Foreign nationals will be required to support their family members at the subsistence minimum level and may lose the right to live and work in Russia if their income is insufficient

Russian authorities are tightening their oversight of the income levels of foreign nationals seeking to live and work legally in our country.

Amendments to the law on the legal status of foreign nationals have been drafted by the Ministry of Finance.  

🔹 Under the draft law supported by the government, if the length of official employment during the past year is less than ten months, or if the combined family income, taking all family members into account, falls below the subsistence minimum, the foreign national may have their residence permit or temporary residence permit revoked. The subsistence minimum will be multiplied by a regional coefficient.

🔹 In addition, work patents will not be issued or extended if the migration service does not receive information about the foreign national's salary from the tax service, or if the income is deemed insufficient.

🔹 A separate proposal is to introduce a mandatory fixed personal income tax payment for each minor child living with a working parent who is a foreign national. 
Upon turning eighteen, the child must apply for their own patent or leave the country.

🔹 The period of temporary stay in Russia for minor foreign children will be extended for the duration of their parents' work permit or patent.

🔹 A lack of information about a migrant's earnings, or income below the subsistence minimum, may lead to the cancellation of a patent, temporary residence permit, or residence permit.  

🔹 The project provides for the automatic exchange of information between the Federal Tax Service and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The Federal Tax Service will provide the Ministry of Internal Affairs with information about migrants' income every three months. 

🔹 This will make it possible to combat the illegal labor market and fraud in the issuance of permits more effectively. The main aim of the amendments is to ensure transparency in the labor market, prevent schemes involving the fraudulent issuance of work permits, and reduce the risk of undocumented earnings among migrant workers. It is important for the state to have a clear picture of the financial stability of foreign nationals, since only a financially secure person can provide for their own needs and support their family.    

If adopted, the amendments will come into force on 1 January 2027.