The Revenue Service of the Ministry of Finance reiterates that the list of persons and goods subject to sanctions imposed by the European Union regarding the restrictive sanctions against the Russian Federation is given in the annexes of the consolidated version of the Regulation (COUNCIL REGULATION (EU) No 833/2014 of 31 July 2014, concerning restrictive measures in view of Russia"s actions destabilising the situation in Ukraine) of the European Council (EU) N 833/2014 of July 31, 2014.

“The mentioned information is available through open sources and can be found on the official website of the Council of Europe: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02014R0833-20220722

In addition, in the said consolidated annex, in the form of the 11th package, an amendment was made to COUNCIL REGULATION (EU) 2023/1214 of 23 June 2023, please see the link: https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32023R1214

According to which, from September 26, 2023, regardless of the value of the vehicle, the re-export/export or transit to the Russian Federation of vehicles with engines larger than 1,900 cubic centimeters, as well as all electric and hybrid vehicles, imported from the European Union to Georgia will be prohibited. (COUNCIL REGULATION (EU) 2023/1214).

We would also like to emphasize the fact that from August 1, 2023, in accordance with the 5th appendix of Section 746 of the United States Trade Embargo and Other Special Control Regulations, regardless of the value of the vehicle, it is prohibited to re-export / export or transit those vehicles to Russia and Belarus that are imported from the United States of America or American motor companies to Georgia.

See relevant link: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-15/subtitle-B/chapter-VII/subchapter-C/part-746

It is worth noting that the sanctions imposed by the USA on automobiles did not mention any specific deadlines (unlike the sanctions imposed by the European Union) regarding vehicles that had already been purchased by dealers before the said sanctions were published. Accordingly, within the framework of the sanctions, the status of such vehicles was not determined (August 1 of the current year was determined as a result of additional consultations).

As it is known, when the sanctions are imposed by the US, no prior consultations are carried out with other countries, and therefore, neither the code of a specific commodity that is included in the list of sanctions nor the terms of its implementation are known in advance. Accordingly, information about expected sanctions cannot be shared in advance with business operators who may be affected by these sanctions in some way.

Due to the high public interest, we further clarify that the restrictions do not apply to the export/re-export of vehicles imported from the US and the EU to countries that are not listed in the sanctions issued by the US and the EU.

The Revenue Service of the Ministry of Finance is in constant consultation with the competent authorities of the US and EU/partner countries and the information about the sanctions is provided to the public only after it has already been confirmed by official sources and should be taken into account by business operators”, - reads the statement of the agency.