On cash business: illegal export of money from Russia broke a record
The volume of illegal cash exports from Russia has reached record levels. In the first six months of 2025, 6314 crimes were detected, according to the Federal Customs Service (Izvestia has it). During the year, the total amount of money that citizens tried to smuggle increased by almost a third and reached 1.2 billion rubles. The lion's share of cases is related to the export of dollars and euros. The reasons for this growth are the difficulties of international transfers due to sanctions, and Russians are also trying to transfer money to buy real estate, experts say.
Which countries are Russians trying to smuggle money into?
In the first half of this year, 6314 cases of illegal transportation of cash by citizens were identified in Russia, the Federal Customs Service (FCS) told Izvestia. This number of violations by individuals has become the largest indicator for the entire period of the service's management of such statistics.
In the same period last year, there were 5,449 such cases. However, then, compared to the previous year, the number of violations even decreased — in the first six months of 2023, there were 5,915.
A temporary ban is currently in effect in Russia (introduced on March 2, 2022, as part of a presidential decree) on the export of foreign currency in cash exceeding the equivalent of $10,000 from the Russian Federation. Violation of this rule is punishable under Article 16.4 of the Administrative Code. According to it, there are cases of non-declaration or unreliable indication by individuals of the amounts transported. A fine of half to two times the amount of unspecified funds or their confiscation is provided for this.
Illegal transportation of large amounts of money is punishable under art. 200.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. In such cases, depending on the severity of the crime, a fine of three to 15 times the amount is provided, as well as forced labor or restriction of liberty for up to four years, the lawyers recalled.
As a result, in the six months of 2025, 6,277 cases of administrative offenses, as well as 37 criminal cases, were initiated in the Federal Customs Service. Of the total number of violations, the lion's share still falls on the export of currency from Russia - 5,125 facts, according to the data of the service. During the year, their number increased by 13%. The remaining cases relate to the importation of money into the country — 1,189 cases (plus 31% per year), according to statistics.
The amount of illegally transported money has also increased. So, in the first half of the year, in criminal and administrative cases, it reached 1.2 billion rubles (about $ 15.2 million at the current average exchange rate), according to the FCS data. This figure is 30% higher than in January-June 2024. A large share of the funds also accounts for cases of currency export — 784.1 million rubles.
For several years, starting in 2022, the total amount of illegally transported amounts has been kept at about the same level — in the ruble equivalent of about 900 million. For example, in January-June 2024, it was 922.4 million ($10,000 at the average exchange rate for that period).
According to the Federal Customs Service, illegal movement of dollars and euros is most often recorded. The most popular export destinations are Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Azerbaijan, China and Uzbekistan. At the same time, the illegal import of cash into the Russian Federation is often carried out from the first five specified countries and Serbia.
What is the reason for the increase in currency transportation violations?
The increase in violations during currency transportation is explained by EU restrictions on settlements with Russian banks, which forces businesses to use gray schemes to pay for imports, said Ilya Mosyagin, an assistant to the State Duma deputy and senior lecturer at the Institute of International Economic Relations.
Individuals mostly use cash to buy real estate and for business, he said. For example, in Turkey, 40% of Russian real estate transactions are closed in cash due to SWIFT locks. It is also known that in the UAE, euros are used to buy gold or cryptocurrencies as an alternative to bank accounts. In addition, he did not rule out the factor of exhaustion of Russians' "stashes" of currency.
Fyodor Sidorov, a private investor and founder of the School of Practical Investment, is convinced that the increase in the number of attempts to smuggle cash across the border is due to the persistence of restrictive measures previously introduced by the Bank of Russia. However, according to him, natural restrictions apply: banks disconnected from SWIFT have stopped offering transfer services to "unfriendly countries." Currently, only small financial organizations have such an option, he stressed.
The expert added: in part, the decrease in the number of cases of cash smuggling in 2024 is explained by the high key rate, when Russians deposited all available stocks from all financial instruments at a very high interest rate. And then, as the key currency declined and the national currency's exchange rate strengthened, rubles were exchanged for dollars and euros at a favorable exchange rate.
Another important reason for the increase in the number of crimes is the increased volatility of currencies, namely the fall of the dollar to 81 rubles in April this year, which increased interest in cash as a tool to protect against inflation, Ilya Mosyagin continued. In his opinion, statistics also indicate an increase in the effectiveness of customs control.
How much cash can be exported from Russia in 2025
The rules for the import and export of cash to the Russian Federation have not changed since the spring of 2022, the Federal Customs Service told Izvestia. Since March 2 of that year, it has been temporarily prohibited to export currency in the equivalent of over $10 thousand from Russia. When importing money in excess of a similar amount into the country, it is necessary to fill out a declaration, the service reminded.
In addition, for a one-time transportation of over $100,000, documents confirming the origin of the money will be required to be attached to the customs declaration. Declaring cash does not involve collecting any duties and taxes from the specified amount, the FCS clarified.
The difficulty of bank settlements in connection with the imposed sanctions is pushing more and more citizens to violate the customs rules for the transportation of currency, said Vladimir Shalaev, a lawyer and partner at Law Group LLC. According to him, in the current reality, the maximum amount of $ 10,000 per adult often does not meet the needs of the family, even to pay for vacation. Most likely, the increase in the number of violations is related to this.
In order not to encounter problems at the entrance, it is necessary to go through the red corridor and declare the amount, the specialist recommends. Similar rules apply to the export or import of luxury goods, including luxury watches and jewelry.
"In case of violation of customs regulations, the amount exceeding the limit will be confiscated," he said. — It should be borne in mind that when the spouses or family leave, the funds must be divided within the limit per person.
Mir and UnionPay cards can now serve as legal alternatives for Russians, but the limit of 500 thousand rubles per month and a commission of 3-7% limit them for business. Do not forget about money transfer systems, as well as cryptocurrencies, Ilya Mosyagin concluded.
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