Russia may soon allow people to legally register vehicles stolen in the EU and brought into the country. Lawmakers there have been discussing legislative changes to that effect proposed by the Russian Interior Ministry since early February.

The plan has sparked fears in Germany that the new law could lead to a sharp rise in the number of stolen cars.

Legislative change at Putin's direction

The Moscow-based daily newspaper Kommersant reported that the Russian Interior Ministry prepared a draft bill at the direction of President Vladimir Putin. The goal is to protect the interests of car owners whose vehicles "have been listed as wanted on the initiative of hostile states," the ministry stated in a press release.

In addition to the 27 EU member states, Russia counts Switzerland, Norway, the US, Canada, Japan, South Korea, and Australia among such states.

The bill would also legalize vehicles that Ukraine has declared missing. Apparently, these are cars that were taken in the occupied Ukrainian territories.

Russia: No response from Germany to inquiries

Currently, the registration of vehicles subject to international search warrants is prohibited in Russia. However, according to the Kommersant report, the Interior Ministry said that it is often impossible for Russian authorities to determine why a vehicle would be included in this database.

Since the start of Russia's war against Ukraine, the authorities in "hostile states" have not responded to Russian requests to provide information on such vehicles, the ministry stated.

Germany is explicitly cited as an example: The Interior Ministry in Moscow claims that Berlin ignores such requests from Moscow "for political reasons." According to the ministry, a total of 123 vehicles that Berlin had reported as wanted internationally were located in Russia in January 2026. However, the German authorities did not provide Moscow with any information regarding the reasons for the search warrants.

BKA: No data exchange with Russia

Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), which is responsible for investigating car thefts, confirmed to DW that there is currently no exchange of information with Russia in such cases.

"The BKA is aware of inquiries from Russian authorities regarding vehicles listed by Germany. However, since these primarily concern civil law issues (ownership and the owner's interest in repatriation), the BKA has no jurisdiction," the agency said.

The BKA declined to comment on whether the new Russian law could lead to an increase in car thefts in Germany. The 123 German cars listed by Russia as being subject to an international search in January represent only a fraction of the actual number of vehicles stolen in Germany. According to the BKA, 30,373 vehicles were stolen in Germany in 2024. Only 8,858 cases (just under 30%) were successfully solved.

Police union: Russia is encouraging crime

Benjamin Jendro, spokesperson for the Berlin-based police union GdP, confirmed to DW that there is currently "no intensive official exchange" with Russia "on many levels." "To our knowledge, there have certainly been cases in the past where Russian authorities have come forward and vehicles that were being sought were recovered there," he said.

"However, anyone can imagine that, at the moment, no official from Germany is likely to travel to Russia to retrieve a stolen vehicle, especially since the insurance claims have often already been settled by the time the vehicle is found," said Jendro.

He described the new draft law as a "disastrous sign" that "encouraged crime." "We have had stable vehicle theft figures for years — at a very high level. Such a law would further undermine the security authorities' fight against international car-trafficking gangs," said the GdP spokesperson.

"For years, we've seen cars being stolen, taken to Eastern Europe, and immediately dismantled there because companies have massively upgraded their anti-theft measures by installing GPS trackers," he added. "But there are also various vehicles that are essentially stolen according for a shopping list and very quickly end up in countries where we can no longer access them."

Russian experts: Large-scale insurance fraud?

Some Russian experts point to another aspect of the issue. Alexander Kholodov of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation (OPRF) claimed in an interview with the Russian news portal Autonews that the amended law could facilitate a fraud scheme.

"This was already the case in the 1990s and early 2000s. It involved so-called staged theft: The car is sold in Germany, ends up in Russia, and only a month later does the owner report that the vehicle has disappeared. Then he also receives compensation from the insurance company in Germany," said Kholodov. Members of the Public Chamber are appointed by the Russian president and are tasked with conducting public hearings on socially relevant draft legislation.

Russian lawyer Sergei Smirnov agreed with this in an interview. "The new law could lead to those living outside Russia intensifying their activities in the area of insurance fraud abroad. Cars are stolen in Europe, the victims receive insurance payouts, the vehicles are then illegally transported to Russia and legalized there through registration," Smirnov told Autonews.

But the German Insurance Association (GDV) told DW that such a fraud scheme is not actually widespread. "We have no knowledge of the described scheme and, moreover, assume that the vast majority of vehicle thefts are actual thefts and not fabrications," the GDV stated. The association also said that it does not expect a change in the legal situation in Russia to lead to a significant increase in vehicle thefts in Germany.

This article was originally published in German.