Marketplace commissions can be limited to 15% for goods from the Russian Federation: they also want to control the issue
The message seems to be reliable: it's not about an adopted law, but about a publicly confirmed initiative — a deputy's appeal to the Ministry of Industry and Trade with a proposal to limit the commission of marketplaces for Russian-made goods and supplement regulation with requirements for product cards and issuance algorithms. This is confirmed by several independent publications with the same details.
The essence of the initiative is to fix the "ceiling" of the commission to 15% specifically for goods produced in Russia, and at the same time strengthen the "transparency of the showcase": oblige sites to indicate the country of manufacture in the product card and control the issuance algorithms so that domestic products do not end up in obviously worse ranking conditions.
The key quote, which shows that the proposal is framed as a request for support measures, sounds like this (in the context of contacting the ministry):
"I ask you to consider the expediency of additional measures to support domestic producers and sellers of consumer goods, including limiting the commission of marketplaces to 15% for goods produced in Russia," Delyagin wrote, his words are quoted by the press service.
Why this topic is rapidly gaining momentum. For marketplaces, commission is just the tip of the iceberg: logistics, storage, refund processing, promotion, and paid search tools are added to it. If the "commission" part is administratively limited, the sites may begin to redistribute income through other service fees. As a result, it is not a separate percentage in the contract that is important for the business, but the total cost of sales on the platform. Therefore, any "ceiling" will inevitably lead to a discussion about the tariff structure, rules for notification of changes, and uniform approaches to calculating deductions.
A separate block is the country of origin. This is sensitive for foreign economic activity: the correct origin is not a marketing sticker, but a legal reality tied to documents, criteria for sufficient processing, certification, and responsibility for false information. If the sites are required to explicitly show the country of manufacture, the cost of the error will increase dramatically: the seller will have additional risks of customer claims and regulatory control, and the marketplace will need to build verification. In practice, this can push the market to more accurate document management: proof of origin, correct information in the card, discipline in labeling and descriptions.
The most subtle part is the issuance algorithms. It is difficult to adjust the ranking: the algorithm consists of hundreds of signals (price, stock availability, delivery speed, rating, refunds, advertising). If you introduce "control" without clear criteria, there is a risk of getting formal implementation: a separate "domestic" block, which does not solve the problem of competition. But the trend towards government interference in the rules of digital storefronts is already noticeable — in parallel, initiatives are being discussed to prioritize Russian goods in recommendations and search.
For importers and sellers with a Chinese assortment, the conclusion is simple: if the initiative goes further, the competition will shift from "who is cheaper" to "who manages the origin and supply chain more precisely." Some players can accelerate localization (contract production, assembly, packaging in the Russian Federation) in order to get into the preferential perimeter. Others will strengthen the control of the data in the card and the willingness to document the origin. And for buyers, this potentially means more transparent information about the product, but it is not guaranteed to have a lower final price: much depends on how marketplaces rearrange tariffs.
