Confidence Group has prepared a number of recommendations for employers and foreign employees related to the latest changes in the migration and labor legislation of the Russian Federation.
Entry of foreign citizens to the territory of the Russian Federation in a pandemic
In connection with the entry into force of the Order of the Government of the Russian Federation of March 16th, 2020 No. 635-r, from March 18th, 2020 until a special order, entry into the Russian Federation of almost all foreign citizens is limited, issuing invitations for them, visas and work permits.
The list of citizens who are not subject to the above restrictions is available here.
You can find information on hiring highly qualified specialists in a pandemic here.
Information on entering citizens of states listed in the annex to the order of the government of the Russian Federation of March 16th, 2020 N 635-r and persons entitled to permanent residence in the states specified in the annex in a pandemic can be found here.
Information on entering specialists to the Russian Federation for maintenance in a pandemic can be found here.
Information on organizing the entry of foreign citizens into the Russian Federation for the purpose of medical treatment can be found here.
Self-isolation of foreign citizens after arriving from abroad
At the moment, the decree of the Chief State Sanitary Doctor of the Russian Federation of July 27th, 2020 No. 22 is in force, which simultaneously amended the previously adopted resolutions of the Chief State Sanitary Doctor of the Russian Federation No. 7 of 03/18/2020 and No. 9 of 03/30/2020, in particular:
• requirements to have a negative test for Covid-19 for a flight to the Russian Federation were added to Resolution No. 7 dated March 18th, 2020 and the requirements for self-isolation after arrival were excluded from this document;
• however, the requirements for isolation for a period of 14 calendar days from the date of arrival in the territory of the Russian Federation for foreign citizens arriving in order to carry out labor activities were added to Resolution No. 9 of March 30th, 2020 (clause 6.1).
In accordance with the decree of the Chief State Sanitary Doctor of the Russian Federation dated July 27th, 2020 No. 22:
• foreign citizens arriving by air to the territory of the Russian Federation must have a medical document in Russian or English, confirming a negative test result for COVID-19 by PCR, obtained at least 3 days before arrival in the Russian Federation.
• also, all foreign citizens are allowed to work after 14 days of self-isolation (from the date of entry into the Russian Federation) with a PCR test for COVID-19 on day 10-12 (the requirement to retest is not specified in the decree of 27th, July, 2020 No. 22, but specified in the explanations of Rospotrebnadzor).
*Accordingly, if labor activity is not carried out, then self-isolation is not necessary
More information here.
In case of arrival in the Russian Federation from the UK, all persons (both foreigners and citizens of the Russian Federation) must observe a 14-day self-isolation regime at the place of residence or place of stay. More information here.
Suspension of the terms of documents for foreign citizens staying in the Russian Federation
At the moment the Decree of the President of Russia Vladimir Putin on measures to resolve the legal status of foreign citizens and stateless persons in Russia in connection with the threat of the spread of COVID-19 is in force, which temporarily suspends the deadlines for documents of foreign citizens in the Russian Federation and also simplifies the process of processing for them documents allowing to work.
We draw your attention to the fact that the simplification of the registration of permits and the suspension of the deadlines for documents provided by this decree will cease to apply:
• from March 15th, 2021 in relation to those foreign citizens who have citizenship or residence permit of the country from which on the date of December 15th, 2020 transport links were resumed.
• 90 days after the date of the resumption of transport links in relation to those foreign citizens who have citizenship or residence permit of the country from which transport links were resumed as of December 15th, 2020.
You can find clarifications regarding the application of this decree here.
Notifications when hiring employees
Employers are required to submit notifications of the conclusion and termination of labor contract to the UVM of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the region of employment for all foreign citizens. This means that this category includes both highly qualified specialists (HQS) and citizens of Belarus (details here), Kazakhstan, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan as well as foreign citizens who have a temporary residence permit or a residence permit in the Russian Federation, etc.
If a foreign employee is a highly qualified specialist, the employer is also obliged to submit to the Ministry of Internal Affairs body that issued the work permit on a quarterly basis notifications of compliance with the obligations to pay remuneration to such an employee. The deadline for submitting the notification is no later than the last business day of the month following the reporting period.
From January 1st, 2021, the order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia of July 30th, 2020 N 536 will come into effect, approving new forms and procedure for submitting these notifications. More information about changes in forms can be found here.
Changes to the information contained in the work permit
An employee, in the event of a change in the last name, first or middle name or the details of his / her identity document, must contact the MIA General Administration for Migration to make an appropriate changes to the information contained in the work permit.
If changes in passport data occurred abroad (for example, a foreign employee received a new passport at an authorized body in his country or at the consulate of his country located in a third country), then the foreign worker must apply to the MIA General Administration for Migration within 7 (seven) working days after entering Russia. If changes in passport data occurred on the territory of Russia (for example, a foreign employee received a new passport at the consulate of his country located in Russia), then the foreign employee must apply to the MIA General Administration for Migration within 7 (seven) working days from the date of issue of the relevant documents.
Confidence Group recommends that you familiarize foreign employees of the company with this information in order to avoid penalties. Information available here.
We also draw your attention to the fact that the application form for amending the information contained in a work permit for a foreign citizen or stateless person has been changed from January 1st, 2021. You can find out more about this here.
New forms for obtaining and correcting a work permit
from January 1st, 2021 the following forms have been changed:
• Application form for obtaining a work permit for a foreign citizen or stateless person;
• Application form for issuing a duplicate work permit to a foreign citizen or stateless person;
• Application form for amendments to the information contained in the work permit of a foreign citizen or stateless person.
Migration registration
Migration registration must be carried out no later than seven working days from the date of arrival of a foreign citizen at the place of stay.
This must be done after each entry of a foreign citizen into the territory of the Russian Federation. In the event of their movement across the territory of the Russian Federation and upon arrival at a new place of stay, these foreign citizens are subject to register at the new place of stay, within a period not exceeding seven working days. This action also applies to citizens of Ukraine.
For some categories of foreign citizens, there are other rules for migration registration:
• Highly qualified specialists and foreign citizens who are family members of a highly qualified specialist are exempted from migration registration at the place of stay for a period not exceeding 90 days from the date of their entry into the territory of the Russian Federation.
• Citizens of Tajikistan temporarily staying on the territory of the Russian Federation are exempt from the obligation to register at the place of stay with the competent authorities of the Russian Federation within 15 days.
• French citizens who are employees of Russian, French or Russian-French companies can move around the Russian Federation without migration registration, provided that the period of stay at the place of stay does not exceed 10 working days.
• Working citizens of the EAEU countries and members of their families are subject to migration registration no later than 30 calendar days from the date of entry into the Russian Federation.
You can find out more about the timing of migration registration from our article here, please note that the information in this article is not relevant in terms of the changes described below.
From September 7th, 2020, the amendments made to the Federal Law "On Migration Registration of Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons in the Russian Federation" are in force:
• Foreign citizens can now act as an inviting party for other foreign citizens, if they have a residential property in the territory of the Russian Federation.
• Now it is possible to submit notifications of arrival through the MFC or the "Gosuslugi" portal.
• If the owner of the residential premises permanently resides / is outside the Russian Federation, then the notification of arrival is now submitted by the foreign citizen himself, with the notarial consent from the owner.
• Now, deregistration at the previous place of stay is not carried out in the event of a change of place of stay upon arrival at an organization providing hotel services, a medical organization or an institution executing punishment (except for cases when the previous migration registration was at the address of such an organization).
You can find more information here.
From December 17th, 2020, the amendments made to the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of January 15th, 2007 N 9 "On the procedure for the implementation of migration registration of foreign citizens and stateless persons in the Russian Federation" came into force:
1. The provisions are brought into line with the updated Federal Law "On Migration Registration of Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons in the Russian Federation":
• in terms of describing the process of migration registration through the MFC or the portal "Gosuslugi".
• in terms of the procedure for removing from the previous migration registration upon arrival at an organization providing hotel services, a medical organization or an institution executing punishment.
2. There have been changes in the list of documents that need to be submitted for migration registration.
3. A procedure has been introduced for deregistration of resident foreign citizens at the initiative of interested persons.
4. The need to "update" the migration registration within 3 working days has been canceled when the purpose of entry and the document confirming the right to stay (reside) in the Russian Federation are changed.
You can find more information here.
We would like to draw special attention to the fact that the administrative regulations of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on migration registration (Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs dated June 30th, 2019 No. 514 as amended on March 24, 2020) does not comply with the updated Resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 9 and 109-FZ, despite the fact that it contains changes were made by the Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia dated March 24th, 2020 No. 180. These changes, in particular, approved new forms of notification of the arrival of foreign citizens at the place of stay and applications for registration of foreign citizens at the place of residence, more details about the changes in our news.
On October 2nd, Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation of September 14th, 2020 No. 641 comes into force, which approves the form of notification of the departure of a foreign citizen from the place of stay, the list of information contained in it, the requirements for its registration, the procedure for sending it to the migration registration authority, including the form of an electronic document, the storage period for a copy of notification in a multifunctional center or a federal postal organization.
The specified procedure for notification of the departure of a foreign citizen appeared within the framework of the procedure for deregistration of foreign citizens, signed by the President of Russian Federation, approved in Federal Law No. 257-ФЗ "On Amendments to Articles 8 and 23 of Federal Law No. 109-FZ" On Migration Registration of Foreign Citizens in the Russian Federation " July 29th, 2018.
You can familiarize yourself with the procedure for deregistering foreign citizens at the place of stay when contacting the Ministry of Internal Affairs here.
Hire foreign students to work
From May 8th, 2020, amendments to the Federal Law "On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the Russian Federation" came into force in terms of simplifying the procedure for employment in the Russian Federation of foreign citizens and stateless persons studying in Russian professional educational institutions and educational institutions of higher education ":
• Foreign students are allowed to work in their free time without obtaining a work permit. At the same time, an employer who hire such a category of foreign workers will not need to obtain a work permit.
• It is no longer necessary to notify the employment authority when hiring students.
• Special forms of notification of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for students have been canceled, notifications are submitted on standard forms.
More information here.
News related to work on a patent
In accordance with the current legislation, the extension of the patent is carried out through the payment of personal income tax in the form of a fixed advance payment. Otherwise, the patent expires from the day following the last day of the period for which personal income tax was paid in the form of a fixed advance payment. The term of the patent is from 1 to 12 months and can be repeatedly renewed for a period of 1 month. In this case, the total period of validity of a patent, including renewals, cannot be more than 12 months from the date of the patent.
On May 5th, 2020, a new version of clause 8 of Article 13.3 of Federal Law of July 25th, 2002 N 115-FZ entered into force, allowing foreign citizens to repeatedly reissue a labor patent without leaving Russia.
In accordance with clause 5 of Article 5 of Federal Law No. 115-FZ, the period of temporary stay in the Russian Federation of a foreign citizen is extended when a foreign citizen is issued a patent, a patent is extended or renewed.
We draw your attention to the fact that the extension of the temporary stay of accompanying family members on the basis of a patent obtained directly by a working foreign citizen is not carried out. To stay on the territory of the Russian Federation, adult accompanying family members are invited to go through the procedure for obtaining a patent.
From 2021, the deflator coefficient and the size of the regional coefficient will change in some regions of the Russian Federation, in particular in Moscow, the Moscow Region, St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region. You can find information on changes in the value of patents in 2021 here.
On 09.11.2020, a new regulation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on the registration of patents came into force, which approved new forms of application for the cancellation of a patent, a statement of refusal to receive a public service, an application for correcting typos and (or) errors in a patent issued as a result of the provision of a public service. More information here.
Validity of passports
The validity of a document proving the identity of a foreign citizen (including a HQS) shouldn’t expire earlier than 1.5 years from the date of submission of an application for a work permit. At the same time, the validity of the document proving the identity of a foreign citizen (including HQS) when issuing an invitation to obtain a visa, the validity of the document proving the identity of the invited foreign citizen should not expire earlier than 6 months from the date of the end of the proposed period of stay , and if the invitation is issued for the purpose of studying in educational organizations or in connection with the implementation of a foreign citizen's labor activity (including for HQS and their family members), the validity of the identity document of the invited foreign citizen should not expire earlier than a 1.5 years from the start date of the proposed period of stay.
Cancellation of the legalization of documents drawn up by diplomatic agents or consular officials
From November 7th, 2020 it became possible to submit to institutions and organizations documents issued by diplomatic and consular institutions of the states parties to the convention, without consular legalization at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (the list of participating countries is available here.
Voluntary health insurance policy
Foreign citizens working in the Russian Federation are required to have a VHI policy or other document confirming the right to receive medical care, on the basis of an agreement concluded by the host (inviting) party, employer or customer of work (services) with a medical organization on providing a foreign worker with paid medical services that provide a foreign worker with primary health care and specialized medical care in an emergency form during the entire period of stay of a foreign citizen in the Russian Federation.
Requirements for the form and content of VHI policies for foreign citizens located on the territory of the Russian Federation for the purpose of their employment are established by Bank of Russia directive No. 3793-U dated 13.09.2015:
• The validity period of the VHI contract for labor migrants is determined based on the expected period of validity of the work permit or patent reported by the policyholder (insured person).
• The territory of the VHI agreement for labor migrants must include the constituent entity of the Russian Federation, on the territory of which the insured person intends to carry out labor activities.
Please note that the labor contract is subject to termination after 1 month from the date of expiration or termination of the contract concluded by the employer with a medical organization for the provision of paid services or an agreement (policy) for VHI. We recommend to bring labor contracts in line and be sure to include an indication of the details of either the contract (policy) of voluntary health insurance, or the contract for the provision of paid medical services to the employee, concluded by the employer with a medical organization.
Certificates of proficiency in the Russian language, knowledge of the history of Russia and the basics of Russian legislation
Foreign citizens are required to confirm their knowledge of the Russian language, knowledge of the history of Russia and the basics of Russian legislation when obtaining a work permit, patent, temporary residence permit, residence permit. Foreign citizens - highly qualified specialists are exempted from confirming knowledge of the Russian language, knowledge of the history of Russia and the fundamentals of Russian legislation when applying for a work permit.
You can find the requirements for the minimum level of knowledge of foreign citizens in the Russian language here.
From July 6th, 2021, amendments to Federal Law No. 115-FZ will come into force concerning exams in the Russian language, history and law, for registration of a temporary residence permit, residence permit, patent, work permit:
• The list of organizations conducting examinations in the Russian language, history and law will be approved by the Government of the Russian Federation and posted on the corresponding website;
• The period of validity of the certificate in the Russian language, history and law is established by the Government of the Russian Federation;
• A certificate for a residence permit can confirm the knowledge of the language for a temporary residence permit, patent and work permit;
• A temporary residence permit can confirm the knowledge of the language for a patent and a work permit;
• Information on the issued certificates in the Russian language will be stored in a special database, which will also be accessed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs;
• The cost of the certificate is set by the Government of the Russian Federation based on the calculation method;
• The Government of the Russian Federation undertakes to verify compliance with the rules for conducting examinations;
• Certificates issued prior to the entry into force of the amendments remain valid until their expiration date.
After the law enters into force, please check the exam organizations to see if they are eligible to take the exam and if they are on the list of approved exam organizations.
Insurance number of an individual personal account for foreign citizens
In accordance with Federal Law No. 48-FZ of 01.04.2019, amendments have been made to the Federal Law "On Individual (Personified) Accounting in the Compulsory Pension Insurance System", on the basis of which all employers are obliged to register an individual personal account in the system of individual (personified ) accounting for all its employees, including foreign ones. In addition, highly qualified specialists can be registered in the compulsory pension insurance system (to enable them to access electronic services that provide state and municipal services) without further accounting for pension rights.
At the same time, registration in the compulsory pension insurance system for highly qualified specialists becomes mandatory in the event of an labor contract.
Since April 1st, 2019, in accordance with the updated Art. 65 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, in order to conclude an employment contract, all persons applying for work, including highly qualified specialists, must provide the employer with confirmation of their registration in the OPS system. And if, earlier they were not registered in the specified system, the employer must submit the documents for such registration to the appropriate territorial body of the PFR. More information here.
The amount of deductions to the Federal Mandatory Health Insurance Fund, Social insurance fund, Pension Fund for foreign citizens working in the territory of the Russian Federation.
Confidence Group invites you to familiarize yourself with a comparative table of the amounts of contributions to the Federal Mandatory Health Insurance Fund, Social insurance fund, Pension Fund for foreign citizens working in the Russian Federation. Information is available here.
From January 1st, 2020 it became possible to reduce the total rate of insurance premiums, from 30% to 15%, to budgetary funds for small and medium-sized businesses from salaries of employees that exceed the minimum wage. You can read about the conditions for reducing the rate of insurance premiums from the salaries of employees of organizations related to "small" and "medium" businesses here.
Agreement on Pension Provision of Workers of the EAEU Member States
The Agreement on Pension Provisions for Workers of the EAEU Member States of December 20, 2019, ratified by Federal Law No. 354-FZ of November 9, 2020 and entered into force on November 20, 2020. In accordance with the provisions of this agreement, the formation of workers' pension rights is carried out at the expense of pension contributions on the same conditions and in the same manner as the formation of the pension rights of citizens of the state of employment. The right to assign and pay pensions to workers (family members) is carried out on the same conditions as for citizens of the state of employment.
More information available here.
New rules for tax registration of foreign citizens
On October 16th, 2020, an order of the Ministry of Finance came into force with new rules for accounting in tax authorities of foreign citizens and stateless persons who are not entrepreneurs.
In the Order of the Ministry of Finance of Russia dated November 9th, 2020 N 188n it is stated:
• Tax registration should include persons who do not have a place of residence, real estate and vehicles in Russia, but who receive income from a Russian organization or individual entrepreneur.
• The order of staging depends on the status of the foreign person (for example a lawyer), the presence or absence of property on the territory of the Russian Federation and even the possibility of inheritance.
• You can submit documents for tax registration by mail, in person, through the MFC or in electronic form. In each case, the regulated terms and lists of documents differ.
More information here.
Inspections of the Main Department of Internal Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia
We inform you that inspections of compliance with migration legislation by the Main Department of Internal Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia have become more frequent. When organizing an inspection, the employees of the Main Directorate of Internal Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia must present an order signed by the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs body, or his deputy for inspections.
When conducting an inspection, be prepared to present the following package of documents:
• Originals of work permits or patents;
• Originals of permits to hire a foreign employees (if employees from visa countries);
• Originals of passports, migration cards and migration records of company employees;
• Originals of labor contracts;
• Notification of the FMD about the conclusion of labor contracts.
The limitation of action for presenting documents is 1 year. If necessary, Confidence Group is ready to conduct an audit for compliance of the documentation with the migration legislation of the Russian Federation. For more information, please contact one of our consultants.
We also inform you about the numerous unscheduled inspections of the availability of notifications on the conclusion (termination) of labor contracts, as well as notifications of the payment of wages to foreign highly qualified specialists, carried out by the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia on migration in Moscow Region. In this regard, we recommend that all employers located in Moscow Region check whether all the requirements of the Federal Law "On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the Russian Federation" have been complied, including with regard to these notifications and the deadlines for submission.
We also draw your attention to the fact that in other regions of the Russian Federation the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia has stepped up its work in terms of checking organizations for compliance with migration laws.
You can find more information on the specifics of conducting scheduled inspections in 2021 here.
Features of the implementation of regulation of the labor market of foreign workers and personnel records
A labor contract must be concluded between a foreign worker and an employer for an indefinite period, if there are no exceptions provided for in Art. 59 Labor Code of Russian Federation. Any temporarily staying foreign citizen (a person who arrived in the Russian Federation on a visa or visa-free basis, who does not have a residence permit or a temporary residence permit), carrying out labor activities in the territory of the Russian Federation, must either have an agreement (policy) of voluntary medical insurance, or have the right to receive medical care on the basis of an agreement on the provision of paid medical services, which is concluded by the employer.
In labor contract with a foreign employee, additional information must be specified:
1. for foreign citizens temporarily staying in the Russian Federation:
• on a work permit or a patent, except for the cases established by Federal laws or international treaties of the Russian Federation;
• include an indication of the details of either the contract (policy) of voluntary medical insurance; or an agreement on the provision of paid medical services to an employee, concluded by the employer with a medical organization. Moreover, voluntary medical insurance agreement and the agreement on the provision of paid medical services must ensure the provision of primary health care and specialized medical care in an emergency to a foreign employee.
2. for foreign citizens temporarily residing in the Russian Federation (a person who has received a temporary residence permit) information on a temporary residence permit in the Russian Federation, with the exception of cases established by federal laws or international treaties of the Russian Federation;
3. for foreign citizens permanently residing in the Russian Federation (a person who has received a residence permit) information on a residence permit, with the exception of cases established by federal laws or international treaties of the Russian Federation.
The employer is obliged to suspend (not allow to work) foreign workers in the following cases:
• suspension of the validity, expiration of the permit to hire and use foreign employees - in relation to a foreign citizen temporarily staying in the Russian Federation;
• expiration of the contract (policy) of voluntary medical insurance on the territory of the Russian Federation or termination of the contract concluded by the employer with a medical organization for the provision of paid medical services - in relation to a foreign citizen temporarily staying in the Russian Federation;
• expiration of a work permit or patent;
• expiration of the permit for temporary residence in the Russian Federation;
• expiration of the residence permit in the Russian Federation.
More information here.
Regulation of agency labor in the Russian Federation
Only 2 categories of legal entities have the right to engage in the provision of labor for employees.
1. Private employment agencies - legal entities registered on the territory of the Russian Federation and accredited to carry out this type of activity;
2. Other legal entities, including foreign legal entities and their affiliates (with the exception of individuals), in cases where employees, with their consent, are temporarily sent to:
• a legal entity that is affiliated with the sending party;
• to a legal entity that is a joint stock company, if the sending party is a party to the shareholder agreement on the implementation of the rights certified by the shares of such a joint stock company;
• to a legal entity that is a party to the shareholder agreement with the sending party.
The second category of legal entities is associated with relations with foreign citizens on the basis of so-called second-hand deals.
Responsibility for violation of the limitation of agency work is provided for by the Part 1 of Art. 5.27 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. For this violation of labor legislation provides for a warning or the imposition of an administrative fine on officials in the amount of one thousand to five thousand rubles; for persons engaged in entrepreneurial activity without forming a legal entity - from one thousand to five thousand rubles; for legal entities - from thirty thousand to fifty thousand rubles.
At the same time, for a person who has previously been held accountable for such a violation, Part 4 of Art. 5.27 establishes punishment in the form of imposing an administrative fine on officials in the amount of ten thousand to twenty thousand rubles or disqualification for a period of one to three years; for persons engaged in entrepreneurial activity without forming a legal entity - from ten thousand to twenty thousand rubles; for legal entities - from fifty thousand to seventy thousand rubles.
Details of issuing invitations and visas
From December 13th, 2020 a new regulation on issuing invitations has been in effect, which provides for the following changes:
1. New forms required for submission of documents, including guarantee letters (previously they were only recommended).
2. The applicant, in accordance with the new regulations, can only be the inviting party and the documents must be submitted personally by the applicant. However, there is a mention that when submitting documents by an authorized representative of the inviting party, you must provide a document proving the identity of the representative and a document confirming the authority of the representative, as well as its copy.
3. The new regulation defines the procedure for the provision of services for issuing invitations:
• HQS and family members of HQS – 14 working days;
• Employees of the WTO and its family members – 30 working days;
• Others - 20 working days.
More information here.
In the field of visa processing, the following changes have occurred:
• from July 28th, 2020 Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of July 16th, 2020 N 1055 clarifies the procedure for issuing humanitarian visas (the restriction on the validity of visas and requirements for the VHI policy are excluded);
• from April 24th, 2020 Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of April 17th, 2020 N 525 adds the ability to extend any visa if a foreign citizen cannot leave the Russian Federation due to the epidemiological situation and from December 14th, 2020 the regulations on issuing visas have been updated accordingly (Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of December 4th, 2019 No. 907).
More information here.
We would also like to draw your attention to the fact that the "List of travel purposes" for issuing invitations and visas from the order of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia and the FSB of Russia dated December 27th, 2003 N 19723A / 1048/922 became invalid from January 1st, 2021, and the new list has been adopted by the Order of the Ministry of foreign Affairs of Russia from 21.12.2020 № 23235 "On approval of the List of goals trips, used in preparation and issuance of visas to foreign citizens", which will come into force on 08.02.2021. More information here.
Following our previous news about the need to pay the state fee from the inviting party's current account, we inform that at the moment the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia in Moscow also accepts payment through the Sberbank of the Russian Federation, but in this case it is necessary to indicate the personal data of a foreign citizen, namely:
1. Full name;
2. Passport number;
3. Address of residence in the Russian Federation;
4. Organization name.
Any individual can pay the state fee, however, if it is necessary to return the state fee, only a foreign citizen himself can return it.
The details for the payment of state fee have been changed from January 1st, 2020. Details here.
From October 1st, 2019, the MIA General Administration for Moscow, on the basis of an internal order of the MIA, accepts documents for issuing only electronic invitations to enter Russia for foreign citizens. Documents for issuing invitations on the forms of the Ministry of Internal Affairs will no longer be accepted.
In addition, we draw your attention to the fact that the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation in Moscow (Pokrovka str., 42) often summon the heads of all organizations that first submit documents for issuing invitations to enter the Russian Federation for foreign citizens, for an interview with the head of the department for issuing invitations, visas and migration registration of foreign citizens.
In addition, we draw your attention to the fact that the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation in Moscow (Pokrovka str., 42) often call for an interview the heads of all organizations that first submit documents for issuing invitations to enter the Russian Federation for foreign citizens, for an interview with the head of the department for issuing invitations, visas and migration registration of foreign citizens.
Electronic visas
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed Federal Law No. 305-FZ of July 31st, 2020 "On Amendments to the Federal Law" On the Procedure for departing the Russian Federation and entry into the Russian Federation " and the invalidation of certain provisions of the legislative acts of the Russian Federation "on the introduction from January 1st, 2021 of a universal single electronic single-entry visa for short-term stay of foreign citizens in the Russian Federation for tourist, business, guest and humanitarian purposes.
A single electronic visa is issued to citizens of foreign states, the list of this states is determined by the Government of the Russian Federation. You can familiarize yourself with the specified list here.
The validity of an electronic visa is 60 days from the date of its issuance with the permitted period of stay of a foreign citizen on the territory of the Russian Federation no more than 16 days from the date of his entry. To register it, you need to fill out an application on a special website. The term for issuing an electronic visa will be no more than four calendar days from the date a foreign citizen submits an application for its registration.
Entry and exit of foreign citizens on the basis of electronic visas will be carried out through checkpoints across the state border of the Russian Federation, determined by the Government of the Russian Federation. You can find the specified list of checkpoints here.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the issuance of electronic visas in the Russian Federation has been suspended for indefinite period. You can find more details here.
Changes in the permissible share of foreign workers according to Russian Classifier of Economic Activities
On November 12th, 2020, the Government of the Russian Federation adopted Resolution No. 1823 "On establishing for 2021 the permissible share of foreign workers employed by economic entities carrying out certain types of economic activity in the territory of the Russian Federation." Employers need to bring the number of employees into line by January 1st, 2021.
In comparison with the distribution of shares in 2020, some shares have been changed, new activities have also been added (changes are highlighted in the table below), the lists of regions for which exceptions are made remain the same.
You can find the classification in our news here.
List of quota-free positions
If the employer plans to hire foreign employees from visa countries to quota-free positions, this, of course, will significantly reduce the total time required for issuing permits due to the fact that this does not require an application for a quota. But, unfortunately, the list of these positions is very limited and consists mainly of senior management positions of organizations, as well as a number of technical positions that are in high demand in the labor market, therefore employers will have to apply for a quota to hire foreign employees for regular working positions.
An up-to-date list of quota-free professions is available here.
Responsibility of the inviting party
On January 16th, 2019, Federal Law of July 19th, 2018 N 215-FZ came into force, which amends Article 18.9 of the Administrative Offenses Code of the Russian Federation, providing for liability for the inviting party, does not ensure compliance by a foreign citizen with the regime of stay (residence) in the Russian Federation, which is expressed in imposition of an administrative fine:
• for citizens - from 2 000 to 4 000 rubles;
• for officials - from 45 000 to 50 000 rubles;
• for legal entities - from 400 000 thousand to 500 000 rubles.
The list and procedure for applying these measures are established by the Government of the Russian Federation. More information here.
Responsibility for violations in the migration sphere
Responsibility for violations in the migration sphere is stated in Chapter 18 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation.
Please note that the responsibility of a foreign citizen for violations of the rules of migration registration is stated in Art. 18.8 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation, and the responsibility of the inviting or receiving party is stated in Art. 18.9 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation.
A list of violations and their characteristics with links to articles of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation are available here.
For more information, please contact consultants of the Confidence Group.
The texts of the newsletters are intellectual property of Confidence Group, protected by the copyright laws of Russia. The information may not be reproduced in any form what so ever without linking to this web site or to pages of this website.
