Is replacement required?

In connection with the annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol to the Russian Federation in 2014, many legal issues arose for the residents of these territories. A number of such issues concern such a large category of the population as motorists. Is it possible to drive around Russia with a driver's license (VL) issued by another state? Is it necessary to replace rights when obtaining Russian citizenship? What is the procedure and timing of this procedure, how much will it cost the owners of Ukrainian VU? The reader will find answers to these and other questions in this review.

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Does everyone need to change their driver's license?

In 1968, an international convention on road traffic was adopted in Vienna. Countries party to this convention have undertaken to recognize driver's licenses issued by other member states without any additional documents. Both Russia and Ukraine are parties to the Vienna Convention and are obliged to recognize rights issued in the neighboring country. That is, theoretically, a Ukrainian driver’s license is valid in Russia for the entire period of its validity.

The maximum period of stay in Russia for a Ukrainian is 90 days within six months. It is during this time that he can drive a vehicle on the territory of the Russian Federation according to his national rights.

If a Ukrainian decides to live in Russia, he is obliged to legalize his stay by obtaining a temporary residence permit, residence permit or acquiring Russian citizenship.

From the moment he receives the relevant documents, he is given 60 days to replace his driver’s license (VL). Such rules apply to all foreigners throughout Russia; in particular, they were used to replace driving licenses for Crimean residents in Moscow.

In 2021, you cannot work as a driver in Russia without obtaining a Russian driver's license. Persons who work for hire or are engaged in transportation as a private entrepreneur simply need to acquire Russian-style rights.

Legal framework for replacing a Ukrainian driver’s license in the Russian Federation

The admission of persons to drive vehicles is regulated by clause 12 of Art. 25 of Law No. 196-FZ of December 10, 1995. It states that driving a vehicle is possible with a Russian national driver’s license or international documents. In this case, it is necessary to comply with the restrictions. These restrictions are listed in paragraph 13 of Article 25 of Law No. 196-FZ of December 10, 1995. These include a ban on driving a vehicle with these documents when carrying out labor or business activities related to driving. But there are nuances here too. For example, when checking the documents provided, the driver has the right to work with a temporary permit, the validity of which is limited to 2 months.

Possibility of early exchange of driver's license

Sometimes you have to change your driver's license before it expires. There may be several reasons - a change in passport data, damage to the document itself. For drivers from Crimea driving vehicles on the territory of the continental part of Russia, the early exchange of driving license was more relevant than ever: the traffic police in other regions of the Russian Federation do not think too much about the problems with the exchange of licenses in Crimea and require strict compliance with the law.

In addition, in Ukraine, rights of different types with very different validity periods are valid at the same time, many of them do not contain information in Russian. Accordingly, the preconditions are being created for traffic police officers working “on the mainland” to refuse to understand what is written in a document in a foreign language.

Who needs to change their ID?

According to the current Vienna Convention, Ukrainians have the opportunity to move freely throughout Russia with driving documents from their country. Therefore, the replacement of rights in Crimea only applies to situations when the expiration date expires, or when lost.

The exception is when a person is engaged in commercial activities related to road transportation. It is prohibited to work as drivers of passenger or freight transport with Ukrainian licenses. In such cases, it is necessary to replace the rights with Russian ones in Crimea.

Individual entrepreneurs are not allowed to drive unless they have a domestic license. This applies to people driving buses and minibuses. Violation entails a large fine - from 50 thousand rubles for officials, and up to 15 thousand for the drivers themselves.

What documents will you need?

About what documents are needed to replace a driver's license:

1. Application – filled out on a standard form.
2. Russian passport or Ukrainian passport/TRP/residence permit – for those who have renounced Russian citizenship.
3. Previous VU.
4. Receipt for payment of state duty - 2 thousand rubles.
5. Medical certificate.

Electronic application through the Gosuslugi portal

Any citizen of the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol who has received a Russian passport can register a personal account on the popular Gosuslugi portal and send an electronic application to the traffic police MREO at their place of residence for the issuance of a driver’s license. To use this feature, you must obtain a verified status for your account, which gives access to all functions of the portal. For information on how to submit an application to the traffic police via the Internet, read the material “Replacing a driver’s license through State Services.”

Exchange of DP using the State Services portal

In our age of rapid development of information technology, it is a shame to waste time visiting various public places, including the traffic police department. The State Services portal created by the state can resolve this problem. However, to fully use the portal, you need to register a personal account on it, which will take some time. But then you will be able to resolve many issues with various government authorities.

To replace the VU, you need to follow the link https://www.gosuslugi.ru/10056/19 and proceed further in full accordance with the simple and understandable instructions. An additional bonus when applying to State Services is a 30% discount on the payment of state duty.

Is it possible to keep my Ukrainian license?

Residents of Crimea have the opportunity to move freely by personal transport without having a Russian license. It is necessary to replace the license if the driver wants to engage in commercial activities related to the transportation of passengers or goods.

Despite this, experts still recommend obtaining Russian documents, especially when obtaining citizenship. This eliminates the possibility of difficulties in the future.

Many drivers are faced with the question of whether it is necessary to change their Ukrainian license to a Russian one in Crimea. The procedure is not mandatory if the vehicle is used for personal and not commercial purposes. The certificate can be replaced at the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate or through the State Services portal, which can be used by all citizens of the Russian Federation.

List of Crimean traffic police MREOs

Sevastopol has its own MREO, and 8 more such units are located in the Republic of Crimea. You can apply for a replacement ID at the one that serves the territory of your residence.

List of MREOs located in Crimea:

1. MREO of Sevastopol. Address: 299040, st. Promyshlennaya, 1A. Phone: +7 8692 656660.
2. Branch No. 1 of the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Crimea. Address: 295043, Simferopol, st. Kyiv, 158. Telephone: 8 (3652) 550146.
3. Branch No. 2 of the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Crimea. Address: 298302, Kerch, st. Dmitry Glukhov, 5A. Phone: 8 (36561) 22443.
4. Branch No. 3 of the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Crimea. Address: 298607, Yalta, st. Sechenova, 25A. Phone: 8 (3654) 314612.
5. Branch No. 4 of the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Crimea. Address: 296100, Dzhankoy, st. Tolstogo, 52.
6. Branch No. 5 of the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Crimea. Address: 297402, Evpatoria, Razdolnenskoe highway, 19. Telephone: 8 (06569) 26221, 8 (06569) 45343.
7. Branch No. 6 of the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Crimea. Address: 298100, Feodosia, st. Kochmarskogo, 17.
8. Branch No. 7 of the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Crimea. Address: 297600, Belogorsky district, Belogorsk, st. Nizhnegorskaya, 51A.
9. Branch No. 8 of the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Republic of Crimea. Address: 296000, Krasnoperekopsk, st. Severnaya, 1. Phone: 8 (06565) 21122.

What documents are needed to replace your license in Crimea?

Don’t forget to take with you your old Ukrainian license, a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation (if you don’t have one at the moment, then you should provide an identification document - a foreign passport, a military ID), if you have one, then take with you the driver’s examination sheet (which contains information about that you studied at a driving school and passed exams at the traffic police) and a medical certificate (according to new laws, a certificate is not needed when replacing a driver’s license due to loss, damage, theft or change of personal data). Don't forget to check the validity period of your documents:

• Passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation.
• Old Ukrainian driver's license.
• A valid medical certificate.
• Examination sheet from the driver's driving school (if available)

Having the entire package of documents, you go to the treasured window, where they will be checked for some time. Most often, you will receive a new driver's license on the same day you apply. But there are cases when the authenticity of some documents raises some doubts among traffic police officers, and they need time to conduct additional verification. Your photo will be taken right at the branch, so you don’t need to go to a photo salon. Do not forget that if you have vision problems and wear glasses, then it is better to take the photo with glasses, although you can do it without them.

Crimean drivers will not need additional re-examination, nor will they need retraining - to replace the old Ukrainian license, it is enough to have the above package of documents. But if you decide to open a new category of driver's license, then you will need to undergo appropriate training. You will also need to retrain if your license has expired and you have not driven a car for more than a year.

What happens if you leave Ukrainian license plates in Crimea?

People still don't have clear information. It is only obvious that they will not have time to re-register, and a lot of Crimean drivers may be subject to penalties. In this regard, all sorts of rumors are actively discussed in the kitchens of the peninsula.

One of these rumors: after April 1, the customs and border service of the Russian Federation will stop releasing cars with Ukrainian-style Crimean and Sevastopol license plates from the territory of the peninsula through Perekop.

The source of “Notes” at the Sevastopol customs refutes this: all orders for re-registration most likely concern the traffic police; customs has no right not to allow a car to cross the border. Departure will be possible - according to the specialist, no orders have yet been issued in this regard. “Export control in Russia is not provided for by law. Neither the customs officials nor the border guards have any legal grounds yet for not releasing the car,” our source concluded.

Another question: what to do with entry? Theoretically, after April 1, a citizen of the Russian Federation registered in Crimea who owns a car registered in Ukraine will be forced to either clear it through customs and receive Russian license plates, or import it temporarily - on bail. There is no reason to find fault with cars with Ukrainian license plates with Crimean registration at the customs office when entering Russia.

Crimeans who have renounced Russian citizenship and obtained a residence permit in Crimea can continue to drive Ukrainian-style license plates. They have the right to obtain “temporary import” for one personal car for a year. Then you will have to travel outside the territory of the Russian Federation with the car. When importing more than one car across the border, you will have to pay a deposit to cover customs clearance costs - about 30% of the cost of the vehicle. The same applies to those citizens of Ukraine who did not live in Crimea at the time of the referendum - for example, migrants from Donbass.

One of the popular options for solving the problem with re-registration - the sale of Crimean cars with Ukrainian license plates on the territory of Ukraine - remains real even after April 1. Knowing about the impending fines, Ukrainian resellers became more active. They browse the largest online platforms for selling cars and, seeing the car they like, they themselves come to Crimea to buy it. The transfer of money takes place on the territory of the seller. And then the seller and reseller go to Ukraine to re-register the car there. Such “troubles” are also beneficial for Crimeans: the cost of used cars in Ukraine is higher than in the Russian Federation.

Those who want to continue traveling from Crimea to Ukraine in their own car have to look for ways out. Several options are being seriously discussed.

First: register in Ukraine using your Ukrainian passport. A resident of Crimea travels to, say, Kherson and registers there. There he also registers the car, which receives Ukrainian license plates of a “non-Crimean” type. Then the Crimean, already like a Kherson resident, returns to Crimea with the car - and then crosses the border with it every three months in order to extend the migration period. The main thing is not to “shine” your Russian passport at the border, so that questions do not arise about different registrations in Ukrainian and Russian documents. The scenario is quite realistic, but there is one problem: in order to register in Ukraine, you need to register in Crimea - and the passport services of the Crimean Federal District no longer work with Ukrainian passports.

The second option is to re-register in one of the regions of the Russian Federation, get a new Russian passport there and re-register the car there. Then it will be possible to get to Ukraine, for example, through the Belgorod-Kharkov border. But it's long and tedious. Moreover, in this case, in order to see relatives, a Crimean will have to make a huge detour along the borders of the two states. And such newly minted mainland Russians may have a lot of problems solving everyday problems in Crimea: registration in the Russian Federation sometimes means more than citizenship.

Those who are delaying the re-registration of a car have another compelling argument: regional numbers 92 and 82 may not be recognized by third countries. It is already known that cars with such license plates are not allowed into the territory of Georgia - local border services state that “there is no such region in the Russian Federation.” It does not matter whether you bought a car with such license plates in mainland Russia, or re-registered the one that you owned in Crimea since Ukrainian times.

Those who decide to buy a re-registered Crimean car may face the same difficulties. All license plates (in particular, VIN) go through the Ukrainian database, and the Russian who registered the car risks losing it if he goes on a trip to Ukraine or even to a third country friendly to Ukraine. “Who knows who they’ll leak the base to?” - Sevastopol residents complain.

While some are deciding whether or not to change their numbers, others simply cannot do this and remain hostage to the situation. Someone bought a car in Crimea before its reunification with the Russian Federation by proxy or simply by exchanging money for a registration certificate (this was the practice in Ukraine). The easiest way to register such a car in Russia is to find the former owner and register the sale and purchase. But what to do if the former owner disappeared somewhere? In some families, the car was registered in the name of one person, and another person drove it, and over the past time the relative-owner has died or his health has deteriorated so much that he is not able to go to Ukraine and sell the car. Someone still cannot register a car purchased in another region of Ukraine several years ago - and it will not be possible to sell the car in Ukraine either, because the power of attorney has long expired.

All these people are extremely outraged by the situation and understand that with further “tightening” of the nuts, the only option left for the car is disassembly. But it seems that the authorities have fundamentally decided to take away from Crimeans the opportunity to get to Ukraine in their own car through Perekop. How else can we explain the fact that property rights to real estate obtained in Ukraine are recognized by the authorities, and cadastral registration can be taken slowly, and vehicles must be re-registered without fail? Formally, there is an explanation: transport tax. Now owners of cars with Ukrainian license plates do not pay it. But it was possible to adopt a separate order allowing for the “counting” of Crimean vehicles. Obviously, no one needed such compromise solutions.

There are still those on the peninsula who hope that the re-registration period will be extended. Let it be paid, just postpone the introduction of penalties, these Crimeans say. And such rumors are already circulating: “The driver with whom I went to Ukraine last time overheard a conversation between resellers in Kalanchak, who allegedly heard from the Simferopol traffic police that they would extend it for three months and would not be fined,” she confidentially shared with “Notes.” » resident of Sevastopol.

But these are just rumors.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian civil service for the affairs of Crimea and Sevastopol declares their intention to create a system at checkpoints in the Kherson region in which Crimean car owners will be able to deposit Russian license plates with “relevant officials”, and instead install Ukrainian license plates, after which move freely throughout the territory of Ukraine. It is also proposed to create a special hub for these purposes. “Vehicle VIN codes will be checked at entry and exit checkpoints. This ensures the passage from Crimea and Sevastopol to the territory of Ukraine only of those vehicles that have been purchased and registered in accordance with Ukrainian legislation,” the department suggests.