Consulting on foreign economic activity

Starting and running a business

Starting a new business requires knowledge that people starting their own business do not necessarily have.

Without wishing to make mistakes that can lead to bankruptcy or large debts, business start-ups, nevertheless, often rely only on themselves, which is a fatal mistake, since without proper knowledge it is not always possible to do everything right on one's own.

However, the difficulties and obstacles that arise when starting and running a business can be easily overcome in collaboration with qualified specialists.

The Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry was founded exactly to support business, and to create conditions for its development, offering consultations on starting and running a business, including:

  • on documents required for the registration of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs in the territory of the Republic of Belarus;
  • on the procedure for their submission to the registering authority;
  • on making and registering seals, if necessary;
  • on the procedure for submitting documents for registration with the tax authorities, the Social Protection Fund, statistical bodies, Belgosstrakh insurance company;
  • on the procedure for submitting an application for a simplified taxation system;
  • on organization of documentation management;
  • on HR document flow.

There are no unimportant, illogical and harmless business mistakes, so it is better to cooperate with highly professional specialists in this field.

Conditions for access of goods to markets

Understanding the conditions for access of a particular product to the market of the country of its destination is an important step for an export-oriented enterprise (both resident and non-resident), to be made when assessing the possibility to enter a new market.

This service includes the following:

а) provision of a product code according to the commodity nomenclature of the country of destination;

b) provision of information about:

  • import customs duty rate;
  • export customs duty rate (if any);
  • VAT rate of the country of destination;
  • other taxes (duties) in force in the country of the destination imposed on goods imported to this country (if any);
  • requirements to product safety, conformity assessment and standardization;
  • requirements to packaging, existing in the country of the goods destination;
  • requirements to goods labeling, existing in the country of the goods destination;
  • current prohibitions (restrictions) on the import of goods to the country of destination, including quantitative restrictions on the import of goods (quotas) (if any);

c) information about other requirements and (or) documents, needed for the import/export of goods;

d) contact information of the competent authorities in the country of goods destination, etc.

Foreign economic agreements

As required by international and national legislation and foreign economic agreements, Belarusian entrepreneurs in their foreign economic activity have to draw up and apply documents of different form and content.

Article 34 of the UN Convention on International Contracts for the Sale of Goods (Vienna, 1980) includes the seller's obligation to hand over to the buyer the documents related to the goods at the time, place and in the form required by the contract.

Subparagraphs 15 and 36 of paragraph 1 of Article 2 of the Treaty on the Customs Code of the Eurasian Economic Union define that:

  • commercial documents are documents used in foreign trade and other activities, as well as those used to confirm the completion of transactions related to the movement of goods across the customs border of the Eurasian Economic Union (invoices, specifications, shipping (packing) lists and other documents);
  • transport (carriage) documents are documents confirming the existence of a contract for transportation of goods and accompanying them during such transportation (bill of lading, consignment note, document confirming the conclusion of a freight forwarding contract, and other documents).

There is a widespread practice in international trade, which is subsequently applied in foreign economic agreements concluded by Belarusian entrepreneurs, that the seller has to provide to the buyer with documents confirming the goods quality.

Incorrectly drafted documents required for foreign economic activity can lead to trucks downtime during international transportation of goods, an increase in customs clearance time, an increase in customs duties and tax payments, arrest and subsequent confiscation of goods by customs and by other competent state authorities, as well as to other negative consequences.

A situation when errors in the documents, required for foreign economic activity, are detected at the most inappropriate moment, for example, when an arithmetic error is found in the invoice during customs clearance of goods, is really unpleasant. To avoid that you can contact the BelCCI, whose specialists will help to draw up commercial, transport and other documents timely and efficiently.

Enforcement of court decisions

Failure by foreign counterparties to fulfill their obligations under foreign economic agreements often leads to a situation, when Belarusian business entities have to turn to the International Arbitration Court at the BelCCI and it decides in their favor.

It is good if the counterparty voluntarily fulfills the decision of the International Arbitration Court at the BelCCI. And what if it fails to do so? Then the Belarusian business entity has to decide what to do next with the decision of the International Arbitration Court at the BelCCI.

It ought to be noted that the recognition and enforcement of decisions of the International Arbitration Court at the BelCCI might be very problematic in other countries.

Primarily because there might be no legal grounds for that.

In addition, Belarusian business entities might not know the national legislation of a foreign state, where the decisions of the International Arbitration Court at the BelCCI have to be recognized and enforced.

The Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry is trying in every possible way to assist Belarusian business entities with that.

The BelCCI specialists can advise on the existence of legal grounds for the recognition and enforcement of decisions of the International Arbitration Court at the BelCCI in the territory of a foreign state.

In addition, the BelCCI can provide the information about legal firms, or other legal entities or individuals that can provide assistance to Belarusian business entities in the recognition and enforcement of decisions of the International Arbitration Court at the BelCCI in the territory of foreign states.

Protection against unfair competition in the EAEU

The activities of the Eurasian Economic Commission are aimed at developing competition and preventing anti-competitive behavior, establishing uniform rules for doing business throughout the territory of the whole Eurasian Economic Union.

The Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry seeks to increase awareness of business entities of their rights, the consequences of violations and to help protect their rights with the help of antitrust regulation tools in the cross-border markets of the Eurasian Economic Union.

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