# Russia

 Country code: RU · Currency: RUB · Language: Russian

**Pros**
- Low personal income tax rates and competitive corporate tax structures in special economic zones
- Advanced digital infrastructure and affordable high-speed internet connectivity across major urban centers
- Abundance of highly skilled technical talent in software engineering and mathematics at competitive costs

**Cons**
- Pervasive state interference in private enterprise and weak protection of individual property rights
- Systemic corruption and lack of an independent judiciary for fair legal dispute resolution
- Severe geopolitical risks and international sanctions against global financial mobility and trade

Long story short: Since 2022, your money can get frozen overnight: foreign cards dead, local banks cut off from SWIFT. The real risk here isn't tax, it's geopolitics.

Domestically, things run smoothly: 20% corporate tax, a 6% flat regime for small setups, company registration in a single day through an online portal. Corruption has retreated to big public contracts, far from the daily grind of a neighborhood entrepreneur.

Other than that: Moscow's metro is spotless, business districts stay calm, Georgian food is superb, and living costs are dirt cheap, but conscription and suspicion toward foreigners lurk in the background.

## Will your income be taxed?

Long story short: NO.
**Russia** doesn't tax personal income, and nobody comes sniffing around when you settle in. No withholding, no tax return, no centre-of-vital-interests trap waiting to snap shut.

Earn what you want: the taxman here simply doesn't know your name.

**01.1 Income tax**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Personal income tax | NONE | no personal income tax framework |

**01.2 Tax residence test**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 183-day rule | does not exist here |  |
| Economic interest | does not exist here |  |
| Family centre | does not exist here |  |
| Habitual abode | does not exist here |  |
| Extended-stay test | does not exist here |  |

## Will your wealth be taxed?

Long story short: NO.
**Russia** keeps its hands off what you hold. *No capital gains tax*, no annual wealth grab, no inheritance regime.

Your portfolio compounds in peace and leaves the way it came in; nobody's standing at the door with their palm out.

**02.1 Investment income**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Capital gains | NONE | no capital gains regime |
| Dividend tax | NONE | no dividend tax |
| Interest income | NONE | no interest income tax |

**02.2 Wealth & estate**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Wealth tax | NONE | no annual wealth tax · no real-estate wealth tax · no net-worth assessment |
| Inheritance system | NONE | no estate tax · no heir-based duties · no succession tax framework. Wealth transfers across heir-classes are not taxed in this jurisdiction. Only standard probate / registration fees may apply. |

**02.3 Crypto**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Crypto · tax regime | PROGRESSIVE | Rate: 15% · Cryptocurrency is classified as property under Federal Law No. 259-FZ. For individual residents, gains are taxed as personal income (PIT) at a rate of 13% for income up to 2.4 million RUB and 15% for the excess. While general income tax brackets in Russia now reach up to 22%, 2024 amendments capped the tax on crypto transactions at 15%, aligning it with the taxation of securities. Crypto-to-crypto swaps are considered taxable exchanges of property. Using crypto as a means of payment for goods or services is strictly prohibited. |
| Crypto-to-crypto | TAXABLE | each swap counts as a disposal — gains realised at every trade |
| FATF travel rule | NOT SIGNED | no information-sharing obligation on VASP transfers |

## Easy to run a company there?

Long story short: YES.
**Russia** runs *no corporate income tax* and *no criminal liability* for misuse of corporate assets: fiscally and legally featherweight.

The catch: registries are *public*, so your name as shareholder is one search away for any curious stranger. They won't tax you, they won't prosecute you. They'll just put you in the shop window.

**03.1 Rates**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Corporate tax | NONE | no corporate income tax framework |
| VAT standard rate | NONE | no general VAT · no consumption tax framework |

**03.2 Regime & registry**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| IP Box · Patent Box | NONE | no IP regime · IP income taxed under standard corporate rules |
| Misuse of corporate assets | NO CRIMINAL | no criminal liability · Under Note 2 to Article 201 of the Russian Criminal Code, if an act causes harm exclusively to the interests of a commercial organization where the perpetrator is the sole shareholder, criminal prosecution can only be initiated upon the application or with the consent of that shareholder. Since a sole owner-manager would not consent to their own prosecution, the act of misusing corporate assets while the company is solvent is not treated as a criminal offense. Instead, it is classified as a tax violation (unreported dividends) or a civil breach of fiduciary duty under Article 53.1 of the Civil Code. |
| Shareholders privacy | PUBLIC | Unified State Register of Legal Entities (EGRUL) |
| Directors privacy | PUBLIC | Unified State Register of Legal Entities (EGRUL) |

**03.3 Incorporation cost**

_In this country, the most standard company form is called Общество с ограниченной ответственностью (ООО) (Limited Liability Company (LLC)). The costs below are for incorporating a company in its simplest form, for reference only._

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| State Registration Fee (Duty) | USD 47 |  |
| Professional Incorporation Service Fee | USD 589 |  |
| Notary and Document Translation Fees | USD 59 |  |
| Total | USD 695 |  |

## A good fit for a holding?

Long story short: NO.
**Russia** has no treaty network at all, which buries the holding question, full stop.

Every dividend in or out eats the statutory withholding at full rate, and no domestic regime can patch a hole that sits on the source side. Don't park a holding here.

**04.1 Substance & exemptions**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Territorial · individuals | WORLDWIDE | worldwide income taxation regardless of source |
| Territorial · corporates | WORLDWIDE | worldwide corporate taxation |
| Participation exemption | 100% | 50% holding · 12 months min |
| CFC rules | NONE | no controlled foreign corporation regime · foreign-source corporate income out of scope |

**04.2 Withholding tax · non-resident**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| WHT · dividends | NONE | no withholding on outbound dividends |
| WHT · interest | NONE | no withholding on outbound interest |
| WHT · royalties | NONE | no withholding on outbound royalties |
| Tax-haven WHT | NONE | no punitive rate on record |

**04.3 Treaty network**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Treaties signed | 0 | active |
| Treaties pending | — | in negotiation |

## Easy to come and go?

Long story short: SOME.
**Russia** taxes your worldwide income while you're resident, but at least the exit is free: *no exit tax* on the way out.

Leaving costs you paperwork, not money; your unrealised gains walk out the door with you, untouched.

**05.1 Exit & dual nationality**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Exit tax | NONE | no triggers active · residence change tax-free · no deemed-disposal mechanism |
| Dual citizenship | ALLOWED | naturalised citizens may keep their existing nationality |

**05.2 Citizenship paths**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Residence | 5 years | available path to naturalisation |
| Marriage | 3 years | available path to naturalisation |
| Birth | — | not available |
| Descent | 1 gen | available path to naturalisation |
| Investment | — | not available |

## Is your money watched?

Long story short: PARTLY.
**Russia** has signed *most* of the standard exchange frameworks *and* runs a public corporate registry. Your accounts get reported to your home tax office, and your shareholdings sit in the shop window.

Watched on both axes: not wall-to-wall, but don't come here for discretion.

**Multilateral reporting frameworks — 3/9 active · 3 pending**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| CRS | Signed | 2018 |
| CARF | None | — |
| FATCA | None | — |
| MLI | In force | 2019 |
| BEPS | Signed | — |
| MAAC | In force | 2015 |
| GLOBAL FORUM | Signed | — |
| EOIR | In force | — |
| CRYPTO TRAVEL RULE | None | — |

## Is it blacklisted?

Long story short: YES.
**Russia** sits on an **international embargo list** (UN, US or EU sanctions). This is not blacklist friction, it's the financial death penalty: correspondent banking is gone, payment rails refuse the corridor, and simply transacting with the country can put *you* on a sanctions desk's radar.

Whatever the tax math says, the jurisdiction is radioactive. Walk away.

**Blacklist exposure — Listed by 3 authorities**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| EMBARGO | Listed | un / us / eu sanctions |
| FATF | Clear | grey / black list |
| EU | Listed | non-cooperative list |
| FRANCE | Listed | ETNC list |
| SPAIN | Clear | tax-haven list |
| PORTUGAL | Clear | favourable regimes |
| BRAZIL | Clear | low-tax list |

## Do you feel free there?

Long story short: NO.
Press freedom in **Russia** is *locked down* (RSF rank **\#171**). Independent media and civic space operate under pressure (when they operate at all), and that kind of grip usually spills over into economic life too.

Small mercy: crypto isn't formally banned.

**08.1 Press freedom**

| Metric | Value | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Press freedom · RSF index | 171/180 | score 24 · ↓ 9 ranks year-on-year |

Central bank digital currency

    Program Status Cross-border Sources     Digital Ruble

The introduction of a digital ruble will help is expected to reduce costs for households and businesses, increase the speed of payments, and develop innovative products and services in the financial industry and the economy in general.

Bank of Russia

   PILOT   —   [announce →](https://minfin.gov.ru/ru/press-center/?id_4=40136-utverzhden_perechen_byudzhetnykh_raskhodov_s_ispolzovaniem_tsifrovogo_rublya "Announcement")

 programs 1

## Connected to the world?

Long story short: COMPLETELY CUT OFF.
**Russia** is unplugged from the global money grid: **0/11** of the services we track work here. No *Stripe*, no *Amazon*, and almost nothing around them either.

Whatever your plan is, the payment layer gets built from scratch, with local banks and local rules. Come for other reasons; connectivity isn't one of them.

**Accept payments — 0/6 available**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Stripe | Not available | card payments |
| PayPal | Not available | wallet payments |
| Adyen | Not available | enterprise psp |
| Mollie | Not available | eu payments |
| GoCardless | Not available | direct debit |
| Paddle | Not available | merchant of record |

**Bank and move money — 0/3 available**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Wise | Not available | multi-currency |
| Revolut | Not available | personal banking |
| Revolut Business | Not available | business banking |

**Buy and sell on Amazon — 0/2 available**

| Item | Status | Detail |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Amazon | Not available | consumer delivery |
| Amazon Seller | Not available | marketplace selling |

  SEE ALSO## Other jurisdictions worth comparing

Picked by similarity of strategic profile to Russia. No editorial ranking — neighbours in the same scoring space.

  PROFILE-ADJACENT Same shape, comparable overall friction.

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  NOTABLY LESS FAVORABLE Same family of strategies, lower total score.

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