Russia says it won't tax VPN traffic after all

Russia's Digital Development Ministry has confirmed that it will not introduce charges for international internet traffic, including VPN connections. Deputy Minister Ivan Lebedev announced the decision at a session of the State Duma, responding to a question from Oleg Smolin, a lawmaker from the Communist Party faction. "Fees for foreign traffic are not being considered," Lebedev said.

In late March, Digital Development Minister Maksut Shadayev met with telecom operators and digital platforms, urging them to take steps against VPN services. Among the measures discussed was a plan to charge users for consuming more than 15 gigabytes of international traffic per month, as carriers classify VPN traffic as international.

According to the BBC's Russian service, authorities wanted Russians to pay roughly 150 rubles for each additional gigabyte of mobile VPN traffic. The new measures were initially set to take effect by May 1, but Russian business daily Vedomosti reported that some carriers would not be ready to configure their systems and tariffs in time, so the deadline was pushed to June 1. RBC sources said the deadline was later moved to "closer to fall" or after the State Duma elections, scheduled for September 18–20.

Demand for VPNs in Russia has surged amid the blocking of YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Telegram. In response, Russian authorities have intensified their fight against tools that bypass these blocks. By mid-April, at the authorities' request, major Russian internet platforms had restricted the ability to use their sites and apps with a VPN enabled.