About Currency Restrictions in 2022, Introduced in Respect of Individuals

Abstract

The focus of this article is the currency restrictions imposed by the Russian Federation on resident individuals in response to the deployment by foreign states and their unions of a policy of sanctions pressure on the national banking system. First, the authors identify regulatory windows and types of country sanctions: freezing of reserves and assets of the Bank of Russia, a ban for the Bank of Russia on access to the capital market and a ban on the sale, supply, transfer or export of cash euros and US dollars to Russia. Further, the domestic legal order is analyzed in terms of the introduction and operation of currency restrictions that apply to resident individuals. It is revealed that the main restrictions consisted in the forced conversion of part of foreign currency deposits, prohibitions on crediting currency to foreign accounts and providing loans to non-residents, setting thresholds for crossborder transfer of non-cash and cash funds; prohibition of electronic money transfers with the help of foreign payment service providers and transactions with persons of foreign states committing unfriendly acts or included in the sanctions list by the Government of the Russian Federation. The legality of the establishment of these currency restrictions and the practice of their application are investigated. Based on the results of the analysis, ways to improve domestic legislation are proposed.