Importing an aircraft into Russia — customs clearance

Import is the stage where the schedule of a deal most often slips. The reason is almost always the same: people come to customs with the documents they put together for the purchase. Clearance calls for a set of its own.

Which regimes are possible

• release for domestic consumption — full clearance with payment of the duties due; the aircraft becomes Union goods with no restrictions on its use
• temporary admission — payments are made in instalments over the period, but use is limited by the conditions of the regime, and breaching those conditions is expensive
• other regimes and reliefs, whose applicability depends on the type of aircraft, its characteristics and the rules in force

Rates, reliefs and conditions for aircraft have changed several times over the past few years. The applicable regime and the calculation of the payments are therefore checked as at the date of the particular deal. Last year's experience is a poor guide here.

What we prepare in advance

• the contract, the invoice and proof of payment in a form customs will accept
• the complete set of documents on the aircraft and its airworthiness
• the technical description and the characteristics that determine the classification
• documents on the components — today this is an area of separate attention
• the place of declaration, the broker and an agreed ferry route

Where time and money go

Three typical mistakes: misclassifying the aircraft, discrepancies between the seller's documents and what the clearance requires, and ferrying the aircraft in before the import regime is clear. The last is the most expensive: the aircraft is already in the country and the decision has still not been taken.

I have brought types into Russia that were new to the country: the HondaJet, which was moved across from the Maltese register to the Russian one, and the AW169. Behind that are more than twelve years in aviation: five in aircraft leasing and seven in business aviation.

Frequently asked questions

How long does customs clearance of an aircraft take?

With the set of documents prepared in advance, weeks. Where there are discrepancies in the documents or the classification is disputed, it stretches into months, and the aircraft does not fly for the whole of that time.

How does the planned flying affect the choice of regime?

The regime, and the risks that come with it, depend on how the machine is going to be used: commercial carriage and flights for private purposes fall under different conditions. This shows most clearly on temporary admission, where use of the aircraft is directly limited by the conditions of the regime. The nature of the future flying is worth settling before the regime is chosen and the documents are filed.

Who is answerable for errors in the declaration?

The declarant bears the responsibility. Preparing the documents and choosing the broker are therefore part of the deal, alongside the price and the delivery date. Choose the broker on their experience with aircraft specifically: aviation has its own classification and its own set of papers.

Alexander Filimonov — business aviation: sourcing, acquisition and entry into service of aircraft.