Kazakhstan Plans Multiple Increase in Recycling Fees for Machinery from Russia and Belarus

The Ministry of Ecology of Kazakhstan has submitted for public discussion a draft of amendments proposing a large-scale increase in recycling fee rates for vehicles and agricultural machinery. According to the published document, the proposed changes will affect products imported from the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus. Relevant agencies emphasize that this measure is aimed at eliminating the current imbalance in payment levels between the EAEU member states and creating equal conditions for the access of Kazakhstani machinery to the markets of neighboring countries. The Ministry of Industry and Construction clarified that tariffs will remain unchanged for domestically produced machines, as well as for imports from countries not included in the specified list.

The need to revise the calculation methodology is dictated by the fact that Russia and Belarus effectively apply additional financial barriers in the form of customs coefficients to Kazakhstani cars, which contradicts the general rules of the union. In response, Kazakhstan intends to align its collection mechanisms with comparable parameters. If the project is adopted, the financial burden on imports from the RF and RB will grow exponentially: for machinery with an engine capacity of up to 1,000 cubic centimeters, the fee will increase from the current 324,000 to 4.3 million tenge, and in the most mass-market segment of 1 to 2 liters, the rate could jump 35 times, reaching 26.7 million tenge. For more powerful units with a capacity of over 3 liters, an increase to 48.3 million tenge is planned, which is almost 20 times higher than current indicators.

For the republic's agricultural sector, this initiative is of particular importance in the context of combating gray imports and protecting localized production. Currently, licensed assembly of leading Russian and Belarusian agricultural brands is already operating in Kazakhstan; however, the industry faces the problem of direct import of finished machines bypassing existing agreements. According to official information, a sharp increase in the recycling payment should stop such parallel import schemes, stimulating supplies through official production sites within the country. Thus, the government plans not only to protect environmental interests but also to create a reliable economic shield for domestic machine building within the framework of integration processes.