MOSCOW, May 14. /TASS/. A working group of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) has drafted proposals on conditions for foreign businesses to come back to the country. Corresponding criteria have been submitted to the government and the presidential administration, RSPP head Alexander Shokhin told RBC.
One of the conditions states that the majority of shares of any such returning company must be held by Russian residents, RSPP said. Foreign companies should also transfer ownership rights of their technologies and "ensure the presence of all elements of the management, production and intellectual chain in Russia," Shokhin said. Another condition would be that these companies not place any restrictions on Russian partners’ ability to source materials and components.
Furthermore, the foreign company can not owe any back taxes or have debts to Russian companies, Shokhin noted. And these firms must not have unilaterally terminated contracts in which Russian companies were beneficiaries or obstructed the fulfillment of previously signed agreements.
Moreover, among the return criteria are observance of employees’ rights and limitation of asset sale and withdrawal of dividends by foreign companies returning. The Union suggests "formalizing policies on compensation for incurred economic losses and minimization of potential risks related to possible suspension of cooperation with foreign participants in the future."
These requirements will not apply to all foreign companies that would like to return to Russia, RSPP told the publication. "We assume that potential restrictions/requirements for the entry of foreign investors to the Russian market should not apply to investments of less than a certain amount and that are not in the ‘sensitive’ industry segments (considering the position of Russian companies and industry regulators), as well as to those foreign companies that have remained in Russia this whole time," Shokhin said.
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation and the Delovaya Rossiya (Business Russia) Association also put forward proposals. These include the introduction of an "investment contribution" for returning foreign firms and requirements to compensate Russian consumers for previous losses. The Russian president ordered the government to develop conditions for the potential return of foreign businesses to Russia by May 15.