Finland may start detaining vehicles with Russian license plates on March 16

HELSINKI. March 13 (Interfax) - Vehicles with Russian license plates must leave Finland by March 16 or else run the risk of detention, the Finnish authorities said.

"As of next Saturday, drivers of cars under Russian registration must be able to prove their right to use the vehicles in Finland to the authorities. The relevant documents should be kept in the vehicles when driving, so that drivers can prove their right to use Russian-registered vehicles immediately when they are asked to do so," Director of the Finnish Customs Enforcement Department Sami Rakshit said in a statement published on the department's website.

Previously, all five EU member states bordering Russia, namely Poland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, banned vehicles with Russian license plates, based on the EU sanctions that view the arrival of such vehicles in the EU as illegal imports.

Full-time students and people working in Finland under a valid fixed-term employment contract who reside permanently outside the EU can continue using their vehicles legally brought into Finland before the ban.

An exception also comprises vehicles that can still enter Finland temporarily in accordance with the EU sanctions regulation, and therefore remain in Finland legally under Russian registration. Such vehicles include cars owned by EU or EEA citizens who are permanent residents of Russia or by their family members, cars with diplomatic license plates, as well as cars belonging to people arriving in Finland on humanitarian grounds.

A violation of the rules may lead to the vehicle's detention and a possible tax assessment by the customs authorities. Sanctions may include the payment of customs duties and the value added tax, and the vehicle's removal from EU territory.

The customs authorities noted that vehicles cannot leave Finland across the eastern border until April 14, as the checkpoints remain closed.

"Authorities will not issue any separate instructions on practical matters relating to vehicle exits. Instead, car owners are responsible for the decisions concerning their vehicles," the customs said.