The paper examines the variation of the Russian commercial and custom policy during the period between the Tariffs of 1797 and 1850. In our opinion an important element in the shift between liberal and protectionist approach to external commerce represented the Western Europe countries’ policy towards the importation of grain. During this period the cultivation of cereals in the Russian Empire, especially in the South-western regions, became a major source of profit for landlords and state. Thus, the central government had a tendency to adapt its importation tariffs according to the existent ones for the import of grains in major destination countries. We have come to the conclusion that nine tariffs that Russia changed between 1797 and 1850 corresponded, more or less, to the major events on the European grain market: English Corn Laws of 1815, 1828 and 1846, which caused a chain reaction in most countries of the continent.