Set-off, compensation in kind or novation with an unfriendly creditor bypassing the type C account needs a permit
Terminating an obligation to a person of an unfriendly state without crediting a type C account — by set-off, compensation in kind (otstupnoe) or novation — requires a permit of the Bank of Russia or the Ministry of Finance.
What it says
Under paragraph 11 of Decree No. 95, performing loan, credit and financial-instrument obligations to persons of unfriendly states without crediting a type C account requires a permit — of the Bank of Russia for credit and non-credit financial institutions, of the Ministry of Finance in agreement with the Bank of Russia for other debtors. The same applies to any act or agreement that ends the obligation without crediting the type C account but with other consideration from the resident: set-off of counterclaims, compensation in kind, performance of an obligation arising from novation. Other ways of terminating the obligation need no such permit.
Status, October 2026
In force (navigator cards 10.2, 10.3). For profit distributions see Clarification No. 4-OR of 30 October 2024.
Unofficial translation
Unofficial translation by BCA Unternehmensberatung UG. Only the Russian text is authoritative: Russian original on usd.bcaun.com · publication of the Bank of Russia ↗. Notes on provisions no longer applied are editorial and not part of the document.
CENTRAL BANK OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION (BANK OF RUSSIA)
OFFICIAL CLARIFICATION
on clarifying the procedure for applying the provisions of Decree of the President of the Russian Federation No. 95 of 5 March 2022 “On the Temporary Procedure for Performing Obligations to Certain Foreign Creditors” when terminating obligations
22 March 2024 No. 1-OR
Paragraph 1
1. Guided by paragraph 13 of Decree of the President of the Russian Federation No. 95 of 5 March 2022 “On the Temporary Procedure for Performing Obligations to Certain Foreign Creditors” (“Decree No. 95”), the Bank of Russia clarifies the procedure for applying the provisions of Decree No. 95.
Under paragraph 11 of Decree No. 95, performance by residents of their obligations under credits and loans and financial instruments to persons of unfriendly foreign states1 without complying with the temporary procedure for performing obligations established by that Decree, namely without crediting the performance due to the person of the unfriendly foreign state to a type “C” account, is carried out on the basis of permits issued by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation in respect of credit institutions and non-credit financial institutions, or by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation in agreement with the Central Bank of the Russian Federation in respect of other debtors.
Accordingly, a resident’s unilateral actions (transactions), or actions (transactions) agreed with a person of an unfriendly foreign state, as a result of which the resident’s obligation to the person of the unfriendly foreign state is terminated without crediting the performance due to a type “C” account but the resident is obliged to provide other consideration (including terminating counterclaims, for example by set-off, providing compensation in kind (otstupnoe), or performing an obligation arising from novation), are permitted only on the basis of permits issued by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation in respect of credit institutions and non-credit financial institutions, or by the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation in agreement with the Central Bank of the Russian Federation in respect of other debtors.
Termination of a resident’s obligation to a person of an unfriendly foreign state in other cases is permitted without obtaining the relevant permit provided for by paragraph 11 of Decree No. 95.
Paragraph 2
2. This official clarification shall be posted on the official website of the Bank of Russia on the Internet and applies from the date of its posting.
Footnotes
1 Creditors under obligations whose performance is subject to the procedure provided for by Decree No. 95.
Governor of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation
E.S. Nabiullina
Operations that rest on it
Guides that discuss it
Type C accounts: what goes in, what can come out, and the 2026 changes for deposits
The mechanism behind every “RUB 10 million per month” rule — who must use it, what a balance can be spent on, and what Decrees No. 377 and 550 did this year.
Intra-group loans with a Russian subsidiary: granting, repaying and the permit line
Which direction of lending is free, which needs a permit, how repayment to a Western lender works above RUB 10 million, and the new RUB 30 million limit for capital contributions.