Global Positioning Equipment and Radio Electronics
The importation and use of Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and other radio electronic devices are subject to special rules and regulations in Russia. Mapping and natural resource data collection activities associated with normal, commercial and scientific collaboration may result in the seizure of equipment and/or arrest of the user. The penalty for using a GPS device in a manner that is determined to have compromised Russia ’s national security can carry a prison term of ten to twenty years. No traveler should attempt to import or use GPS equipment in any manner unless it has been properly and fully documented by the traveler in accordance with the instructions of the Glavgossvyaznadzor (Main Inspectorate of Communications) and is declared in full on a customs declaration at the point of entry to the Russian Federation.
All radio electronic devices brought into Russia must have a certificate from the Glavgossvyaznadzor of the Russian Federation. This includes all emitting, transmitting and receiving equipment such as GPS devices, satellite telephones and other kinds of radio electronic equipment. Excluded from the list are consumer electronic devices such as am/fm radios and cellular phones. A general information sheet on the importation and use of GPS devices, radio-electronic equipment, and computers in Russia is available on the Internet at http://travel.state.gov and from the American Citizens Services Unit of the U.S. Embassy in Moscow or U.S. Consulates elsewhere in Russia.
