Monitoring of the Federal Legislation dated 19.07.2005

Federal Law No. 92-FZ of July 18, 2005 on the Amendments to the Law of the Russian Federation on Education

Refines individual provisions of the Law of the Russian Federation No. 3266-1 of July 10, 1992 on education pertaining to the types of educational institutions implementing general educational programs, primary professional and secondary professional education.

Federal Law No. 91-FZ of July 18, 2005 on the Ratification of the Agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of Canada on Cooperation in the Sphere of Destruction of Chemical Weapons, Utilisation of Nuclear Submarines Withdrawn from the Navy, Registration, Control and Physical Protection of Nuclear Materials and Radioactive Substances

Ratifies the Agreement signed on Sea Island on June 9, 2004. The Agreement contributes to development of organisational and legal basis of the long-term interaction of the Russian Federation and Canada in the framework of agreements on the global partnership of the Group of Eight against dissemination of weapons and materials of mass destruction. The Agreement is aimed at creation of the legal basis for obtaining free financial and technical aid from Canada to implement priority for Russia programs of destruction of stockpiles of chemical weapons and utilisation of nuclear submarines.

Federal Law No. 90-FZ of July 18, 2005 on the Amendments to Some of Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation

Amends legislative acts of the Russian Federation pertaining to currency regulation and currency control.

Permits individual currency operations between residents, in particular, covering or reimbursement of expenses of a natural person pertaining to business trips abroad the Russian Federation, transfers by resident natural persons to accounts of other resident natural persons aboard of amounts not greater than USD 5,000 equivalent within one operative day through one authorised bank, transfers by resident natural persons from their accounts abroad in favour of other resident natural persons on their accounts in authorised banks and some other operations.

Lists currency operations carried out without restrictions on accounts abroad. Such operations include, in particular, paying out of salaries to employees of a representation of the resident legal entity outside the territory of the Russian Federation.

Resident legal entities may make some types of payments without the use of bank accounts, for example, payments to non-resident natural persons in the currency of the Russian Federation in cash under the contracts of purchase and sale of commodities, as well as the payments for the transportation, hotel and other services to non-resident natural persons on the territory of the Russian Federation rendered to the population. Legalises the right of resident natural persons to pay with foreign currencies in cash in duty-free shops.

Also changes the procedure of import to the Russian Federation by natural persons of foreign currencies in cash, currency of the Russian Federation, traveller's checks, external and internal securities in the documentary form and refines the procedure of their export. Up to USD 10,000 may be exported without declaring.

Refines provisions regulating the opening of accounts of residents in the banks outside the Russian Federation. Tax bodies of the Russian Federation are empowered with the status of currency control agents. Refines the procedure of reservation and return of reserved amounts, as well as provisions regulating the terms of termination of the permissions for currency operations carried out by residents, the opening of accounts by them in the banks outside the Russian Federation, carrying out operations on them.

Appropriate changes are introduced in the Laws of the Russian Federation on the tax bodies of the Russian Federation and on organisation of insurance activities in the Russian Federation, Federal Laws on the special economic zone of the Kaliningrad Province, on the precious metals and precious stones, on the exclusive economic zone of the Russian Federation, on the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, on export control, on the particulars of issue and circulation of the state and municipal securities, on financial leasing, the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and the Customs Code of the Russian Federation.

Federal Law No. 89-FZ of July 18, 2005 on the Amendment to Article 859 of Part 2 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation

The banks may discontinue on the unilateral basis the bank account contract refusing to execute it in the absence of monetary resources on the account, as well as operations on it, for more than two years. The bank account contract is considered to be discontinued two months after the day of sending of the written warning by the bank if the monetary resources were not received on the client account within this time limit.

The Federal Law is entered into force from the day of its official publication and applies to relations emerging from the bank account contracts concluded before its entry into force.

Federal Law No. 88-FZ of July 18, 2005 on the Amendments to the Federal Law on the Particulars of Insolvency (Bankruptcy) of the Subjects of Natural Monopolies of the Fuel and Power-Supply Complex

The amendments bring the Federal Law No. 122-FZ of June 24, 1999 on the particulars of insolvency (bankruptcy) of the subjects of natural monopolies of the fuel and power-supply complex in compliance with the Federal Law No. 127-FZ of October 26, 2002 on insolvency (bankruptcy).

The Federal Law is entered into force from the day of its official publication.

Federal Law No. 87-FZ of July 18, 2005 on the Amendments to the Federal Law on the Circulation of Lands of Agricultural Destination and the Federal Law on the Land Planning

Simplifies the procedure of regulation of relations pertaining to circulation of land plots out of lands of agricultural destination and shares in the common property right for the mentioned land plots. Refines the particulars of disposal of these land plots, transactions with the shares in the common property right for such land plots, as well as specifies a new procedure of isolation of land plots as shares in the common property right for the land plots out of lands of agricultural destination, including the unclaimed land shares.

Instead of the subject of the Russian Federation, the priority right for the purchase of the sold land share is vested in the agricultural organisation using the land plot available in the shared property or a citizen - member of the peasant (farmers') enterprise.

In case of conclusion of a lease contract for the land plot available in the common shared property, such contract may be concluded by participants of the shared property on the basis of proxies certified by an official of the local government.

Agricultural lands available with agricultural organisations and peasant (farmers') enterprises on the basis of permanent (unlimited) use or as a life-time inherited possession shall be purchased by them in property at the price specified by the law of the subject of the Russian Federation in the amount not greater than 20% of the cadastral cost of the agricultural lands.

Without isolation of the land plot as a land share, this land share may be devised to any person, sold to a participant of the shared property, donated, transferred in the registered (shared) capital or trust control of the agricultural organisation using the land plot available in the shard property. The participant of the shared property may dispose of the land share in another way only after isolation of the land plot as a land share.

The right of convocation of the general meeting of participants of the shared property rests not only with the participant of the shared property, but also with the agricultural organisation. The Law lists the issues solved at the general meeting of participants of the shared property.

The Law also amends the Federal Law on the land planning specifying the procedure of marking of objects of land planning.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 438 of July 16, 2005 on the Procedure of Import and Export of Medicines Intended for Medical Use

Import of medicines to the Russian Federation is permitted for producer organisations of medicines for own production of medicines, organisations of wholesale trade of medicines, scientific research institutions, institutes, as well as foreign producers of medicines and enterprises of wholesale trade of medicines on condition that they have own representations on the territory of the Russian Federation.

The Decision lists medicines and pharmacy substances intended for medical use that are imported under license. To get the license, the applicant must present to the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia the statement permitting to issue the license for the import of medicines issued by the Federal Service of Enforcement in the Sphere of Public Health and Social Development. To get the statement, the applicant must present a packet of documents together with the application coordinated with the Standing Committee for Control of Narcotics. The Decision lists the documents to be submitted to the customs bodies when importing the mentioned medicines.

Export of medicines from the territory of the Russian Federation is permitted only for producer organisations of medicines and organisations of wholesale trade of medicines.

The Decision is entered into force 60 days after its publication.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 436 of July 16, 2005 on the Stipends for Post-Graduate and Doctorate Students of the State Institutions of Higher Professional Education and Scientific Organisations

From January 1, 2006, the stipends for post-graduate and doctorate students of the state institutions of the higher professional education and scientific organisations are fixed in the amount of Rbl 1,500 for post-graduate students and Rbl 3,000 for doctorate students. From September 1, 2003, the mentioned stipends amounted to Rbl 1,000 and Rbl 2,000 respectively.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 435 of July 16, 2005 on the Endorsement of the Regulation on the Presentation of the Additional (Closed) Part of the Credit History to the Subject of the Credit History, to the Court (Judge) and the Bodies of Preliminary Investigation

Defines the procedure and terms of granting by the credit history bureaus of additional (closed) part of the credit history to the subject of the credit history, to the court (judge) in a processed criminal case and to the bodies of preliminary investigation when they process a criminal case in the presence of prosecutor's consent.

The mentioned part of the credit history is granted within 10 days from the day of receiving of the request. The Decision lists information to be contained in the request.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 434 of July 15, 2005 on the Assistance to Be Rendered to the Commission for Investigation of the Air Accident or Incident at the Place of the Air Accident or Incident

Specifies the duty of legal entities regardless of the form of ownership to render assistance in the work of commissions investigating air accidents or incidents that are formed according to the rules of investigation of air accidents or incidents with civil, state or experimental air vessels. Legal entities shall render assistance on the basis of contracts with the Federal Service of Enforcement in the Sphere of Transport, Ministry of Defence of Russia or the Federal Agency of the Industry at the written request of the chairman of the commission. Expenses pertaining to the payment for the mentioned contracts shall be financed at the expense of the budget resources of the Russian Federation.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 432 of July 15, 2005 on the Endorsement of the Rate of the Export Customs Duty for Raw Oil and Raw Oil Products from Bituminous Materials Exported from the Territory of the Russian Federation Outside the Member-States of the Customs Union Agreements

The rate of the export customs duty for raw oil and raw oil products from bituminous materials (code according to the Foreign Trade Commodity Nomenclature 2709 00) is increased from USD 136.2 to USD 140 per ton.

The Decision is entered into force from August 1, 2005.