New Conditions for Alienation of Shares (Stocks) in LLC and JSC Have Been Published

28 March 2023
Julia Korablyova
Associate
Ekaterina Chachava
Legal Trainee

In addition to the previously adopted rules1 the Sub-Commission of the Government Commission for the Control of Foreign Investments (hereinafter referred to as the "Sub-Commission") published new conditions2 for issuing licenses on transactions with shares (stocks) in Russian LLC and JSC conducted with persons of foreign unfriendly states3.

A new requirement for obtaining a consent includes an obligation to voluntarily pay funds to the federal budget:

  • in the amount of at least 10% of half of the assets’ market value indicated in the valuation report,

  • in the amount of at least 10% of the total market value of assets indicated in the valuation report, if the sale of assets is carried out at a discount of more than 90%.

It is also recommended for the applicants to provide expert opinions prepared by individual experts or experts of appraisers’ self-regulatory organizations simultaneously with the report on the assessment of the market value of assets4.

Currently the abovementioned payment to the budget of the Russian Federation is not stipulated in the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, and the terms of payment are not clarified on the website of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation. Therefore, the procedure and details for payment are provided to each of the applicants by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation separately.

1 Extract from the minutes of the meeting of the Sub-Commission of the Government Commission for the Control of Foreign Investment in the Russian Federation dated December 22, 2022 No. 118/1
2 Extract from the minutes of the meeting of the Sub-Commission of the Government Commission for the Control of Foreign Investment in the Russian Federation dated March 2, 2023 No. 143/4
3 subparagraph 1of paragraph 2 of the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of 01.03.2022 N 81 (with amendments. dated 03.03.2023) "On additional temporary economic measures to ensure the Financial Stability of the Russian Federation"
4 Article 17.1 of Federal Law No. 135-FZ of 29.07.1998 "On Appraisal Activities in the Russian Federation"