EU bans all yacht and boat exports to Russia

In a fourth round of sanctions against Russia in response to ”its brutal aggression against Ukraine and its people,” the European Commission announced an export ban on luxury goods – including ”yachts and other vessels for pleasure or sports; rowing boats and canoes” as covered by the tariff code CN 8903 00 00.

”These sanctions will further contribute to ramping up economic pressure on the Kremlin and cripple its ability to finance its invasion of Ukraine. They have been coordinated with international partners, notably the United States”, continued EC statement.

The EU also described this latest action as a ban on luxury goods “to directly hit Russian elites.”

“Moreover, the list of sanctioned persons and entities has been further extended to include more oligarchs and business elites linked to the Kremlin, as well as companies active in military and defence areas, which are logistically and materially supporting the invasion. There are also new listings of actors active in disinformation.”

The European Commision additionally announced its agreement with other World Trade Organisation members to deny Russian products and services ’most favoured nation treatment’ in EU markets, following the same announcement by G7 members on 11 March. In addition, the European Boating Industry association (EBI) noted that the RSG, representing the notified bodies for the Recreational Craft Directive (RCD), has indicated that recent sanctions imply the suspension of conformity assessment services by EU notified bodies for Russia. 

Even before this announcement, the global sanctions on Russia have already had a crippling impact on the country's marine industry, which had been enjoying a surge in demand, along with promising marina development projects focused along the Black Sea. The current situation is likely to have a long-lasting setback on Russian boat distributors, dealers, equipment importers and service suppliers. As IBI noted in its last report on EU sanctions relevant to the boating industry, EBI is closely following the developments concerning the new sanctions and is open to hearing from the industry on specific questions they may want to ask the Commission, as well as receiving information about the impact these sanctions will have on the industry within Member countries. For legal guidance on the sanctions, industry member are advised to seek guidance from the Competent Authorities in their countries on specific situations and cases.

Source: IBI News