Belarus government promises lower customs duties on vehicles thanks to recycling fee

Customs duties on vehicles will be reduced after vehicle recycling fees are introduced on 1 March 2014. The information was released by Belarusian Deputy Industry Minister Gennady Svidersky on 7 February as he commented on the Belarus president decree, which introduces recycling fees on vehicles, BelTA has learned.

Once the recycling fee is in place, the rates of customs duties and recycling fee sums will be fully unified with those in Russia, noted the official.

The recycling fee will be enforced by Belarus president decree No. 64. The document is supposed to enable the rational use of natural resources and protect the environment in addition to using as much waste as possible in the capacity of recoverable resources. The decree introduces recycling fees on vehicles, specifies who will pay the fees, how the fee will be calculated and paid.

The decree specifies what kinds of vehicles will be subject to the recycling fee. The number includes vehicles with electric motors (except for those fitted with hybrid power plants), cross-country vehicles, cross-country dump trucks that weigh over 50 tonnes, and automobiles, which are imported by natural persons for personal use regardless of the engine volume.

The recycling fee will be paid one time per vehicle. The size of the fee will be determined by the basic rates and multipliers set by the government. The vehicles, which are subject to the recycling fee, include vehicles made and alienated in Belarus, including vehicles meant to meet the producer’s needs, vehicles, which are imported to Belarus for personal use and are released into the circulation without restricted usage and management, vehicles, which are imported from other Customs Union member states and are subject to state registration.