General Info

Why Russia?

 

Russia is a great country to be starting a business, with its increased foreign investment, higher domestic consumption and greater political stability bolstering the economic growth.

What is the local currency and exchange rate?

The currency in Russia is ruble (or rouble). At the moment £1 equals to 46.562 Russian ruble.

What sort of opportunities are there in Russia?

The nation boasts a tradition of excellence in arts and sciences. It also has the world’s largest mineral and energy resources. It is the word leader in natural gas exportation, so opportunities aplenty in the energy field.

What’s the climate and weather like?

The climate in Russia can vary due to its vast size. Resulting from the size and remoteness of many areas is Russia’s continental climate. In the south, the country is subject to Arctic and Atlantic influences, as a result of mountains obstructing the flow of warm air masses from the north and west plain and Indian Ocean.

There are only two distinct seasons – summer and winter. Spring and autumn are usually brief periods between the changing temperatures of summer and winter. The coldest month is January (on the shores of the seas it is February) and the warmest is usually July.

Business in Russia

What are the main industries?

Russia’s main industries are energy – it has the world’s largest natural gas reserves, with second largest coal and eighth largest in oil.

What are its exports?

As Russia is a major energy superpower; oil, natural gas, metals and timber account for more than 80% of its exports.

And its imports?

 

Russia’s largest import is machinery, equipment and transport equipment, which accounts for 51.3% of its total imports. Its second largest import is of chemical products and rubber (16.6%).

What is the state of the economy?

Russia ended 2007 with a ninth straight year of growth. In 2007 the GDP was $2.076 trillion, an increase of 8.1% from 2006. This has been an average growth per year of 7% since the financial crisis of 1998.

What’s the employment situation?

Unemployment is fairly low in Russia at 6% in 2007, down from 12.4% in 1999. The average salary was $640 per month in early 2008.

Immigration

What’s the population?

The population of the Russian Federation in January 2008 was 142 million people. It is a diverse and multi-cultural society, with as many as 160 different ethnic groups.

Do I need a visa?

To travel to the Russian Federation most foreign nationals are required to have a visa. 

Taxes

What is the tax like?

In Russia there is a simpler tax code system which was created to reduce the tax burden on people, which also dramatically increased state revenue. There is a flat personal income tax rate of 13%.

Do I need to pay tax?

Individuals are liable for tax on income as employees, and income in self-employment. Tax is payable on income earned in Russia and overseas by individuals who meet the test of permanent residency in Russia. Foreign residents only pay tax on income earned in Russia. To be considered a Russian resident, you need to be in Russia for at least 183 days during any given tax year.

What about corporation tax?

Corporation tax is made of 2 rates, which are:

Federal tax at a rate of 6.5% and,

Regional tax at a rate of 17.5%.

The maximum profit tax is 24%.

Day-to-day Info

What is the education system like?

There is a free education system in Russia which is guaranteed to all citizens. Entry to higher education is highly competitive, yet there is a universal right to higher education free of charge. The government allocates funding for tuition fees.

What about healthcare?

There is also free universal healthcare for all citizens. Heart diseases account for 56.7% of total deaths, and death rates from homicide, suicide and cancer are especially high. 52% of men and 15% of women in Russia are smokers.

What’s the television like?

Television is recognised as Russia’s most influential medium. Watching TV is greater value than buying a Russian newspaper. Viewers only pay for the power, not the national channels.

What about transport? How do I get around?

There is a good transport network in Russia, with 87,157km of rail network, which also operates rapid transit systems. There are rail links with the following adjacent countries to make travelling easier: Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia and North Korea. There is also a highway network of 948,000km, enabling easy access by car. Bus routes span all over Russia, with very low prices for travelling. However, ticketing processes, queues, low quality, poor comfort and Russian-only speaking operators mean using buses is hard for foreigners.

Getting There

How do I get there?

Many operators run low cost flights to Russia, prices can be around £200 return from the UK. Many flights are around 3 hours in journey time.

Banks of Russia

Alfa Bank 27 Kalanchevskaya Street Moscow 107078 Russian Federation Tel: +7 495 929-91-91, 974-25-15 Telex: 412089 ALFARU www.alfabank.com Arbat Bank 8 Cosmonauts St Moscow, Russia, 129366 Tel: +7 495 286 1187 Fax: +7 495 216 2767 www.dresdner-bank.ru Bank of Moscow Tel: +7 495 624 7440 www.en.mmbank.ru Bank Center Invest 64 Knightsbridge, London SW1X 7JF Tel: +44 207 590 3144 Fax: +44 207 590 9601 www.centrinvest.ru/en/index.html Central Bank of the Russian Federation 12 Neglinnaya Street, Moscow 107016 Russia Tel: +7 495 771 91 00 Fax: +7 495 621 64 65 Email: webmaster@www.cbr.ru www.cbr.ru/eng Citibank 8-10 Gasheka St. 125047 Moscow tel. +7 495 775-7575 fax. +7 495 725-6700 www.citibank.ru/russia/main/eng/home.htm Akkobank ww.akkobank.ru Expobank Build 2, 29, Kalanchevskaya Street, Moscow, 107078, Russia Tel: +7 495 231-11-11 (Working Hours) Fax: +7 495 956 40 04, 956 77 16 (24 Hours) www.expobank.ru/en Gazprombank 16, Building 1 Nametkina Street 117420, Moscow, Russia Tel: +7 95 913-74-74 Tel: +7 95 913-73-44 (Private Clients) Fax: +7 95 913-73-19 Telex: 412027 GAZ RU Email: mailbox@gazprombank.ru www.gazprombank.ru/eng/index.wbp OOO HSBC Bank (RR) Paveletsky Tower Floor 18 2 Paveletskaya Square, Building 2 Moscow 115054 Russia Tel: +7 495 721 1515 Fax: +7 495 258 3154 Email: hsbc.moscow@hsbc.com Rosbank 11 Masha Poryvaeva Str., P.O. Box 208, Moscow Tel: +7 (495) 921 0101 Fax: +7 (495) 725 05 11 Email: mailbox@rosbank.ru www.rosbank.ru/en Sberbank 19 Vavilova St. 117997 Moscow, Russia Tel: +7 495 957 5862 Fax: +7 495 957 5731, +7 495 747 3731 Telex: 414733 SBRF RU Teletype: 114569 SBRF RU E-mail: sbrf@sbrf.ru www.sbrf.ru/eng/default.htm Vneshtorgbank Tel: +7 495 739-77-99 www.vtb.ru/rus/web.html?l=2