: the regulator is closely monitoring the situation with the debt burden of Russians and is trying to prevent its critical growth.

The innovation regarding Rosreestr will protect property owners. If, without their consent, some documents for apartments are fraudulently drawn up, an additional check by the department will close some of the loopholes for criminals.”

The residence permit will become indefinite

From November 1, an unlimited residence permit is introduced in Russia. Recall that now a residence permit can be obtained only for 5 years, but there is the possibility of its extension. Starting from November, it will be necessary to change the relevant documents only if typos were made during registration, the data changed, the document was badly worn out, or upon reaching 14, 20 or 45 years.

Ivan Samoylenko comments:

“Perpetual residence permit is introduced in the interests of citizens coming to the country from neighboring countries. Firstly, these are citizens of Ukraine, who previously had to, after the expiration of their residence permit after five years, either apply for Russian citizenship or return to their homeland. Secondly, such a measure will help labor migrants from neighboring countries – such sectors of the Russian economy as construction, transport, housing and communal services, and the agricultural sector are interested in this. In these sectors, the share of migrants from the CIS countries is quite high, and the fact that people can work quietly for a long time without reissuing a residence permit can secure them in their jobs.”

Unqualified investors will be limited in transactions

Russian brokers will not execute orders from unqualified investors to purchase securities of issuers from unfriendly countries if, as a result of the transaction, the share of such securities in the portfolio exceeds 10 percent. Such a measure is introduced by order of the Bank of Russia from November 1. Earlier, in October, the Central Bank had already introduced a similar ban. Then the share of securities of issuers from unfriendly countries in the portfolio should not exceed 15 percent. The limit will be further reduced in December – already to five percent. The Central Bank hopes thereby to minimize the risks for ordinary investors. In particular, related to the fact that foreign financial institutions that record securities may, without warning, at any time block the ability to dispose of acquired assets. More than five million Russian investors have already suffered from such blocking.

Andrey Loboda comments:

“A few years ago, against the backdrop of high inflation and a low key rate, ordinary people who plunged into exchange trading took deposits from banks and invested in the Russian and stock markets. Today, about 19 million people have accounts in investment companies; this means that, including family members, almost a third of the population is immersed in exchange trading in one way or another. The question arises: who in Russia today needs shares of issuers from unfriendly countries? They carry a colossal risk, because any private or institutional investor from Russian jurisdiction can instantly be deprived of investments, appropriating them in favor of government agencies of one of the Western countries. Thus, our former Western partners have already appropriated almost $400 billion in foreign exchange reserves. It’s time to get rid of the colonial dependence on the securities of Western issuers, especially since the US stock market is doing poorly this year. At the same time, the domestic stock market is very cheap today and you can buy shares of domestic giant companies, which have always been in price for many years.”

Transition to the electronic passport of the car

From November 1, it is planned for car owners to switch to an electronic form of a technical equipment passport (PTS). In Europe, this form has been valid since August 2016. Until November 1, every driver has the right to voluntarily change a paper passport for an electronic one.

Pavel Sigal, First Vice President of Opora Rossii, comments:

“The transition from paper vehicle passports to an electronic version is a very timely initiative. This measure can speed up the registration of a car, as well as simplify the process of its customs clearance. It should be noted that the electronic version of the document contains the same information that is available on paper. Plus, the electronic analogue has a number of advantages: it cannot be lost, it does not need to be replaced if the owner has changed, and you can also quickly request an extract and find out the history of the car.”

Certification of dairy products

In November, all finished dairy products will be required to undergo electronic veterinary certification. The list of such products will include: drinking milk, cream, yoghurts, kefir, cottage cheese, young cheeses, ice cream. Recall that from July 1 of this year, veterinary accompanying documents in the Mercury system were required to be provided for powdered and condensed milk, hard cheeses and butter. The authorities assure that the innovation will not affect the cost of dairy products.

Ivan Samoylenko comments:

“Certification of dairy products is a mandatory norm, but now veterinary certificates of conformity will be in electronic form. This is necessary to prevent products that do not meet normal quality indicators on the counter of stores. Without a veterinary certificate, the product cannot legally be sold. This document shows that milk does not contain E. coli or other unnecessary pathogenic bacteria, that it can be consumed without fear of getting some kind of disease that is transmitted from animal to human milk with milk.

Bottled water labeling

On November 1, a new stage in the implementation of the packaged water labeling system begins. All legal entities selling it will be required to transfer data on the turnover of goods through the electronic document management system. Labeling is the process of applying symbols to a product. It is needed so that you can identify the product and decipher its characteristics and properties. The purpose of the marking is to reduce the turnover of counterfeit goods in the country. The main objective of introducing labeling of bottled water is to cleanse the market of counterfeit when sellers bottle tap water.

Natalia Milchakova, Lead Analyst at Freedom Finance Global, comments:

“Labeling of bottled water is needed in order to remove falsification from the market. According to various estimates, even in the pre-Covid era, the volume of counterfeit products was at least a quarter of the volume of the Russian bottled water market, and in some regions the share of counterfeit brands reached 80%. Now, when labeling becomes mandatory, bottled water sales will be carried out mainly online, using electronic document management. For a manufacturer or importer of bottled water, labeling will not create large costs in itself: it will be enough to pay for the production of a labeling code and applying it to water bottles. Wholesalers will not incur costs at all due to the introduction of labeling. This year, the introduction of labeling of bottled water will not affect the retail trade. But from March 2023, the sale of bottled water at retail will have to be carried out only with the help of online cash desks. In general, nothing should fundamentally change for the buyer of water in retail stores, including at the price level.”

As well as:

Tachographs will become mandatory. Starting November 1, 2022, all buses and trucks must be equipped with tachographs. This requirement applies to trucks and vehicles over 3.5 tonnes. Recall that the tachograph is a technical tool that allows you to control the movement of vehicles along the route. Thus, the control over the observance by the driver of the rules of rest and work is enshrined in law. At the same time, fines for the absence of tachographs will increase: from 1,000 for drivers to 50,000 rubles for organizations.

It will be possible to withdraw consent to the processing of personal data. From November 15, Russians will be able to withdraw their consent to the processing of personal data through the State Services. The user’s personal account will display all the consents that he previously issued to government agencies when receiving public and commercial services.

Lenders will be able to check the fact of mobilization in the Federal Tax Service. Banks will be able to request from the Federal Tax Service information on the mobilization of the client. This applies to mobilized entrepreneurs who will request credit holidays: if the businessmen cannot provide a document on mobilization, then the creditor will be able to verify this information himself.