The Confidence Group Company provides a regulatory framework adopted to counter the spread of coronavirus infection in Russia, and clarifies the impact of these regulations on the migration sphere and its legal regulation in Russia.
1. Order of the Government of Russia No. 153-r as of January 31, 2020 and Order of the Government of Russia dated February 18, 2020 No. 338-r, providing:
- suspension of the admission of citizens of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from February 20, 2020 for private, educational, tourist purposes or the purpose of labor activity;
- suspension of the receipt of documents, processing and issuance of invitations to enter Russia for the purpose of laboring for citizens of the PRC, as well as permits to attract and use foreign workers and work permits for these citizens located outside Russia.
- suspension of the receipt of documents, registration and issuance of invitations to enter Russia for private and educational purposes to citizens of the PRC.
For citizens of the PRC who, for example, have business or humanitarian visas, or are already in Russia for any purpose of entry, no restrictions are provided.
2. Decree of the Government of Russia as of January 31, 2020 N 66 "On Amending the List of Diseases of Danger to Others" provides for the inclusion of "Coronavirus infection (2019-nCoV)" in this list. The presence of a disease from this list may be the basis for:
- a ban on working in teaching positions;
- the obligation to be treated for the disease, without any voluntary consent, if the sanitary doctor issues a hospitalization order (it is also mandatory for persons with suspected illness);
- compulsory physical examination, isolation, temporary suspension from work with the payment of benefits for OSS, compulsory vaccine prophylaxis - all by order of the sanitary doctor;
- refusal to accept documents for a temporary residence permit, residence permit, patent, work permit (if medical organizations examining migrants establish the presence of coronavirus 2019-nCoV),
- cancellation of a temporary residence permit, residence permit, work permit if a foreign citizen becomes ill with an infection on the list;
- deciding on the undesirability of staying in Russia in relation to a foreign citizen with the aforementioned disease.
3. The order of the Government of Russia No. 194-r as of February 3, 2020 suspends the entry of foreign citizens from the territory of the People’s Republic of China at the checkpoints across the state border of Russia, except for the checkpoint across the state border of Russia Moscow (Sheremetyevo), with the exception of citizens of member states of the Eurasian Economic Union, as well as aircraft crews, members of official delegations and persons holding a residence permit in Russia.
4. The order of the Government of Russia No. 154-r as of January 31, 2020 restricts the movement of Chinese citizens through checkpoints at certain sections of the state border of Russia with Mongolia.
The restrictions provided for by these acts are temporary and will remain in force until the situation in China is stabilized.
In addition, since February 28, a ban has been introduced on the issuance of transit and regular visas to Iranian citizens, except for business and humanitarian ones.
From March 1, all airlines, with the exception of Aeroflot and Aurora airlines, stopped air communication with South Korea.
Currently, the practical implementation of regulatory innovations is as follows.
Upon arrival of the aircraft from China, an initial inspection of arriving citizens is carried out. If there are signs of illness, the person (regardless of citizenship) is sent to the quarantine center. Persons in contact with sick people are also sent to the quarantine center.
Persons who come from China who have not been diagnosed with the disease and who have not had any contact with the sick are issued a decree of the chief sanitary doctor in Moscow indicating the need to regularly check the state of health, undergo medical examinations and be kept in isolation for 14 days since leaving China.
According to unverified information, persons wishing to leave Russia before the end of the quarantine period should contact the Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare with the provision of an appropriate ticket to arrange for such a person to be escorted to the airport.
For quarantine purposes, the Tsaritsyno rehabilitation center for disabled people has been converted. The Confidence Group company contacted Rospotrebnadzor and the specified rehabilitation center in order to find out the conditions for keeping people in quarantine, but no response comments were provided.
There is unverified information that there were facts of bringing to administrative responsibility foreign citizens who violated quarantine regulations. They were ordered administrative expulsion from Russia with a ban on entry into Russia for up to 5 years, the grounds for making such a decision are not known.
It should also be noted that in Russia a significant number of people receive quarantine instructions regardless of citizenship.
Persons avoiding compliance with quarantine measures may be held liable in accordance with Part 1 of Art. 19.5 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of Russia, which entails the imposition of an administrative fine on citizens in the amount of 300 to 500 rubles; for officials - from 1000 to 2000 rubles or disqualification for a period of up to 3 years; for legal entities - from 10,000 to 20,000 rubles.
In the event that foreign employees cannot enter the territory of Russia to carry out labor activities, there are no legal grounds for the removal or dismissal of such employees at the initiative of the employer. Confidence Group is considering the possibility of applying the following provisions in this situation:
- Art. 72.2 of the Labor Code of Russia (Labor Code), which provides: “in the event of an epidemic or epizootic and in any exceptional cases that jeopardize the life or normal living conditions of the entire population or part thereof, an employee may be transferred without his consent for up to one months for work from the same employer not stipulated by the labor contract to prevent these cases or eliminate their consequences”;
- Art. 327.4 of the Labor Code of Russia, which stipulates that a temporary transfer of an employee who is a foreign citizen or a stateless person for up to 1 month to work not stipulated by an employment contract with the same employer is allowed without taking into account the profession (specialty, position, type of work), specified in the work permit or patent, on the basis of which such an employee carries out labor activities, and not more than once during a calendar year. If at the end of the temporary transfer period (i.e. no more than 1 month), it is impossible for the foreign worker to submit the previous job, the labor contract with him is terminated in accordance with paragraph 10 of the first part of Article 327.6 of the Labor Code of Russia. If a foreign worker is unable to perform the work stipulated by the labor contract due to extraordinary circumstances specified in the second part of Article 72.2 of the Labor Code of Russia (in this case, “an epidemic or any exceptional cases”), and temporarily transferring it for up to one month to a non-labor the contract does not work for the same employer (because this need arises again within 1 calendar year), the labor contract with such an employee is terminated in accordance with paragraph 11 of the first part of Article 327.6 of the Labor Code.
However, the position of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia and the Ministry of Labor of Russia on the application of these articles of the Labor Code of Russia is currently unknown. The Confidence Group Company will report on the comments of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia and the Ministry of Labor of Russia on this issue when they are received.
We recommend that you consider these circumstances when applying for foreign workers.
For more detailed information please contact consultants of Confidence Group.
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