The Association of Internet Trade Companies (AKIT) has proposed a new initiative that involves changes to the existing duties on expensive packages from abroad. It is suggested to replace the varied tax contributions with a single fee of 15%. How according to "Kommersant", this is a softer option, as the initial proposal was for 20%. The proposal is currently being considered by the Analytical Center under the government, the Gaidar Institute, and "Russian Post". Meanwhile, market participants not part of AKIT, as well as experts, have a negative outlook.
Who will manage the process?
AKIT wants to obligate express carriers and "Russian Post" to control the collection, while the initiative is positioned as a "leveling of conditions" for foreign and domestic companies in the field of e-commerce. The association stated that foreign companies do not pay VAT or customs duties, are not obliged to certify goods, and so on. In simpler terms, they have lower overhead costs, which allows these companies to earn more profit.
The head of AKIT, Artem Sokolov, confirmed that a letter with the proposal was sent to Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak. He also stated that the collection amount has been reduced to 15%. According to the association's leader, the duty-free threshold should be abolished altogether.
It should be noted that currently, the exempt limit has been reduced from €1000 to €500. If this amount is exceeded within a month, the buyer is obliged to pay 30% on the amount over the limit. At the same time, along with the reduction of the "ceiling", the number of cross-border packages to Russia has started to decline, as noted by "Russian Post".
What do experts think?
Ivan Kurguzov, head of the "E-commerce" cluster at the Russian Association of Electronic Communications, believes that the introduction of the fee will further reduce the volume of purchases, although it will not eliminate them entirely. According to him, the delivery of goods from AliExpress brings "Russian Post" huge profits. Therefore, no serious restrictions are to be expected.
"Another reason: China is a very close friend of Russia. As long as the situation does not fundamentally change, there will be no law enacted that discriminates against Chinese sellers," the expert believes. However, if restrictions are introduced, it will hit consumers hard.
In connection with this [introduction of restrictions], there is a significant risk of a strong decline in the growth rates of online shopping volumes in Russia. This will lead to a lower load on the infrastructure and negatively impact its quality for buyers both within the country and beyond, thereby striking all players in the e-commerce market,” believes Kurguzov.
Fortunately, there are currently no discussions about adopting new limits or specific timelines, so we can hope that we will be spared this time. By the way, Mail.ru Group criticized the AKIT initiative.
"Everything happening can be explained by the fact that AKIT and its members are trying to seize the market for cheap Chinese goods, imposing their trade markups of 50 percent or more, which are standard for retail companies of the 'old economy', which will once again adversely affect consumers," stated Vladimir Gabrielian, the vice president and technical director of the group.
Source: 3dnews.ru
