Monitoring of the Federal Legislation dated 26.12.2002

Federal Law No. 179-FZ of December 24, 2002 on the Amendments to Some of the Acts of Legislation of the Russian Federation to Develop the System of Mortgage Housing Crediting (Borrowing)

Sets forth the reasons and procedure of eviction of the former owner of the mortgaged dwelling home or flat and members of his family in cases of vindication of the mortgaged dwelling space, as well as the procedure of providing dwelling space for temporary living. For those being settled, defines the restrictions of the right of privatisation of this dwelling space and its exchange.
Specifies the grounds for the mortgage by virtue of the law of the dwelling house or flat purchased with the tied loan and granted by a legal entity for the purchase of dwelling space.
The Federal Law is entered into force three months after the day of its official publication.

Federal Law No. 178-FZ of December 24, 2002 on the Amendments to the Law of the Russian Federation on the State Border of the Russian Federation

The Law envisages a more flexible procedure of determination of the width of the border zone depending on the particular physical and geographic conditions, economic, industrial, survey and other types of activities in the adjacent area, location of residential settlements, airports, railway stations, river ports and other objects and defines its width as at least 5 km along the state border on the land, sea coast of the Russian Federation, Russian coasts of the border rivers, lakes and other water bodies and islands in the mentioned water bodies.
The Federal Law is entered into force from the day of its official publication.

Federal Law No. 177-FZ of December 24, 2002 on the Amendments to the Law of the Russian Federation on the Legal Protection of Computer and Database Software

The Law is being brought in compliance with the norms of the Law of the Russian Federation on the copyright and adjacent rights taking into account the requirements of the Agreement on trade aspects of the rights for intellectual property to fulfil obligatory conditions of the entry of the Russian Federation in the World Trade Organization.
The changes to Article 2 qualify as the sphere of reference of the Russian Federation the issues of legal regulation of relations pertaining to the legal protection and use of computer and database software.
The changes to Article 13 take account of the functions of the Agency for Legal Protection of Computer, Database and Chip Topology Software being vested in the federal body of executive power in the sphere of patents and trade marks - the Russian Agency for Patents and Trade Marks.
The Law applies to relations involving foreign citizens, stateless persons and foreign legal entities in view of an international treaty of the Russian Federation or on the basis of the reciprocity principle.

Federal Law No. 180-FZ of December 24, 2002 on the Amendments to the Federal Law on the Federal Budget for the Year 2002

Specifies that the Government of the Russian Federation defines the procedure of reimbursement of the part of expenses to pay interest under credits obtained in 2001-2002 by organisations of the coal industry engaged in extraction of thermal coals to redeem the debts in payments to the budgets of all levels and the state social non-budgetary funds within the limits of resources envisaged in section "Industry, Power Supplies and Construction" of the classification of expenses of the budgets of the Russian Federation. The Government of the Russian Federation may allocate the rest of the resources as of January 1, 2002 because of incomplete use of allocated resources to grant budget credits to carry out investment projects in the coal industry on the contest basis.
The restructuring of the debt under Article 88 is prolonged till December 31, 2002. The Government of the Russian Federation is ordered to ensure the adoption before April 1, 2003 of the Decisions on the applications on the restructuring submitted before December 31, 2002.
The Federal Law is entered into force from the day of its official publication.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 924 of December 26, 2002 on the Endorsement of the Rules of Reimbursement at the Expense of the Federal Budget of the Part of Expenses to Pay Interest under Credits Obtained in 2002 in the Russian Credit Organisations by Organisations of the Coal Industry Engaged in Extraction of Thermal Coals to Redeem the Restructured Payables to the Budgets of All Levels and the State Social Non-Budgetary Funds

The subsidies are granted at the expense of the federal budget to organisations of the coal industry engaged in extraction of thermal coals under the condition of payment of interest under the credit. The subsidy is granted in the amount of two thirds of the rate of refinancing of the Bank of Russia as of the date of getting of the credit under the condition that the payment for the use of this credit will amount to at least the granted subsidy. If the payment for the use of the credit obtained by the organisation is less than two thirds of the mentioned rate, the subsidy is granted in the amount of the payment for the use of this credit.
The Decision lists the documents submitted to the Ministry of Power Supplies of the Russian Federation to get the subsidy.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 923 of December 24, 2002 on the List of Foreign and International Organizations Whose Grants Are Not Taken into Account for Taxation Purposes in the Incomes of Russian Organisations Getting Them

Lists foreign and international organisations whose grants for particular programs in the sphere of education, art, culture, environmental protection, as well as for particular scientific research, are not taken into account for taxation purposes in the incomes of the Russian organisations getting these grants.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 919 of December 23, 2002 on the Amendments to and Invalidation of Some of the Acts of the Government of the Russian Federation Regulating Land Relations

Invalidates the acts of the Government of the Russian Federation endorsing the forms of the state act for the right of ownership for the land, life inheritance, unlimited (permanent) use of land, forms of the certificate of the right of ownership for the land, lease contract for the lands of agricultural use and temporary use contract for the lands of agricultural use. Also invalidates the Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 503 of May 30, 1993 on the endorsement of the procedure of purchase and sale of land plots by the citizens of the Russian Federation.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 917 of December 23, 2002 on the Endorsement of the Rules of Granting of Exclusive Tariff Rates for Cargo Railway Transportation

Sets forth the procedure of granting exclusive (taking into account the special conditions of transportation) tariff rates for cargo railway transportation. Exclusive tariff rates are used on the whole territory of the Russian Federation in the framework of the uniform system of tariff rates, they must take into account the special conditions of transportation and conditions of the commodity and service markets, stimulate development of new technologies in the sphere of railway transportation and provide for the granting of services to all consumers on equal terms.

Regulation of the Central Bank of Russia No. 2-P of October 3, 2002 on Cashless Payments in the Russian Federation

The new wording of the Regulation takes account of the Decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation recognizing as contradicting the federal legislation the norm of Item 10.10 permitting for the writing off of monetary resources from the client settlement account without his order. Now, in cases of the failure to receive the application of acceptance in due time, refusal to accept, the payment demand is written off on the following working day after expiry of the acceptance time with a memorial order from the off-balance account of amounts of payment documents waiting acceptance and returned to the issuing bank indicating the reason of return on the reverse side of the first copy of the payment demand: "Not Accepted".
The new Regulation still does not apply to the procedure of cashless payments involving natural persons.
The Regulation preserves the provision stating that collection orders are applied for collections under writs of execution. The form of the payment order is not changed.
The Regulation is entered into force 10 days after the day of publication in the Herald of the Bank of Russia.
Registered in the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation on December 23, 2002. Reg. No. 4068.

Regulation of the Central Bank of Russia No. 205-P of December 5, 2002 on the Rules of Accounting Work in Credit Organisations Located on the Territory of the Russian Federation

Defines the uniform legal and methodology fundamentals of organization of accounting work obligatory for execution by all credit organisations on the territory of the Russian Federation. The new Regulation is being brought in compliance with the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and the Chart of Accounts of Financial and Economic Activities of Enterprises endorsed by the Order of the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation No. 94n of October 31, 2000. The Regulation omits, in particular, Account 611 "Low-Value and Quick-Depreciation Items".
The Regulation is entered into force from January 1, 2003.
Registered in the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation on December 20, 2002. Reg. No. 4061.