Monitoring of the Federal Legislation dated 29.03.2006

Decree of the President of the Russian Federation No. 263 of March 27, 2006 on the Official Representatives of the Federal Service of the Russian Federation for Control of Circulation of Narcotics in Foreign States

The Federal Service of Russia for Control of Circulation of Narcotics is permitted to have its official representatives in foreign states and their deputies in the amount of 50 persons. Official representatives of the Federal Service of Russia for Control of Circulation of Narcotics in foreign states and their deputies shall be assigned to foreign states after coordination with the competent bodies of these states and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia and shall implement their functions in the framework of diplomatic representations of the Russian Federation.

The terms of material support of official representatives and their deputies shall be defined by the Government of the Russian Federation.

The Decree is entered into force from the day of its signing.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 164 of March 24, 2006 on the Endorsement of the Regulation on the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation and on Invalidation of Some of the Decisions of the Government of the Russian Federation

Pursuant to the abolishment under the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation No. 1158 of October 3, 2005 of the Federal Agency of Agriculture and handing over of its functions to the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, endorses a new Regulation on the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation.

The Regulation shall define the sphere of reference and the procedure of organisation of activities of the Ministry.

The Ministry of Agriculture of Russia shall be a federal body of executive power in charge of: working out of the state policy and normative and legal regulation in the sphere of the agroindustrial complex, including animal breeding, veterinary, plant growing, plant quarantine measures, land improvement, soil fertility, regulation of the market of agricultural raw materials and foodstuffs, foods and processing industries, production and circulation of ethyl alcohol from edible and non-edible raw materials, alcohol-containing, alcohol and tobacco items, stable development of rural territories, as well as the sphere of fishing, production on vessels of the fishing fleet and in sea fishing ports; protection, investigation, preservation, reproduction and use of objects of fauna included in the objects of hunting, aquatic biological resources, except for those in specially protected natural territories, as well as those included in the Red Book of the Russian Federation, and their habitat; rendering of state servi ces in the sphere of the agroindustrial complex, state property management in subordinate enterprises and institutions.

The Ministry shall coordinate and control activities of the Federal Service of Veterinary and Phytosanitary Enforcement and the Federal Agency of Fishing supervised by it.

The Decision invalidates the Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 315 of June 28, 2004 on the endorsement of the Regulation on the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation.

Decision of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 160 of March 24, 2006 on the Endorsement of the Normatives of Frequency of Collection from Mail Boxes, Exchange, Transportation and Delivery of Written Correspondence, As Well As Control Time Limits of Dispatching of Written Correspondence

From July 1, 2006, introduces the normatives of the frequency of collection from mail boxes, exchange, transportation and delivery of written correspondence, as well as control time limits of dispatching of written correspondence. The periods of collection of written correspondence from mail boxes in the cities of federal significance and administrative centres of the subjects of the Russian Federation is 5 days a week and at least 2 times a day, in the rest of the 2 days - at least once a day. In administrative centres of municipal regions - at least 5 days a week and at least once a day, on the territory of other residential settlements - at least 3 days a week once a day.

Written correspondence must be delivered in the cities of federal significance and administrative centres of the subjects of the Russian Federation daily at least once a day, in administrative centres of municipal regions - at least 5 days a week once a day, and on the territory of other residential settlements - at least 3 times a week once a day.

The Decision also specifies the control time limits for dispatching written correspondence among the cites of federal significance, administrative centres of the subjects of the Russian Federation.

Order of the Federal Agency for Tourism No. 31 of February 10, 2006 on the Regulation on the Federal Agency for Tourism

The Regulation specifies the rules of organisation of work of the Federal Agency for Tourism in implementation of the functions and authority in the specified sphere of activities, including the general rules of organisation of interaction of the federal agency with other federal bodies of executive power.

The Federal Agency for Tourism is a federal body of executive power in charge of the state policy, normative and legal regulation, rendering of state services and state property management in the sphere of tourism.

Provisions of the Regulation shall define the structure of the Federal Agency for Tourism, authority of the head of the Federal Agency for Tourism and his deputies, procedure of planning and organisation of work, preparation and drawing up of the decisions of the federal agency, main rules of organisation of document turnover, execution of orders, preparation and adoption of the normative legal acts in the course of the normative regulation in the specified sphere of activities, as well as other issues of organisation of work.

Registered in the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation on March 23, 2006. Reg. No. 7628.

Order of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation No. 77 of February 20, 2006 on the Endorsement of the Procedure of Organisation of Work in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation to Pay out to Participants of the Accumulated Mortgage System of Housing Support for Servicemen or Members of Their Families Needing Improvement of Housing Conditions Monetary Resources in Addition to the Savings of the Housing Support

Specifies the procedure to make monetary payments in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in addition to the savings of the housing support.

Monetary resources in addition to the savings of the housing support shall be paid out to participants of the accumulated mortgage system of housing support for servicemen with the total length of military service from ten to twenty years dismissed from the military service. Monetary resources shall also be paid out to members of families of participants of the accumulated mortgage system in cases of exclusion of participants from the unit payroll because of being killed or dead, recognised as missing or dead according to established procedure, except for the case when a family member of the participant of the accumulated mortgage system assumes his obligations under the mortgage credit (loan).

To get the monetary resources, the mentioned persons must submit an application (report) and the documents, the list being defined in the Order. It contains: the grounds to recognise as needing improvement of housing conditions; information of non-acceptance by the family members of the participant of the accumulated mortgage system of his obligations under the mortgage credit (loan); recipient of the monetary resources and his payment details; obligation to use the additional monetary resources for designated purpose, release the occupied service dwelling space and present in due time information on the received additional monetary resources at the place where they were recognised as needing dwelling space.

Decision to pay out or refuse to pay out additional monetary resources shall be taken by the commander of the military unit, chief (head) of the organisation of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation no later than within one month from the day of submission of the application (report). Additional monetary resources shall be paid out once for the whole period of the military service at the expense of resources of the Ministry of Defence of Russia allocated for the housing support for servicemen at the last place of service of the participant of the accumulated mortgage system.

Registered in the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation on March 23, 2006. Reg. No. 7620.

Information Letter of the Central Bank of Russia No. 34 of March 6, 2006 "Summary of the Practice of Application of the Normative Acts of the Bank of Russia on Currency Control"

Explains individual issues of application of the Instructions of the Central Bank of Russia No. 117-I of June 15, 2004 and No. 113-I of April 28, 2004. In particular, when a resident issuance company transfers an insurance compensation to a non-resident in an insured case, it is recommended to indicate in the certificate of currency operations code 70080 "Other Payments of Residents to Non-Residents in Non-Sales Operations".

Authorised bank may place on the stand of its exchange office together with the list of bank operations information that the given exchange office does (or does not) carry out operations with coins of foreign states (group of states).

Information Letter of the Central Bank of Russia No. 9 of March 6, 2006 "Summary of the Practice of Application of the Federal Law on the Combating of Legalisation (Laundering) of Incomes Obtained in a Criminal Way and Financing of Terrorism and Normative Acts of the Bank of Russia Adopted in Pursuance of Them"

Credit organisation must submit to the authorised body information on any transactions with immovable property (purchase and sale, leasing, pledging etc.) where the amount is equal to or greater than Rbl 3 million if the credit organisation is a part of the deal, or if committing such transaction becomes know to it from the documents submitted by the client.

Credit organisations must take motivated and affordable in available circumstances steps to identify the beneficiaries regardless of the civil and legal grounds of the committed operation with monetary resources or another property.

The Letter also explains a number of issues pertaining to qualification requirements to personnel engaged in combating of legalisation (laundering) of incomes obtained in a criminal way and financing of terrorism.

Letter of the Central Bank of Russia No. 41-T of March 21, 2006 on the Inclusion of Securities in the Lombard List of the Bank of Russia

The Lombard List of the Bank of Russia shall include now individual bonds of the Agency of Mortgage Housing Crediting, the bonds of the city loan of Moscow, as well as the bonds of the OAO MegaFon.