Updated July 2026: This guide has been revised to reflect Russia's standard VAT rising to 22% on 1 January 2026 (tea is taxed at that standard rate, not the reduced 10%), the correct EAEU tea classification under HS heading 0902 with an import duty of about 12%, the EAC Declaration of Conformity required under technical regulation TR CU 021/2011 (not a "CE" mark), Russia's organic-labelling rules under Federal Law 280-FZ (GOST 33980), and the fact that shipping and payment between Japan and Russia remain heavily disrupted by sanctions.

The cold weather like that of Russia asks for a beverage that keeps the Russians warm at all times, and what could be better than a hot cup of tea? In Russia, tea is considered to be a de facto national beverage, which means that it is the most popular beverage in the Russian Federation. Tea is also famous in this area because it is a part of Russian culture.

Now, this kind of popularity means that this country already has some of the finest varieties of tea that everyone seeks. But, do you know what it is missing? The finest organic Japanese tea. This tea is capable of making its mark in the booming tea market of the Russian Federation. So, if you want to enter this market, organic Japanese tea would be an exceptional choice to start your journey with. But, how can you import this tea to Russia?

In this blog, we will tell you everything there is to know about importing organic Japanese tea to Russia. Let’s begin.

How to Import Organic Japanese Tea to the Russian Federation?

Importing goods into the Russian Federation consists of a very thorough procedure. In order to import goods to this country, the legal entities first have to conclude an agreement and gather all the necessary documents. Transportation Companies play a very important role in supplying your goods. Therefore, the next thing you need to work on is executing a contract of shipment with this company.

Next up: payment for the customs clearance. This payment depends upon the number of goods you import. You also have to inform the customs officials before your cargo arrives in the country. Once your imported products enter the country, they will be taken to a temporary storage warehouse or a customs control zone. They will remain there till you provide all the necessary information to the customs official. The next step is the most crucial step of importing products into the Russian Federation is preparing and submitting a customs declaration that is also known as the Russian Customs Freight Declaration. (See below to know what documents should accompany this declaration)

Lastly, pay all the taxes and duties to the government of the Russian Federation and transport your organic Japanese tea from the customs warehouse to wherever you want to take it. Once you’ve done all of this and provided accurate information, you will be able to sell and consume this beverage freely in the Russian Federation and the Eurasian Economic Union.

Importing Samples

If you want to temporarily import organic Japanese tea and see how the tea market reacts, you can also go for the temporary import of this product or its samples. In this case, you will not have to pay the import VAT along with the customs duties for up to two years. Both of these taxes and duties can be exempted fully or partially.

Documents that must accompany the customs declaration

There are several most important documents that must be presented together with the customs declaration. These documents are:

• Transport documents: Bill of lading, railway waybill, CMR, air waybill. All of these documents are filled in by your exporter. However, in some cases, if the exporter is unavailable, the broker will do all the necessities, but the broker will need to provide a certificate that will contain the carrier’s seal along with yours.
• Commercial documents: Documents of your goods’ payment, invoices.
• Contract and additional agreements: You should prepare the contracts and annexes in advance. Make sure you make them on Word or any other editor because you will need to provide them electronically with the customs declaration.
• Unique Contract Number: Since March 2018, the Russian Federation has marked a stop on the usage of transaction passports. Now, you will need to acquire a Unique Contract Number (UNK) from a nearby bank. But this number is only required if the total value of your import exceeds RUB 3 million.
• Technical product information: This is where your exporter jumps in. The exporter will provide all the technical information and documents regarding your product. The documents can be safety data sheets, catalogs, quality certificates, etc. The exporter may also need to provide information regarding the manufacturing process, materials, usage of the product, and the technical characteristics of the product. Make sure that all of this information matches the one you provide on the customs declaration.
• Certificate of origin: This is required to provide information regarding the producer’s country of origin.
• Certificate of Conformity (for tea this is normally an EAC Declaration of Conformity under the EAEU technical regulation TR CU 021/2011 "On the Safety of Food Products"; State Registration is reserved for specialized foods such as baby food)
• Insurance Contract: If your cargo is insured, you will need to provide the insurance contract to the customs official. If the cargo isn’t insured, you will need to prepare a letter stating that the cargo isn’t insured. You can write this letter and present it to the customs officials. However, some customs offices don’t need it.
• Documents that confirm the declared customs value: Export declaration of the seller’s country with translation, price list, and documents for the previously released goods under the same accounting contract. However, if you’re importing the goods for the first time, you can write a letter stating that this is your first delivery or cargo and you don’t have the aforementioned documents.

Customs duty and Import Tax in Russian Federation

The customs duty and import tax apply to the total cost of your imported products, insurance costs, and shipment costs.

Talking about organic Japanese tea, Russia’s customs duty and import tax are given in the table below.

A quick 2026 note on the table above, which is a general illustration. Because Russia is part of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), imports from Japan are governed by the EAEU Common Customs Tariff, administered by the Eurasian Economic Commission, with classification under TN VED (the EAEU version of the Harmonized System). Green tea is classified under HS heading 0902, and green tea in immediate packings not exceeding 3 kg (about 6.6 lb) sits under sub-heading 0902 10. The Common Customs Tariff sets the MFN import duty on green tea at roughly 12%, and some tea lines also carry a small specific minimum of around 0.24 to 0.34 EUR per kg (the duty charged is whichever works out higher). Rates and sub-codes can change, so confirm the current figure for your exact code against the live Eurasian Economic Commission tariff or a customs broker before you quote a price. Import VAT is charged on top, at Russia’s standard rate, which rose to 22% on 1 January 2026 (tea is not on the reduced 10% list of essential foods).

FAQs

Are there any labeling/marking requirements on imports to the Russian Federation?

Just like all the other countries, the Russian Federation also has labeling/marking requirements. Labels on your imported products must include:

• The product name (clearly written)
• Volume/weight of the product
• The contents of the food
• Nutritional value of the product
• Country of Origin
• Manufacturer’s name (may be written in Latin numbers)
• Instructions on product usage
• Main characteristics of the product
• Conditions for safe and effective product use
• Storage conditions
• Expiration date

All of this information must be written in Russian, Armenian, Belarusian, Kazakh, and Kyrgyzstani languages. Labelling of packaged food for the EAEU market is set out in technical regulation TR CU 022/2011, and the product must carry the EAC conformity mark rather than the EU’s CE mark (CE is an EU-only mark and food is not CE-marked in any case).

How to calculate the duty tax on imports to the Russian Federation?

To calculate the import duty tax on tea, you need to know its HS code. In the EAEU (the customs union Russia belongs to), tea falls under HS heading 0902, and green tea in immediate packings not exceeding 3 kg (about 6.6 lb) is classified under sub-heading 0902 10 (the EAEU sub-code 0902 10 000 1 is used for consumer or retail packing).

Now, imagine you import a huge quantity of organic Japanese tea to Russia. The total cost of the product comes out to be RUB 15,000 with the insurance cost of RUB 7,000. This value is bigger than the threshold value of RUB 5,000. It means that you’ll have to pay all the taxes and duties. First comes the general import duty on green tea, which under the EAEU Common Customs Tariff is about 12% of the customs value (some tea lines also carry a small specific minimum of roughly 0.24 to 0.34 EUR per kg, and the higher of the two applies). So, 0.12 x 22,000 = RUB 2,640. Older versions of this guide also cited an "average" duty of about 7.8% (0.078 x 22,000 = RUB 1,716); treat that figure as illustrative only. Adding the worked numbers gives 22,000 + 2,640 + 1,716 = RUB 26,356. These figures are an example, not a quote; confirm the exact rate for your sub-code with the live Eurasian Economic Commission tariff or a customs broker before pricing.

Don’t forget to add import VAT as well. Russia’s standard VAT (НДС) rose from 20% to 22% on 1 January 2026, and tea is taxed at that standard rate because it is not on the reduced 10% list of essential foods. Import VAT is charged at the border on the customs value plus the duty.

What is the method of payment of customs duties?

The State Customs Committee will collect all your taxes and duties. The customs officials also charge some fees to carry out all the formalities. Payment is made at the time of making the customs declaration, and this payment is made in cash. Once you’re done with the payment, you’ll receive a certificate. This certificate will authorize the customs clearance.

Does Japanese tea need EAC certification or a "CE" mark for Russia?

For the Russian and wider EAEU market the conformity mark is EAC, not the EU’s CE, and food products are not CE-marked at all. Ordinary tea must comply with the EAEU technical regulation TR CU 021/2011 "On the Safety of Food Products" (in force since 1 July 2013), with Russian-language labelling under TR CU 022/2011. For a standard tea, compliance is normally confirmed by an EAC Declaration of Conformity rather than a full certificate; State Registration is reserved for specialized products such as baby food. Rospotrebnadzor is the sanitary and consumer-protection authority, while Rosselkhoznadzor handles phytosanitary controls.

Can Japanese JAS organic tea be sold as "organic" in Russia?

Not automatically. Under Federal Law No. 280-FZ (adopted in 2018 and in force since 1 January 2020), only producers certified to GOST 33980-2016 and entered in the Ministry of Agriculture’s register of organic producers may use the word "organic" (органический) on the label. The register was reportedly opened to foreign producers in September 2023, but Japan’s JAS organic certification is not automatically recognized in Russia, so separate GOST 33980 certification would be needed to make an organic claim. You can still import and sell the tea; you just cannot label it "organic" in Russia on the strength of JAS alone. Check the current requirements with a certification body before printing any organic wording.

Do Fukushima-related restrictions affect Japanese tea?

Russia’s Rosselkhoznadzor suspended imports of Japanese seafood from 16 October 2023 over the Fukushima Daiichi treated-water release, and that measure has been maintained into 2026. It covers aquatic products, not tea. That said, EAEU food-safety rules under TR CU 021/2011 set radionuclide limits (for caesium-137 and strontium-90) that apply to all food, tea included, and Russia has kept radiological monitoring of Japanese-origin food in place, so radiation-safety documentation may be requested. Confirm the exact paperwork for tea with your customs broker or Rosselkhoznadzor.

Can you still ship tea from Japan to Russia in 2026?

In practice it is currently very difficult. DHL, FedEx and UPS suspended service to and from Russia in March 2022 and have not resumed, and Japan Post lists all of its services to Russia (EMS, air, SAL and surface parcels, and letter-post) as suspended, according to its service-availability page last updated on 26 June 2026. On top of that, major Russian banks have been removed from SWIFT and are under sanctions, so receiving payment for a shipment is heavily constrained. Japan’s own export controls on Russia have also been tightened repeatedly since 2022. None of this bans tea specifically, but it means a routine commercial channel from Japan to Russia may not exist right now, so check current carrier, banking and export-control options before you commit to any order.

Conclusion

The Russian tea market has been an immense success since the beginning of time. The largest country in the world is also the largest tea-drinking empire in the entire world. Thus, if you want to start your tea business in this giant hub, you’ll need to provide something that leaves everyone tongue-tied, and this can be possible with organic Japanese tea.

Organic Japanese tea has everything that a tea lover looks for in the tea. Therefore, you need to start importing this tea to the Russian Federation as soon as possible. However, make sure that you know all the import requirements and documentation, and that the current shipping, payment and sanctions situation actually allows the shipment before you commit.

Need Assistance on Japanese Tea Importation?

This shipping and importation of Japanese tea in your country have been a long-standing service that we offer. Therefore, if you are interested in Japanese Tea importation either as a business or you simply want to have a taste of quality, authentic Japanese tea, you may contact us through this website, and we are more than happy to assist you. Click here to contact Green Tea Merchant.

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