Russia has increased the “exit tax” and the minimum discount applied to foreign companies looking to leave the country, according to a report by the RBC news.
The information comes from three sources, a lawyer and someone familiar with the changes.
Since December 2022, Russia has required foreign businesses to sell their assets to Russian buyers at significant discounts while imposing an exit tax based on the transaction value. These percentages have been gradually increased. Meanwhile, foreign companies still operating in Russia have faced criticism, with arguments that their continued presence helps finance Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Under the updated rules, “voluntary contributions” to the Russian treasury will rise from 15% to 35%, according to RBC. The report outlined that the first 25% must be paid within a month after the transaction, an additional 5% within a year, and the remaining 5% within two years.
Reuters confirmed these figures with another anonymous source involved in mergers and acquisitions in Russia.
RBC also reported that foreign-owned Russian assets would now be sold at a 60% discount, up from the previous 50%.
For the first time, RBC said deals worth over 50 billion rubles ($520.3 million) will require personal approval from President Vladimir Putin.
A government commission on foreign investments reportedly adopted these new rules earlier this week.
“This is done deliberately to prevent foreign business — and foreign money — from leaving Russia despite sanctions,” Yury Nikolaev, managing partner of the law firm Nikolaev and Partners, told RBC.
RBC did not specify when these new exit rules would take effect.
The report also noted that between January and August 2024, Russia’s treasury collected nearly 140 billion rubles ($1.45 billion) from “voluntary contributions” by foreign companies exiting the country. During the first half of 2024, 34 foreign companies sold their Russian assets for $1.89 billion, a significantly lower figure than the 97 deals worth $11.14 billion made throughout 2023.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, hundreds of mainly Western companies have either completely withdrawn or reduced their operations in the country.
