Monitoring of the Federal Legislation dated 11.01.2006

Federal Law No. 11-FZ of January 5, 2006 on the Amendments to Article 228 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and on Invalidation of Paragraph 2 of Article 3 of the Federal Law on the Amendments to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation

The amendments remove the controversies pertaining to application of the notion of "average single dose" of a narcotic drug or psychotropic substance. According to the amendments, the big and specially big amount of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances are endorsed by the Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation. The big and specially big amounts of analogues of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances correspond to the big and specially big amounts of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances they are being analogues of.

The notion of the "average single dose of consumption" of a narcotic drug, psychotropic substance is excluded from Note 2 to Article 228 of the Criminal Code.

The Federal Law is entered into force 30 days after the day of its official publication.

Federal Law No. 10-FZ of January 5, 2006 on the Amendments to Article 28.7 of the Code of Administrative Violations of the Russian Federation

Changes the procedure of administrative investigation. When adopting a ruling to initiate the case, natural person or legal representative of the legal entity, as well as other participants of the proceedings, must get explanations on their rights and duties envisaged in the Code of Administrative Violations, which is recorded in the ruling.

A copy of the ruling of initiation of the case of administrative violation shall be handed in against the signature within one day or sent to the pertinent natural person or legal representative of the legal entity, as well as the victim.

Federal Law No. 9-FZ of January 5, 2006 on the Amendment to Article 31.2 of the Federal Law on the Fundamentals of the Preventive System of Unattended Behaviour and Delinquency of the Underage

The amendments are introduced in Article 31.2 defining the procedure and time limits of processing of materials to place the underage in the temporary detention centres for juvenile delinquents of the bodies of internal affairs. Representatives of divisions in charge of the underage of the bodies of internal affairs are included in the circle of persons entitled to participate in court hearings processing the issues of placing the underage in the mentioned centres.

Federal Law No. 8-FZ of January 5, 2006 on the Amendments to Article 190 of the Criminal Execution Code of the Russian Federation

The amendments specify the authority of the command of the military unit to determine the responsibility of the convicts on probation. In particular, the command may warn him in writing of the possible revocation of the probation if the convict avoids execution of his duties imposed by the court or violates public order. In cases of a repeated or fraudulent failure to execute the duties imposed on the convict by the court during the probation, or if the convict avoids control, the command of the military unit shall send a representation to the court to revoke the probation and execute the punishment imposed by the court sentence.

Federal Law No. 7-FZ of January 5, 2006 on the Amendments to the Federal Law on Joint-Stock Companies and Some Other Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation

Refines the procedure of purchase of more than 30% of stocks of the open-type joint-stock company. The amendments introduce four procedures:

- voluntary proposal to the rest of stock-holders to sell their stocks sent by the person wishing to publicly purchase more than 30% of ordinary stocks and preference stocks providing the right of vote under Item 5 of Article 32 of the Law;
- obligatory proposal to the rest of stock-holders, as well as the holders of emission securities converted into such stocks, to sell their securities sent by the person having purchased ordinary stocks and preference stocks providing the right of vote under Item 5 of Article 32 of the Law;
- buying out by the person having purchased more than 95% of ordinary stocks and preference stocks providing the right of vote under Item 5 of Article 32 of the Law of the rest of the stocks and securities converted into such stocks from the holders of these securities at their demand;
- buying out by the person having purchased more than 95% of ordinary stocks and preference stocks providing the right of vote under Item 5 of Article 32 of the Law of the rest of the stocks and securities converted into such stocks from the holders of these securities at the demand of this person.

In the determination of the share of stocks of the open-type joint-stock company, the preference stocks are taken into account providing the right of vote in compliance with its charter, if such preference stocks were placed before January 1, 2002, or emission securities were converted into such preference stocks placed before January 1, 2002.

The Law envisages responsibility of the management bodies for the losses incurred through their culpable actions (failure to act) and violating the procedure of purchase of more than 30% of stocks of the open-type joint-stock company. The responsibility is introduced in the form of an administrative fine imposed on citizens in the amount of 10 to 25 minimum amounts of labour remuneration, on officials in the amount of 50 to 200 minimum amounts of labour remuneration, on legal entities in the amount of 500 to 5,000 minimum amounts of labour remuneration. The company or any of its stock-holders may file a lawsuit to court against the mentioned bodies to reimburse the losses incurred on it.

The mentioned purchase of stocks is subject to state control implemented through a preliminary notification sent to the Federal Service for Financial Markets of Russia.

The person holding as of July 1, 2006 more than 95% of the total amount of ordinary stocks and preference stocks of the open-type joint-stock company must buy out the rest of the stocks of such company hold by other persons, as well as emission securities converted into stocks of such company, at the demand of their holders.

The Federal Law is entered into force from July 1, 2006 except for Article 7 which is entered into force according to a special procedure.

Decree of the President of the Russian Federation No. 1574 of December 31, 2005 on the Register of Positions of the Federal State Civil Service

Endorses a new register of positions of the federal state civil service. Lists the cases permitting dual names of positions of the federal state civil service.

Envisages four categories of positions (heads, assistants (advisors), specialists and supporting specialists) and five groups of positions (higher, chief, leading, senior and junior). The names of existing positions must be brought in compliance with the new register.

The Decree is entered into force simultaneously with the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation on the monetary subsistence of the federal state civil servants with exceptions.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 860 of December 30, 2005 on the Amendment to the Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 6 of January 6, 2006

Prolongs until January 1, 2007 the period of authority granted to the federal state enterprise Soyuzplodoimport to represent the interests of the Russian Federation in courts to restore and protect the rights of the Russian Federation for the trade-marks of alcoholic products abroad.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 856 of December 30, 2005 on the Amendment to the Program of State Guarantees of Free Medical Aid to the Citizens of the Russian Federation for the Year 2006

In 2006, resources of the federal budget will be used to provide additional medical aid on the basis of the state order rendered by district physicians, paediatricians, general practitioners (family doctors), district nurses of public health institutions of municipal formations when they render initial aid requiring a dynamic medical observation for individual categories of citizens entitled for the set of social services.

Besides, resources of the federal budget will be used to arrange periodic medical examination of non-working citizens, immunisation of population, as well as to implement the measures of early identification of socially significant diseases and diseases of the locomotor system.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 855 of December 30, 2005 on the Endorsement of the Rate of the Export Customs Duty for Liquefied Natural Gas 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 liquefied natural gas (code of the Foreign Trade Commodity Nomenclature of the Russian Federation 2711 11 000 0) is fixed in the amount equal to zero (earlier, EUR 40 per ton).

The Decision is entered into force one month after the day of its official publication.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 850 of December 30, 2005 on the Remuneration for Pedagogical Workers of Federal State Institutions of General Education for the Form-Master Functions

From January 1, 2006, introduces a monthly remuneration in the amount of Rbl 1,000 for the form-master function to pedagogical workers of the federal state institutions of general education. Preserves the amount of payments for the form-master function available as of December 31, 2005.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 848 of December 30, 2005 on the Amendments to the Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 415 of July 7, 2005

The list of securities subject to licensing when imported to the Russian Federation now does not include commodities with the code according to the Foreign Trade Commodity Nomenclature 4907 00 101 0 (excise duty stamps for excisable commodities). The given commodities, in particular, include tobacco excise duty stamps.

Also exempted from licensing when imported to the Russian Federation are blank transportation documents, products placed under international transit customs regime, products owned by diplomatic and similar representations of foreign states.

The Decision is entered into force from the day of its publication.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 845 of December 30, 2005 on the Submission of Information on the Volume of Retail Sale of Alcoholic Products for the Purpose of the Overall Annual Registration of the Volume of Retail Sale of Alcoholic Products

Endorses the Regulation on the submission of information on the volume of retail sale of alcoholic products for the purpose of the overall annual registration of the volume of its retail sale.

The Federal Service of State Statistics is ordered to endorse before July 1, 2006 the form of the overall registration of the volume of retail sale of alcohol, as well as arrange such record keeping from the year 2007. The Ministry of Agriculture of Russia is ordered to submit before June 1, 2006 to the Federal Service of State Statistics the list of the types of alcohol subject to the overall registration of retail sale.

Legal entities possessing licenses for retail sale of alcoholic products must submit before March 15 on the annual basis to the Federal Service of State Statistics information drawn up according to the form of registration of the sale of the mentioned products.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 830 of December 29, 2005 on the Uniform State Examination to Be Arranged in 2006-2007

Continues in 2006-2007 the experiment of introduction of the uniform state examination combining the state (final) certification of school-leavers and entrance testing of institutions of higher and secondary professional education. Institutions of secondary and higher professional education participating in the experiment shall determine independently the form of the entrance testing in the subjects of general education where the uniform state examination does not apply in the subject of the Russian Federation where the given educational intuitions are located.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 827 of December 29, 2005 on the Endorsement of the Rules of Granting, Spending and Registration of Subventions from the Federal Budget in 2006 to the Budgets of the Subjects of the Russian Federation to Provide for an Equal Affordability of Services of Public Transportation on the Territory of the Appropriate Subject of the Russian Federation for Individual Categories of Citizens Where the Measures of Social Support are Included in the Sphere of Reference of the Russian Federation and Distribution of the Mentioned Subventions for the I Quarter of 2006

The subventions shall be granted by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation in compliance with the summary budget list of the federal budget within the limits of budget obligations. If the subject of the Russian Federation cannot provide for an equal affordability of services of public transportation for individual categories of citizens where the measures of social support are included in the sphere of reference of the Russian Federation, the subventions are not granted to the given subject. The bodies of executive power of the subjects of the Russian Federation shall allocate subventions to finance the monthly payments to citizens replacing of the free travel, payments to transport organisations for provided travel tickets, reimbursement of losses of transport organisations providing free travel, redemption of debts to transport organisations for provided free travel.

The Decision envisages quarterly reports of the bodies of executive power of the subjects of the Russian Federation of the actually suffered expenses to provide for an equal affordability of the services of public transportation.

The Decision is entered into force from January 1, 2006.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 819 of December 28, 2005 on the Endorsement of the Rules of Submission of Reports of the Flow of Resources on the Accounts (Deposits) outside the Territory of the Russian Federation by Residents to the Tax Bodies

Reports in 2 copies drawn up to the form attached to the Decision shall be submitted by residents (except for the resident natural persons) to the tax bodies at the place of their registration on the quarterly basis within 30 days after the end of the quarter.

Reports of the flow of resources on accounts (deposits) abroad opened by the branches, representations and other division of legal entities available outside the territory of the Russian Federation shall be submitted to the tax bodies by these legal entities.

Besides the reports, the rules also require submission to the tax bodies of the notary-certified copies of confirmation bank documents (bank excerpts or other documents issued by the bank in compliance with the legislation of the state where the bank is registered) as of the last calendar day of the reported quarter.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 812 of December 26, 2005 on the Amount and Procedure of Paying out of the Daily Allowance in Foreign Currencies and Mark-ups to the Daily Allowance in Foreign Currencies for Service Trips on the Territory of Foreign States for Employees of Organisations Financed at the Expense of Resources of the Federal Budget

From January 1, 2006, introduces a new, uniform document defining amounts of daily allowance in foreign currencies paid out to employees of organisations financed at the expense of resources of the federal budget for service trips on the territory of foreign states, as well as the amounts of mark-ups to the daily allowance in foreign currencies.

As before, the Ministry of Finance of Russia may change the mentioned amounts in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia. The new amounts of daily allowance are similar to the amounts of daily allowance for short-term trips on the territory of foreign states specified from January 1, 2005 by the Order of the Ministry of Finance of Russia No. 64n of August 2, 2004.

The Decision specifies the particulars of paying out of the daily allowance for service trips on the territory of two and more countries, on the CIS territory, as well as in cases of delays en route.

The Decision is entered into force from January 1, 2006.

Order of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 2361-r of December 30, 2005

Specifies quantity and time restrictions for the import of cars to the special economic zone in the Kaliningrad Province under the free customs zone customs regime (8,000 pieces until July 1, 2006), as well as the fresh, chilled or frozen beef and pork (until April 1, 2006). The administration of the mentioned special economic zone is recommended to distribute the mentioned commodities through auctions.

The Order is entered into force from January 1, 2006.

Order of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 2360-r of December 30, 2005

Introduces a prohibition from April 1, 2006 for the import of individual commodities (bovine animals, swine, poultry, some meat and dairy products and vegetables, alcohol, tobacco products and other) under the free customs zone customs regime available on the territory of the special economic zone in the Kaliningrad Province.

The Order is entered into force from January 1, 2006.