Implementation of the «Hawala» type settlement system for payment of tuition fees abroad.
Letter to the Bank of Russia.

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Purpose: To find out about the possibility of paying for education in foreign universities from Russia in the difficult conditions of 2022.
What I want: After an excellent, though negative response from the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation to the previous letter to ask the opinion of the experts of the Central Bank of Russia on the possibility of transferring money abroad.
Means: Letter to the Central Bank.
Text:
Hello, I am Egor Kugno, a 9th grade student of the HSE Distributed Lyceum.
Now I am exploring the possibility of getting an education abroad (Chemistry, Pharmacy).
It is a VERY long and complicated process, and there are a lot of questions.
One of those questions was, «How do you pay for education abroad now, and how do you even transfer money abroad now, like from parents for a student’s life?»
I asked such a question to the Ministry of Finance of Russia:
Hello.
In preparation for my project on pharmaceuticals, I wrote to several directors of pharmaceutical companies in Russia, and from the answers of respected directors it became clear to me that quality education is now better to get abroad, because in Russia there are simply no certain areas of industry (for example, there is actually no chemical synthesis of substances for pharmaceutical production) and, accordingly, there are no specialists who can teach it.
I am still considering the possibility of such education (if it will be possible), but my dad pointed out that now it is impossible to pay for education abroad, and it is impossible to transfer money for student’s life due to sanctions.
Researching the issue, I learned that in the eastern regions of the world there is an informal system of money transfers «hawala».
Can you please tell me if we have something similar in Russia?
It would be perfect if my dad could send money to the account of the Ministry of Finance and I would receive cash from the consulate of the country where I will study (Germany or Italy as an example).
This would have solved the problem of tuition and the actual cost of living. In addition, it would promote closer communication between students studying abroad and representatives of the diplomatic corps in Russia, which is useful in and of itself, and as an objective information about the situation.
In general, if there is no such system, would you please create one?
And MINFIN answered me:
Dear Egor Alekseyevich!
The Department of Financial Policy within its competence has examined your address, which was received from the Russian Government Office by letter № P48-179990, dated 29.09.2022, and thanks you for your suggestions and the attention you pay to the development of the financial system of the Russian Federation.
At the same time, money transfers without opening bank accounts, including electronic money transfers (except for postal transfers) belong to banking operations which credit institutions are entitled to carry out on the basis of a special permit (license) from the Central Bank of the Russian Federation.
Moreover, the use of hawala money transfers is associated with an increased risk of money laundering and terrorism financing.
At the same time for carrying out illegal banking activities without a special permit (license) in cases where such
The carrying out of illegal banking activities without a special permit (license) is subject to liability according to Article 172 of the RF Criminal Code.
Deputy Director of the Financial Policy Department S. I. Voznesensky.
Please, could you think of some system of transferring money abroad, with check of the payer through a bank, so that we know for sure that the money transferred is honestly earned and intended specifically to pay for education or residence in a foreign country of a student from Russia?
Thank you
Answer:

Bottom line: It wasn’t that bad.
Solution: Even with problems, but it is possible to transfer money to pay for education.
It is true that the transfer fee is now quite high.

Other articles about correspondence with Ministries and Departments→
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