Federation Council speaker Matvienko proposes ending VAT break for oysters and lobsters
In short
Federation Council speaker Valentina Matvienko proposed cancelling the reduced 10% VAT rate on delicacies such as oysters, lobsters and langoustines, which she said would bring the federal budget about 6 billion rubles. She said the money could build two new schools or a children's hospital, and that lobster lovers would barely notice the change. She made the proposal at Federation Council hearings on the three-year budget, where she complained that work to review tax breaks was “not very active”.
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Federation Council speaker Valentina Matvienko proposed cancelling the reduced VAT rate on delicacy products, including oysters, lobsters and langoustines, saying the move would bring the federal budget about 6 billion rubles. She said the money could be used to build, for example, two new schools or a children's hospital. All three outlets reported the proposal, which she made at Federation Council hearings on the three-year budget. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
Matvienko said delicacy goods pay 10% VAT instead of the standard 22%. “Cancelling this preference would lead to additional federal budget receipts of about 6 billion rubles,” she said, adding, according to Kommersant: “They tell us: 'well, 6 billion, so what' — not so what, every little bit counts.” She also said “lobster lovers, I think, will not suffer much from this, they simply will not notice”, and complained that work to inventory tax preferences “is not being carried out very actively”. [ 1 , 2 ]
Kommersant noted that cancelling the preference would increase receipts not through a new levy but through a larger VAT amount on the same sales, so the budget effect depends on sales volumes, while for buyers the change shows up mainly in the tax component of the price. The paper said the criterion for keeping a reduced rate in tax policy is the social significance of the good. [ 2 ]
The proposal comes during work on the three-year budget. Kommersant reported that on 24 September the Finance Ministry submitted the draft federal budget for 2027 and the 2028-2029 planning period to the government, with budget policy set to meet social obligations, finance defence and security, support participants of the special military operation and their families, and develop technological leadership. The largest expenditure items for 2027 are National Defence and Social Policy, the paper reported. No document reports a decision on the delicacy VAT preference. [ 2 ]
Why it matters
The proposal is a small but concrete example of the tax-break review now attached to Russia's 2027-2029 budget, in which national defence and social policy are the largest spending items. If adopted, it would raise the tax component of the price of imported delicacies rather than introduce a new levy, so its budget effect depends on how much of those goods is sold. No decision has been reported.
Key facts
- Federation Council speaker Valentina Matvienko proposed cancelling the reduced VAT rate for delicacy goods including oysters, lobsters and langoustines. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- Delicacy products pay 10% VAT instead of the standard 22%, she said. [ 1 , 2 ]
- She said cancelling the preference would bring the federal budget about 6 billion rubles. [ 1 , 2 ]
- She said the money could build two new schools or a children's hospital. [ 1 , 2 ]
- She complained that the inventory of tax preferences “is not being carried out very actively”. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Kommersant reported the change would raise revenue through a larger VAT amount on the same sales, with the budget effect depending on sales volumes. [ 2 ]
- The proposal was made at Federation Council hearings on the three-year budget. [ 1 , 2 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Federation Council speaker Valentina Matvienko proposed cancelling the reduced VAT rate on delicacy goods such as oysters, lobsters and langoustines. [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]
- She said the preference means such delicacies pay 10% VAT instead of the standard 22%. [ 1 , 2 ]
- She said cancelling the preference would add about 6 billion rubles to federal budget receipts. [ 1 , 2 ]
- She said the money could fund, for example, two new schools or a children's hospital. [ 1 , 2 ]
- She made the proposal at Federation Council hearings on the three-year budget. [ 1 , 2 ]
Still unclear
- Whether the proposal will be taken up or approved. No document reports a decision, a timetable or a formal submission; the documents describe only a proposal made at budget hearings.
- The size of the expected budget effect. The figure of about 6 billion rubles is Matvienko's own estimate, reported by two outlets but not attributed to an independent calculation; Kommersant notes the effect depends on sales volumes.
- How much shoppers would pay more for these goods. The documents give no price figures and describe the impact only in general terms as a change in the tax component of the price.