Customs authorities have begun demanding that Russians pay additional duties for previously purchased cars. Until recently, sellers offered cars at suspiciously low prices.
For example, a Chinese crossover, which official dealers sold for 5 million rubles, could be offered by "unofficial" sellers for one and a half million cheaper, explaining the difference by low import duties and the use of fake invoices with an understated value.
Customs fees, duties and VAT depend on the customs value of the car, which does not always coincide with the price in the invoice. For passenger cars younger than three years, a special expert opinion is required, which confirms their real value. However, in some cases, customs officers processed the import according to the invoice without the necessary conclusions.
Many Russians bought cheap Chinese cars, hoping to save money and bypass state taxes. At the same time, they did not take into account that customs, after clearing the goods, can check the documents at any time and make additional duty assessments.
There are already hundreds of complaints online from buyers who have been presented with demands for additional payments. In one such case, this happened after a Russian bought a new Chinese car, the Federal Customs Service demanded an additional payment of 734,464 rubles for understating the value. During the trial, which lasted almost a year (from February to December 2024), penalties of 639,806 rubles were charged on this amount, which increased the total amount to 1,374,271 rubles. The court decision obliged the buyer to pay this amount in full.
