This article is a reference, not a practical how-to guide, and that distinction matters more here than for any other country covered on this site. As of 2026, opening or maintaining a mainstream US brokerage account as a Russian resident is not realistically available - not primarily because of the tax treaty, but because of sanctions compliance decisions major US brokers have made since 2022. Interactive Brokers has been actively closing existing accounts held by Russian residents, including clients with EU residence permits, and settled an $11.8 million OFAC enforcement action in July 2025 that covered, among other things, apparent violations of Russia sanctions programs. This is not a gap in customer service that a workaround fixes - it reflects US financial institutions’ own compliance obligations under US sanctions law.
This article exists as a documented record of the treaty’s terms and current suspended status, for anyone tracking the situation or revisiting it if circumstances change in the future. It is not intended, and should not be read, as guidance for circumventing broker restrictions or sanctions compliance requirements.
The Treaty Is Suspended, Not Terminated
The Convention Between the United States of America and the Russian Federation for the Avoidance of Double Taxation, signed in 1992, technically remains on the books - it has not been terminated. But its substantive provisions are not currently operating.
What happened: Russia notified the US on August 8, 2023, of its intent to suspend paragraph 4 of Article 1 and Articles 5 through 21 and 23 of the treaty, along with the accompanying Protocol. The US Treasury confirmed reciprocal suspension, effective for both source-country withholding and other taxes, as of August 16, 2024. The suspension continues until the two governments agree otherwise - there is no scheduled end date.
What’s actually suspended: the provisions covering permanent establishments, dividends, interest, royalties, capital gains, and most other income categories - in practical terms, essentially everything that would matter to an individual portfolio investor. Where the treaty previously reduced US withholding rates, the current position reverts to the standard non-treaty statutory rate.
What the Treaty Provided Before Suspension (Historical Reference)
For the record, and for anyone revisiting this if the treaty’s operation is ever restored, the pre-suspension treaty rates for a portfolio investor were:
| Income Type | Pre-Suspension Treaty Rate | Current Status (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Dividends (portfolio) | 10% | Suspended - 30% default applies |
| Interest | 0% | Suspended - 30% default applies |
| Royalties | 0% | Suspended - 30% default applies |
| Capital gains (securities) | Residence country only | Suspended - though non-resident aliens generally still owe no US capital gains tax under separate domestic law (IRC §871), independent of treaty status |
Sources: US-Russia Income Tax Convention (1992) treaty text; IRS Announcement 2024-26; EY, KPMG, and RSM coverage of the August 2024 suspension.
With the treaty’s dividend and interest provisions suspended, a Russian resident who could otherwise open and fund a US brokerage account would face the standard 30% default withholding on both, with no treaty-based reduction available - structurally the same position as an investor in a country with no treaty at all, like Uganda, except that Russia’s situation stems from an active suspension rather than a treaty never having existed.
Broker Access: The Bigger Barrier
Even setting the treaty suspension aside, broker-level sanctions compliance is the more immediate obstacle in 2026.
What’s documented: Interactive Brokers began restricting Russian clients’ accounts following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine - initially blocking ruble deposits, new EU securities positions, and euro-denominated transactions. Restrictions expanded through 2024, including blocking deposits in additional currencies. In November 2024, IBKR notified Russian clients holding EU residence permits that their accounts would be closed within 30 days, a move reported as connected to an October 2024 expansion of US blocking sanctions covering more individuals and entities. In July 2025, IBKR settled with OFAC for approximately $11.8 million over apparent sanctions violations spanning 2016 to January 2024, including conduct related to Russia sanctions programs.
What this means: this is not a policy that varies by broker shopping or account structuring - it reflects US financial institutions’ obligations under OFAC sanctions programs, which carry serious enforcement consequences for the institutions themselves, as the 2025 settlement shows. No part of this guide suggests a way around that, because doing so would be neither responsible nor, in most cases, legal.
If You Already Hold US Assets from Before
Some readers may be Russian residents who opened US brokerage accounts before 2022 and are now navigating existing positions rather than opening something new. That is a fundamentally different and more complex situation than this guide can responsibly address in general terms - it depends on specific sanctions program details, the broker’s own compliance posture, and potentially OFAC licensing questions. This is a case for a lawyer with current OFAC sanctions expertise, not a general content guide.
PFIC and W-8BEN, for Completeness
For a US citizen or Green Card holder resident in Russia (a smaller, distinct population from Russian nationals generally), standard US filing obligations - Form 1040, FBAR, Form 8938 - continue to apply regardless of the treaty’s suspended status or broker access issues; the PFIC regime for foreign-domiciled funds also applies unchanged, since none of the suspended treaty articles affect PFIC rules, which are a matter of separate US domestic law.
For anyone who does hold a functioning US brokerage relationship, Form W-8BEN still serves its baseline purpose - certifying non-US person status and preventing backup withholding - even though, with the treaty suspended, it does not reduce the withholding rate the way it does for investors in countries with active treaties.
What Would Need to Change
For this article to describe a genuinely different practical situation, two separate things would need to happen: the US and Russia would need to mutually restore the treaty’s suspended provisions, and US brokers would need to determine that sanctions compliance permits serving Russian resident clients again. Neither is within the scope of this article to predict, and neither is likely without a broader change in the underlying geopolitical situation. This page will be revisited if that changes.
This is what investing from Russia looks like in outline - no more than that. It does not provide guidance on circumventing broker restrictions or US sanctions requirements, and none should be inferred from it. Sanctions programs, OFAC guidance, and treaty status can change; anyone with a specific situation involving Russia-connected assets or residency should consult a qualified attorney with current sanctions expertise, not a general content guide.
Sources: US-Russia Income Tax Convention (1992); IRS Announcement 2024-26 (suspension of treaty provisions, effective August 16, 2024); EY, KPMG, RSM, and Holland & Knight coverage of the August 2024 treaty suspension; leave-russia.org and Komersant Ukrainian reporting on Interactive Brokers’ Russia-related account restrictions and closures (2022-2024); Steel-Eye reporting on Interactive Brokers’ July 2025 OFAC settlement; IRC §871 (non-resident alien taxation).
