What will change in the lives of Russians from October 1
A number of laws and regulations will come into force in Russia on October 1, 2026. Some changes may affect citizens' daily expenses and purchases, while others determine how companies enter into contracts, pay taxes, and sell goods. Some of the requirements have transitional periods, which will be applied later. For more information about what rules will work in October, see the Izvestia article.
New rules for marketplaces
Federal Law No. 289-FZ of July 31, 2025 on the platform economy comes into force on October 1. It sets the rules for the operation of intermediary digital platforms and their interaction with sellers, performers, order pickups and users. In particular, the placement of offers and product cards, work with partners, access to personal accounts and consideration of complaints are regulated.
A special registry is provided for such platforms. The inclusion criteria include an average daily audience of at least 100,000 users from Russia for the previous calendar year and one of the indicators of the scale of activity: at least 10,000 partners who completed a paid transaction for the year, or the total value of transactions of at least 50 billion rubles. The Ministry of Economic Development must create and post the register by November 2, 2026.
At the same time, the possibilities of buyers will change in the event of a dispute. From October 1, they will be able to make demands to the seller through the digital platform. Its operator must provide the technical ability to apply, and in cases stipulated by law, to return money and goods through the infrastructure of the site. Similar rules are established for works and services. These changes are provided for by Federal Law No. 290-FZ of July 31, 2025. At the same time, the platform operator does not automatically become the seller of the goods placed on it.
Since October, the public availability of offers for the sale of certain goods has also been limited. The restrictions apply, in particular, to goods withdrawn from circulation, unregistered medicines and medical products, individual dietary supplements, pesticides and agrochemicals, as well as goods without mandatory labeling or conformity documents. The rules are established by Laws No. 290-FZ and No. 295-FZ. Certain provisions will take effect on January 1, 2027.
Law No. 295-FZ also introduces administrative liability for violations in the field of the platform economy. New types of offenses appear in the Administrative Code, including those related to the performance of duties of platform operators and the placement of offers for the sale of certain goods. The amount of the fine depends on the offense: for offenses provided for in Article 14.69 of the Administrative Code, the limitation period is 90 calendar days.
VAT for some contracts will be calculated from the agreed price.
Starting from October 1, a special procedure for calculating VAT on contracts concluded before the change in tax legislation begins to operate. It is applied under a set of conditions. If, after the conclusion of the contract, the seller is obliged to pay VAT, but the buyer cannot accept the tax deduction, it will be calculated from the already agreed price. This rule applies when the parties have not changed the price and have not provided in the contract the procedure in case of updating the tax legislation.
In such a situation, VAT is calculated using the cost already specified in the contract. You do not need to issue an invoice. Amendments to the Tax Code were introduced by Federal Law No. 293-FZ of August 4, 2026. As explained by the Federal Tax Service, if these conditions are met, the tax is included in the contract price, and not added to it in excess of the agreed amount.
Starting from the same date, the conditions for applying the 10% VAT rate on the import and sale of goods for children are being clarified. To use it, you will need information provided by law about the certificate or declaration of conformity in the relevant register or other documents on the assessment of compliance with the requirements of the EAEU. Upon import, the documents or information about them are submitted to the customs authority.
The rules for VAT accounting when using subsidies and budget investments are also changing. For the purposes of Article 170 of the Tax Code, in certain cases, they are equated with funds that the recipient has donated and irrevocably transferred to other persons. The application of deductions and transitional provisions are being clarified. Both groups of amendments are provided for by Federal Law No. 218-FZ of July 4, 2026.
Cash can be credited to an account with another bank through the SBP.
Since October 1, changes have been applied to expand the use of the Fast Payment System. They provide for the possibility to deposit cash through an ATM of one bank and transfer it to an individual's account with another SBP member bank. The availability of an operation depends on whether a particular bank and ATM support it: credit institutions decide on their own whether to implement the service.
Limits are set for depositing money: up to 25 thousand rubles per operation, up to 50 thousand rubles per day and up to 200 thousand rubles per month. This operation does not apply to standard transfers via the SBP, therefore the bank is entitled to charge a commission.
In addition, the SBP can be used more widely for payments in favor of citizens engaged in private practice. Among them are notaries, lawyers with law offices, mediators, arbitration managers, appraisers and patent attorneys. The changes are provided for by the Bank of Russia Regulation No. 876-P dated December 3, 2025 and Instruction No. 7374-U dated June 23, 2026.
Customers will have more opportunities to change government contracts.
Since October 1, the list of cases when it is allowed to change the terms of a state or municipal contract has been expanded. In particular, in a situation stipulated by law, the customer will be able to offer to increase the maximum value of the contract price by no more than 10%. The unit price of a product, work, or service and other essential conditions must remain the same.
The rules for changing the quantity of goods and the volume of work or services are also being clarified. It is possible to replace a product, work, or service with similar or improved ones, change the country of origin of the product in compliance with the rules of the national regime, and update the supplier's bank details. The amendments were introduced by Federal Law No. 279-FZ of August 4, 2026. The main provisions are effective from October 1, 2026, and some are effective from January 1, 2027.
Since October, special rules for the application of restrictions on the annual volume of supplies have been established for purchases from a single supplier that directly support the livelihoods of the population in rural areas. The procedure for reflecting information on certain small purchases in the register of contracts and the Unified Information System is also being clarified. The possibility to use a specific exception depends on the type of contract and the terms of Law No. 44-FZ.
In addition, the temporary threshold for an electronic quotation request remains in place until December 31, 2027. It can be carried out at an initial maximum contract price of up to 20 million rubles. The changes are related to Law No. 279-FZ and Government Decree No. 1140 of September 7, 2026.
State and municipal kindergartens, schools and professional educational organizations will have the opportunity to conduct small purchases provided for by law on the electronic platforms of operators of intermediary digital platforms from a special list. This rule is established by Federal Law No. 278-FZ of August 4, 2026 for the period from October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2028.
New requirements and licenses will be established for tobacco trade
Since October 1, the regulation of the production and turnover of tobacco and nicotine-containing products has been changing. The legislation introduces the concept of an electronic nicotine delivery system, and clarifies the rules for product turnover without means of identification. The production and turnover of related products in residential premises is prohibited. The changes are provided for by Federal Law No. 186-FZ of June 26, 2026.
The law also provides for licensing of new types of activities: procurement, storage and supply of tobacco and nicotine-containing products and raw materials, as well as retail and delivery trade. Licenses will be issued for a period of no more than five years. Although the main provisions of the law will enter into force on October 1, 2026, the requirement to have a license for new types of activities will begin to apply from March 1, 2027. Some regulations have later dates for entry into force.
Starting from October 1, new state fees for issuing such licenses will be established. The fee for the license for the purchase, storage and supply of products and raw materials will amount to 800 thousand rubles. For retail or delivery trade — 20 thousand rubles for each year of the license period. Separate sizes are provided for license renewal. The amendments were introduced by Federal Law No. 187-FZ of June 26, 2026.
The rules for determining territories near educational institutions where the retail sale of tobacco, nicotine-containing products, hookahs and devices for their consumption is prohibited are also being clarified. The boundaries of such territories are established by authorized bodies, taking into account public discussions. The changes are provided for by Government Decree No. 1130 dated September 7, 2026.
Labeling will cover more products
From October 1, participants in the turnover of canned products must transmit additional information to the Honest Sign system when goods are being traded and withdrawn from circulation. Among them is information about the identification codes of packages and kits. The changes clarify the rules established by Government Decree No. 677 of May 27, 2024: labeling of canned food was introduced in stages earlier and does not begin for the first time in October 2026. For products manufactured before October 1, 2027, special rules are provided for transmitting information about the number of consumer packages.
Also, since October, duties on labeling individual household and sanitary products have been expanded. When putting such products into circulation, it is necessary to apply means of identification and transfer information to an "Honest Sign". Different deadlines are set for the payment of the marking codes, depending on the application method. The rules are contained in Government Decree No. 1681 dated November 30, 2024.
Since October 1, the list of meat products subject to mandatory labeling has been expanded. Participants in its turnover must apply means of identification and transmit information about labeling and putting the goods into circulation. Special responsibilities are provided for individual participants, including peasant farms and agricultural production cooperatives. The changes were fixed by Government Decree No. 1682 dated November 30, 2024.
Violations in the use of land will be able to detect automatically
From October 1, Rosreestr will be able to use the results of automated surveillance, including the use of drones, to identify signs of individual violations of land legislation. We are talking, for example, about possible construction where it is not allowed, or the non-use of land. The Rosselkhoznadzor receives a similar mechanism for agricultural land. The changes were established by Government Decree No. 811 dated July 1, 2026.
The environmental control clarifies the list of signs of violations that can be detected by automatic means. Among them are unauthorized accumulation or disposal of waste, fire and smoke at waste disposal facilities, and individual cases of wastewater discharge in water protection zones. Such information may become the basis for a control measure in accordance with the established procedure. The main provisions of Government Decree No. 946 of July 28, 2026 are effective from July 31, 2026, with individual amendments coming into force on October 1.
In addition, since the beginning of October, automated control has been expanded in federal specially protected natural areas. The detected signs of a violation include the movement or parking of vehicles outside public roads and specially designated places, if this is not related to the protection and use of the territory. The procedure is established by Government Decree No. 802 dated June 29, 2026.
Representatives of incapacitated citizens will be able to issue them an account.
From October 1, legal representatives of incapacitated citizens will be able to register them in the Unified Identification and Authentication System — ESIA. This will require information and documents about the citizen and the representative, as well as a verified account of the representative himself. The change was established by Government Decree No. 372 dated April 3, 2026.
From the same date, the reports of foreign agents are transferred to electronic format. Reports and information on activities will need to be submitted through the Ministry of Justice information resource. To obtain access, the supervisor or other authorized person submits an application. The requirements for signing electronic documents have been established. The procedure is provided for by Order of the Ministry of Justice No. 240 dated August 31, 2026 and Federal Law No. 215-FZ dated June 26, 2026.
Starting from October 1, the tax authorities will begin transmitting information on payments and incomes of foreign citizens provided for by law to the Ministry of Internal Affairs. We are talking about the calculation data on insurance premiums, as well as the income of foreigners who pay professional income tax, reflected in the My Taxes appendix. The information will be used for the purposes of migration legislation; amendments are provided for by Federal Law No. 241-FZ of July 26, 2026.
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