Dead number: why the “gray” import of cars to Russia is bent
- January 13, 2023
- 0
The stubborn hopes of the Russian authorities for the revival of the Russian car industry (in fact, its final transformation into a Chinese one) have led to the
The stubborn hopes of the Russian authorities for the revival of the Russian car industry (in fact, its final transformation into a Chinese one) have led to the once “gray” car imports, which were once advertised, being curtailed due to unchanged customs legislation, without having had time to really develop. Portal “AutoVzglyad” explains why this is happening.
In fact, the reasons for the difficult situation with gray imports are simple and straightforward. Both individuals and legal entities can import cars into Russia. A legal entity car dealer has no economic interest in importing one or two cars from abroad. Here’s a batch of 10-20 pieces – what you need! But the “ambush” here is that car models sold in the markets of other countries are usually not certified for Russia. And in order to trade them, we have to issue a “Vehicle Type Approval” (OTTS). This case is being handled by the US. Of course not for free. And as practice shows – very slowly.
Getting OTTS on a car in a few months is considered near cosmic speed. A car dealership cannot afford to “freeze” funds indefinitely pending certification (especially now). In fact, the purchases by Russian car dealers of parties of at least hundreds of certain new cars abroad in 2022 can therefore be counted on the fingers of two hands. In theory, you can use the scheme for importing cars into Russia with registration for individuals. When a Russian brings a vehicle for himself, he does not have to spend OTTS. It is enough to quickly (from a few days to a week) get the “Certificate of Safety of a Wheeled Vehicle” (SBKTS) especially for his car in one of the accredited counters.
But here is the problem that as soon as the “physicist” starts importing cars in “packs”, the customs authorities identify him as an entrepreneur-reseller with all the legal and tax consequences that entails. It turns out to be impossible with the help of individuals to organize a more or less large-scale and stable channel for importing cars to Russia “in a gray way”: you cannot stock up on citizens to register a car for each.
– We now have the European Union, it seems, is considered unfriendly. Meanwhile, Russian customs considers all payments in euros, in the old way. Nothing has changed for them. It is not only clear: who prevents us from converting the calculation of duties into Russian rubles? It would be easier for all importers to live,” Sergey Pigolkin, founder of the online new car auction Carclick.ru, said of the situation.
According to him, the current situation with the “gray” import of cars to Russia will lead to the fact that domestic car dealerships will largely disappear. Because their business is based on selling the car at a very high markup.
– The task of a typical car dealer is now to buy a car for, say, 2 million rubles, and then sell it for 3 million rubles. They are forced to do this because they cannot provide mass deliveries of cars. With them, sales are basically single now, Pigolkin explained.
However, the point is not only in this, but sometimes in the banal desire to disrupt additional excess profits, taking advantage of the shortage of cars in the domestic market. Among the participants, the story of the Haval crossovers, which took place in the summer and autumn last year, is well known. Its essence is that the cars of this Chinese brand, intended for the market in Kazakhstan, are produced at the Russian factory of the brand near Tula. From there they are taken on car transporters to the Kazakh official dealers. The nuance is that in Kazakhstan, in terms of rubles, these cars were sold on average 1 million cheaper than in the salons of Russian dealers!
A number of domestic companies oriented themselves and brought brand new Tula “Havals” from Kazakhstan back to Russia in the same way with car transporters. And with a good profit for themselves, they sold them here. Fortunately, both our countries are members of the customs union and you do not have to pay import duties at the border. As a result, it was possible to sell cars in their homeland for, say, 2.5 million rubles, while the price in a car dealership for the very same “Tula” car was at the level of 3 million rubles. But it was a one-time story. Although it vividly characterizes the methods of doing business of domestic “officials”.
Be that as it may, the conclusions of all of the above are simple and joyless. The “grey” automatic import doesn’t really work. Of the domestic car dealers, only a few will survive, having managed to “lean” against Chinese car brands and AVTOVAZ. And Russian car owners are waiting for a creeping collapse of supply in the new car market.
True, there is still a glimmer of hope that the Chinese and some Iranians will arrange the delivery and assembly of their cars in the Russian Federation in a year or two. After all, dear AVTOVAZ will not be able to provide us with its cars properly: it promises to release only 400,000 products in 2023. With the needs of the domestic market at the level of more than 1.5 million per year. This thirsty “gray” import could be satisfied very quickly. If it were not necessary to give about 50% of its value to customs when importing each car into the country …
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In fact, the reasons for the difficult situation with gray imports are simple and straightforward. Both individuals and legal entities can import cars into Russia. A legal entity car dealer has no economic interest in importing one or two cars from abroad. Here’s a batch of 10-20 pieces – what you need! But the “ambush” here is that car models sold in the markets of other countries are usually not certified for Russia. And in order to trade them, we have to issue a “Vehicle Type Approval” (OTTS). This case is being handled by the US. Of course not for free. And as practice shows – very slowly.
Getting OTTS on a car in a few months is considered near cosmic speed. A car dealership cannot afford to “freeze” funds indefinitely pending certification (especially now). In fact, the purchases by Russian car dealers of parties of at least hundreds of certain new cars abroad in 2022 can therefore be counted on the fingers of two hands. In theory, you can use the scheme for importing cars into Russia with registration for individuals. When a Russian brings a vehicle for himself, he does not have to spend OTTS. It is enough to quickly (from a few days to a week) get the “Certificate of Safety of a Wheeled Vehicle” (SBKTS) especially for his car in one of the accredited counters.
But here’s the problem that as soon as the “physicist” starts importing cars in “packs”, the customs authorities identify him as an entrepreneur-reseller with all the legal and tax implications that entails. It turns out to be impossible with the help of individuals to organize a more or less large-scale and stable channel for importing cars to Russia “in a gray way”: you cannot stock up on citizens to register a car for each.
– We now have the European Union, it seems, is considered unfriendly. Meanwhile, Russian customs considers all payments in euros, in the old way. Nothing has changed for them. It is not only clear: who prevents us from converting the calculation of duties into Russian rubles? It would be easier for all importers to live,” Sergey Pigolkin, founder of the online new car auction Carclick.ru, said of the situation.
According to him, the current situation with the “gray” import of cars to Russia will lead to the fact that domestic car dealerships will largely disappear. Because their business is based on selling the car at a very high markup.
– The task of a typical car dealer is now to buy a car for, say, 2 million rubles, and then sell it for 3 million rubles. They are forced to do this because they cannot provide mass deliveries of cars. With them, sales are basically single now, Pigolkin explained.
However, the point is not only in this, but sometimes in the banal desire to disrupt additional excess profits, taking advantage of the shortage of cars in the domestic market. Among the participants, the story of the Haval crossovers, which took place in the summer and autumn last year, is well known. Its essence is that the cars of this Chinese brand, intended for the market in Kazakhstan, are produced at the Russian factory of the brand near Tula. From there they are taken on car transporters to the Kazakh official dealers. The nuance is that in Kazakhstan, in terms of rubles, these cars were sold on average 1 million cheaper than in the salons of Russian dealers!
A number of domestic companies oriented themselves and brought brand new Tula “Havals” from Kazakhstan back to Russia in the same way with car transporters. And with a good profit for themselves, they sold them here. Fortunately, both our countries are members of the customs union and you do not have to pay import duties at the border. As a result, it was possible to sell cars in their homeland for, say, 2.5 million rubles, while the price in a car dealership for the very same “Tula” car was at the level of 3 million rubles. But it was a one-time story. Although it vividly characterizes the methods of doing business of domestic “officials”.
Be that as it may, the conclusions of all of the above are simple and joyless. The “grey” automatic import doesn’t really work. Of the domestic car dealers, only a few will survive, having managed to “lean” against Chinese car brands and AVTOVAZ. And Russian car owners are waiting for a creeping collapse of supply in the new car market.
True, there is still a glimmer of hope that the Chinese and some Iranians will arrange the delivery and assembly of their cars in the Russian Federation in a year or two. After all, dear AVTOVAZ will not be able to provide us with its cars properly: it promises to release only 400,000 products in 2023. With the needs of the domestic market at the level of more than 1.5 million per year. This thirsty “gray” import could be satisfied very quickly. If it were not necessary to give about 50% of its value to customs when importing each car into the country …
Source: Avto Vzglyad
Donald Salinas is an experienced automobile journalist and writer for Div Bracket. He brings his readers the latest news and developments from the world of automobiles, offering a unique and knowledgeable perspective on the latest trends and innovations in the automotive industry.
