OTK-Group

Payments for deportation from the budget of Russian Federation or Compulsory Insurance?

In October, a bill was considered in which foreign citizens were offered to have compulsory insurance of the risk of deportation and expulsion. It was assumed that the policy will be mandatory for legal residence, as well as for the work of foreigners in the territory of the Russian Federation. This event is aimed at reducing payments from the country's budget related to the deportation and expulsion of foreign citizens from the Russian Federation.
However, the Government of the Russian Federation did not support the bill, referring to the Law “On the organization of insurance business in the Russian Federation”, which does not indicate mandatory insurance for deportation or expulsion.

Fingerprints before coming to Russia!

Recently, the authorities have undertaken a series of measures to combat illegal migration. Newly adopted laws have increased the punishment for false registration and fictitious marriages with Russian citizens in order to obtain Russian citizenship. Consequently, the Russian Interior Ministry Migration Service has reported that the number of foreign citizens who prefer to follow a legal pathway has increased. This, for example, is very important for working foreigners, as they make up almost half of the total number of foreigners located in the Russian Federation.

Unlike the labor migrants, the situation with illegal immigrants is not so transparent. They cross the Russian border to carry out illegal activities on its territory.

Experts from both the Russian Interior Ministry Migration Service and State Duma consider it essential to finance measures to strengthen border control. Among the proposals is the installation of equipment for mandatory fingerprinting at each checkpoint. This measure would assist with timely screening of foreign citizens who seek to get into the country to pursue illegal activities rather than sightseeing – no matter whether it’s illegal work or extremist doings.

Electronic visa entry to Russian Federation

The President of the Russian Federation has instructed that the entry into the Russian Federation for Japanese, Chinese and European citizens was simplified with the help of electronic visas starting early 2021. The e-visa holder will be able to visit the Russian Federation for tourist, business, humanitarian purposes, as well as with a guest visit. Today, foreign tourists can visit the Far East and the Kaliningrad region with electronic visas, with St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region to adopt the same measure in the autumn.

Unlike other countries where tourists explore different cities, in Russia the preference is mainly given to Moscow and St. Petersburg. Consequently, the number of tourists can increase dramatically, which can have a negative impact on both cities. On the other hand, tour operators forecast that tourist flow to Russia will grow by at least 20-25%, adding substantial contribution to country's GDP by the tourism sector.