Russia’s standard VAT rate rose to 22% in 2026. Here is what changes for cross-border trade in the EAEU
A company sells goods to Kazakhstan and Belarus through a marketplace, yet accounting still calculates VAT at the old rate of 20%. This mistake is costly. On January 1, 2026, the standard rate rose to 22%, and the threshold for Simplified Tax System (STS) users dropped from 60 to 20 million rubles of annual income. For companies trading within the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), not only has the arithmetic changed, but so has the operating model for working with intermediaries and digital platforms.
Over two and a half years, the regulator has almost completely rebuilt the VAT collection system for mutual trade between Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Russia. Rates, STS thresholds, marketplace rules, intermediary procedures, and zero-rate confirmation formats have all been updated. Each of these changes seems like a technical detail on its own. Together, they transform the financial model of almost any company buying or selling goods and services with partners in neighboring Union countries.
How VAT Was Calculated Before the 2024-2026 Reform
The VAT system in the EAEU is built on the destination country principle. Tax is paid not by the seller, but to the budget of the country where the goods are imported for consumption. This works through an «export at zero rate — import at destination rate» linkage. In trade with third countries, import VAT is administered by customs authorities. Within the Union, tax authorities perform this function.
When importing goods from another EAEU country, a buyer in Russia calculated and paid VAT themselves. The tax base was determined on the date the goods were accepted for accounting and included the contract value plus excise duty if the goods were subject to excise. The calculation for 2023-2025 looked as follows:
VAT = (Goods Value + Excise) × VAT Rate,
where the rate was 20% or 10% depending on the category of goods.
The indirect tax declaration and the import statement had to be submitted no later than the 20th of the month following the month the goods were accepted for accounting. This deadline has not changed and remains a benchmark to this day.
Until July 2024, cross-border retail had a loophole. Goods sent by a seller from another EAEU country to a Russian individual buyer via an online platform were usually not subject to VAT in Russia at all. The foreign seller paid tax under their home country’s rules or paid nothing. Russian sellers offering the same product were placed at a price disadvantage.
A similar uncertainty applied to electronic services. Until March 2024, EAEU countries used different lists of such services and different rules for determining the place of supply, so the same service could be subject to VAT in one Union country and exempt in another.
Until 2025, import VAT when working through an intermediary (agent, commission agent) was paid by the ultimate owner of the goods, the principal. For principals without foreign trade experience, this created difficulties with calculations and deadline monitoring. Zero-rate confirmation for exports relied on a paper document package: copies of contracts, declarations, and waybills collected within 180 calendar days from the shipment date.
What Changed for Cross-Border EAEU Sales
The reform unfolded in several waves, each with its own law and effective date.
The VAT Rate Rose to 22%
Federal Law No. 425-FZ dated November 28, 2025, raised the standard rate from 20% to 22% effective January 1, 2026. The reduced 10% rate for socially significant goods was retained unchanged. The new rate applies to goods, work, and services shipped or provided starting from that date, including the calculation of import VAT on goods imported from EAEU countries.
Electronic Services Within the Union Received Unified Rules
On March 4, 2024, the Protocol Amending the EAEU Treaty entered into force, ratified by Russia via Federal Law No. 328-FZ dated July 24, 2023. A list of 14 services deemed provided in electronic form was approved by EEC Council Decision No. 97 dated September 27, 2023, and applies alongside the Protocol from April 1, 2024. VAT on such services is now paid at the buyer’s location. If a Russian company buys a service from this list from an EAEU partner, it is required to withhold VAT as a tax agent. Consulting and other services not included in Decision No. 97 are taxed under the previous rules of the Protocol (Annex No. 18 to the EAEU Treaty), at the provider’s location.
Marketplaces Became Tax Agents
Federal Law No. 100-FZ dated May 29, 2024, added Article 174.3 to the Tax Code of the Russian Federation (TC RF). As of July 1, 2024, the place of supply for goods sold by an EAEU seller to an individual via a Russian digital platform is recognized as Russia if the goods are located on its territory when received by the buyer. Foreign companies are required to calculate and pay this VAT starting July 1, 2024, while foreign individual entrepreneurs (IEs) must do so starting January 1, 2025. If the seller operates through a Russian marketplace as an intermediary, the platform itself withholds and remits the tax. Sellers running their own online stores must register with Russian tax authorities independently.
Calculation example. An individual entrepreneur from Kyrgyzstan sold a batch of goods for 500,000 rubles via a Russian marketplace in February 2026. As a tax agent, the platform withholds VAT at the new rate: 500,000 × 22% = 110,000 rubles. If the buyer made an advance payment of 200,000 rubles, the advance tax is calculated using the computed rate of 22/122: 200,000 × 22 / 122 ≈ 36,066 rubles. The tax must be calculated on the shipment date or advance receipt date, even if the marketplace report arrives later.
Import VAT Payment via Intermediaries Transferred to Intermediaries
Federal Law No. 539-FZ dated November 27, 2023, changed the taxpayer scope. For goods accepted for accounting starting January 1, 2025, import VAT under agency, commission, and mandate agreements is calculated and paid by the intermediary itself. The principal gains the right to deduct this amount after the intermediary remits it and provides supporting documents. The payment deadline remains standard, by the 20th of the month following the month the goods were accepted for accounting by the intermediary.
Zero-Rate Confirmation Shifted to Electronic Registers
The electronic register under form KND 1155110 became the primary document for confirming export VAT. Data from the import statement filed by the buyer with their local tax authority enters the Federal Tax Service (FTS) of Russia via inter-state communication channels, validating the seller’s right to a zero rate without additional paper requests.
Data Exchange Between Tax Authorities Became Weekly
A new edition of the Protocol on Electronic Information Exchange between EAEU tax authorities has been active since April 26, 2024. The frequency of statement register exchanges increased from once every ten days to once a week. The turnaround time for format-logic control protocols was reduced from three working days to one.
Simplified Tax System Threshold Dropped Threefold
Federal Law No. 176-FZ dated July 12, 2024, made STS companies with annual income exceeding 60 million rubles VAT taxpayers starting in 2025. Law No. 425-FZ lowered this threshold to 20 million rubles starting in 2026, to 15 million in 2027, and to 10 million in 2028. STS companies exceeding the threshold have a choice: pay VAT at standard rates of 22% and 10% with input tax deduction rights, or at reduced rates of 5% and 7% without deduction rights. In 2026, the 5% rate applies to income between 20 and 272.5 million rubles, while the 7% rate applies to income between 272.5 and 490.5 million rubles.
| Parameter | Before (until 2024-2025) | Current (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Standard VAT rate | 20% | 22% |
| STS threshold for VAT | 60M rubles/year (applicable in 2025) | 20M rubles/year, then 15M (2027), 10M (2028) |
| EAEU marketplace B2C VAT in Russia | usually not paid | paid by the seller or marketplace as tax agent (Art. 174.3, TC RF) |
| Import VAT via intermediary | paid by the principal | paid by the intermediary (agent, commission agent) |
| Zero-rate confirmation | paper document package | electronic register KND 1155110 |
| EAEU tax data exchange | once per 10 days | once per week |
Action Plan
Recalculate prices and contracts for the 22% rate. Check the wording: if a contract specifies an exact figure of «20%,» an amendment agreement is required. If it states «at the rate established by law,» a contract update is not strictly necessary.
Compare 2025 revenue against the 20 million ruble threshold. If an STS company or IE exceeded this amount, it becomes a VAT payer starting in 2026 and must choose between the standard rate with input deductions or a reduced rate of 5% or 7% without deductions.
Determine who pays VAT on each intermediary transaction. Update agency and commission agreements to reflect the intermediary’s sole responsibility from 2025 onward, and configure purchase and sales ledgers for the principal’s updated deduction workflow.
Move zero-rate confirmations to electronic register KND 1155110. Make sure the declaration registration numbers and contract details in the register match the entries in Section 4 of the VAT return.
Check the status of every electronic services partner. Cross-reference the acquired service against the 14 items listed in EEC Decision No. 97. If a service is on the list, the acquiring company must withhold VAT as a tax agent.
The regulator continues to align conditions between domestic and cross-border trade within the Union. The next stage is already mapped out: further harmonization of electronic trade rates for EAEU goods is planned through 2030. Companies operating in this market should expect the numbers in their contracts and returns to keep changing for several years to come.
Regulatory framework:
1. Protocol on Electronic Information Exchange Between Tax Authorities of EAEU Member States (as amended August 22, 2023; effective April 26, 2024)
2. Federal Law No. 425-FZ dated November 28, 2025, «On Amending Parts One and Two of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation»
3. Federal Law No. 100-FZ dated May 29, 2024, «On Amending Parts One and Two of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation»
4. Federal Law No. 539-FZ dated November 27, 2023, «On Amending Parts One and Two of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation…»
5. Federal Law No. 176-FZ dated July 12, 2024
6. EEC Council Decision No. 97 dated September 27, 2023, «On the List of Services in Electronic Form»
7. Protocol Amending the EAEU Treaty of May 29, 2014, Regarding Indirect Taxation of Services Provided in Electronic Form (ratified by Federal Law No. 328-FZ dated July 24, 2023)
8. Protocol on Indirect Tax Collection and Control Mechanisms for Exports and Imports of Goods, Work, and Services (Annex No. 18 to the EAEU Treaty)