Reaching the consumers

Marketing opportunities

Consumer behavior

A majority of the households ensures his subsistence by its own means. The intervention of the State in the process of market creates shortages and a rationing of the food in certain areas. We often see panic purchases of food products. For the immense mass of the inhabitants, life is hard, as the country knows a strong inflation which corrodes the purchasing power.

Consumer profile and purchasing power

The wages are very different between the capital and the country. In addition, there is the emergence of an extremely rich middle-class, beside a population which lives poorly without intermediate class. The average wages all confused areas are of 100€ per month and 200€ for the capital.

Consumers associations

State association of Consumer Service Organizations
Contacts of consumers association on the Ministry of trade website

Main advertising agencies

Main advertising agency in Belarus

Distributing a product

Market shares

No supermarket

Market access procedures

International Conventions

Member of World Trade Organisation
Party to the Kyoto protocol
Party to the Washington convention on International trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora
Party to the Basel convention on the Control of Transboudary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their disposal
Party to the Montreal protocol on Substances that deplete the Ozone Layer

Main International economic cooperation

Belarus is member of:
- Eurasian Economic Community
- Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) 
Belarus also signed in 2009 a Free Trade Agreement with Serbia.

Non tariff barriers

Because of the dictatorial character of the government, the access to the market is very difficult and the administration is one of the most important barriers

Customs duties and taxes on imports

Between 0 and 10% ad valorem. 100% on alcohol.
Goods originating from countries, to where the Republic of Belarus does not apply the most favoured nation treatment in trade and political relations, or goods with unidentified country of origin, imported to the customs area of the Republic of Belarus, are assessed with the import customs duties under the “base” rates multiplied by 2.
Belarus provides tariff preferences to developing and least developed countries in form of reduction of the customs duties rates by 25 and 100 percent accordingly concerning the final inventory established by the President of the Republic of Belarus.

Customs classification

Tariff regulation issues are specified by the Law of Republic of Belarus “Customs Tariff” of February 3^rd, 1993.

According to Article 2 of the Law, the Custom duties of the Republic of Belarus correspond to a code of rates of the customs duties (custom duties) applied to goods moved through the customs border of the Republic of Belarus, which are the condition of such moving. It is also fixed that Belarus’ custom duties are integrated according to the Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign Trade Activities of the Republic of Belarus, which is generated proceeding from the systems of classification of goods accepted in the international practice.
For further information, please visit the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus.

Import procedures

Customs procedures in Belarus coincide with principles of International Convention on customs simplification and harmonization. To consult the list of required documents please visit the websiteof the Belarus embassy in the US.

Importing samples

Samples are subject to the same procedures. For more information go to the Belorussian customs duty website.

For further information

Customs office of Belarus

Organizing goods transport

Main useful means

Roads and airports are bad maintained in Belarus. Train is the best mean of transport for goods.

Ports

Bobryisk
Gomel
Mikashevichi
Mogilev
Mozyr

Airports

Minsk Airport

Sea transport organizations

Ministry of transport and communications of the Republic of Belarus

Air transport organizations

Ministry of transport and communications of the Republic of Belarus

Road transport organizations

Ministry of transport and communications of the Republic of Belarus

Rail transport organizations

Ministry of transport and communications of the Republic of Belarus

Identifying a supplier

Type of production

The main industrial sectors are: arms industry, car industry, agricultural machinery and chemical industry

Business directories

Yellow Pages

Manufacturers associations of the main industries

Minsk Automobile Plant : automotive manufacturers association
Belarusian Association of pharmaceutical manufacturers

Trade Agencies and their representations abroad

Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Enterprises federation

Minsk capital association of entrepreneurs and employers