MINSK, January 6President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko signed a law ratifying an intergovernmental agreement with Russia on international road transport. The document, previously adopted by parliament, was published on the country's national legal Internet portal.
““Ratify the agreement between the government of the Republic of Belarus and the government of the Russian Federation on international road transport, signed in Moscow on August 18, 2023,” the law says.
The agreement was concluded in order to abolish the permit system for international road transport of goods to and from third countries.
The transition to a permit-free system will be carried out in stages from January 1, 2024. The complete abolition of permits for the transportation of goods from or to the territory of all states is planned from January 1, 2030. Liberalization will be carried out in five stages depending on groups of countries, for example, from January 1, 2024 — in communication with the Balkan countries, from 2025 — within the CIS countries, from 2026 — with a number of EU countries and the UK, from 2030 — with all countries.
The agreement establishes a list of cases in which the transportation of passengers in irregular traffic between Belarus and the Russian Federation and transit through their territories is carried out without permits.
The document also provides for the possibility of performing coastal road transport of goods subject to mandatory compliance with a number of conditions. In this case, the carrier is required to first inform the transport control authority about such transportation and obtain confirmation of its execution.
When transporting passengers and cargo under the agreement, vehicles are reciprocally exempt from taxes, fees and payments associated with their ownership or use, with the exception of fees and payments levied to compensate for damage to roads, for travel on toll roads highways, bridges and tunnels.