New Rules on Employment and Residence in Russia: A Review of the Government's Draft Law
Amendments to Russia's law on the legal status of foreign nationals will affect workers, employers, and family members alike. This article covers the key changes.
On 21 February 2026, the Government of the Russian Federation submitted to the State Duma a bill amending Federal Law No. 115-FZ "On the Legal Status of Foreign Nationals in the Russian Federation." The document has been prepared in fulfilment of a Presidential directive and forms part of a broader package of reforms. The bill is accompanied by parallel amendments to the Tax Code governing the procedure for the payment of personal income tax by foreign nationals.
The bill substantially reconfigures the logic of immigration enforcement. The right to remain in Russia is being tied ever more closely to a verified level of income. The new rules will affect foreign nationals working under a work patent or work permit, holders of temporary and permanent residence permits, and the employers who hire them. The majority of the provisions take effect on 1 January 2027, with certain provisions entering into force earlier.
Below is an account of what is changing and what requires attention now.
What the Bill Changes
The bill rests on a single overarching principle: a foreign national's right to be present and work in Russia must be underpinned by real, verifiable income. Whereas immigration enforcement was previously predominantly administrative in nature — focused on confirming the existence of documents — the bill introduces an economic criterion into the equation.
The bill establishes several interrelated mechanisms. Foreign workers will be required to earn no less than the regional subsistence minimum for themselves and each dependant. The tax authorities will automatically transmit data on foreign nationals' income to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, eliminating the system's reliance on self-reporting by workers and their employers. Failure to meet the income threshold will constitute grounds for reducing the permitted period of stay, refusing to renew a patent or work permit, and in certain cases annulling a temporary or permanent residence permit.
The employment of foreign nationals by private individuals is regulated separately for the first time, creating its own dedicated legal framework. The bill also revisits the salary thresholds for highly qualified specialists — a category that was last amended in 2023.
How the Minimum Required Income Is Determined
The bill establishes an obligation for foreign nationals engaged in employment in Russia to maintain income — for themselves and any family members in their care — at a level no lower than the subsistence minimum established for the relevant region of the Russian Federation. This requirement applies equally to those working under a patent or work permit and to foreign nationals holding temporary or permanent residence permits.
The regional subsistence minimum is multiplied by a special coefficient set by the relevant regional law. Where no such coefficient has been established, or where it is set below one, it is taken to equal one. The resulting income threshold may not, however, exceed the average monthly nominal accrued wage across the economy of the relevant region.
Income is calculated as an average for each month of the period during which the foreign national was engaged in employment. Account is taken not only of the worker's own income, but also of the combined income of spouses where family members are dependants of both. For foreign nationals operating under the self-employed tax regime, income is determined on the basis of data reflected in the My Tax mobile application.
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Compliance with the income threshold is assessed by the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which may be assisted in this function by a subordinate enterprise or authorised organisation in the form of a state institution.
Foreign nationals working under a patent, as well as those temporarily and permanently residing in Russia, are required to pay a fixed advance payment of personal income tax calculated to account for each dependent child present in Russia.
Failure to meet the income threshold carries serious consequences: the foreign national may be refused renewal of their patent or work permit, have their temporary or permanent residence permit cancelled, or have their permitted period of stay reduced.
How the Federal Tax Service and Ministry of Internal Affairs Will Exchange Data
One of the key innovations introduced by the bill is the transition to automatic inter-agency exchange of data on foreign nationals' income through the State System of Interdepartmental Electronic Interaction. Previously, oversight largely depended on documents that foreign nationals themselves submitted to the migration authorities. Under the new system, government agencies will exchange this information automatically, relieving foreign nationals of that administrative burden.
The tax authorities will independently transmit to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the authorised state institution information on foreign nationals' income for specified reporting periods — three, six, nine, and twelve months of the calendar year — no later than 45 calendar days after the end of each period. The data will be compiled on the basis of employers' social insurance contribution returns.
A separate procedure applies to foreign nationals operating under the self-employed tax regime. Information on their income, as recorded in the My Tax application, is transmitted once a year — no later than 45 days after the end of the calendar year.
Data exchange takes place through the inter-agency system. The information received is used exclusively for the purposes provided for by law and may not be disclosed except in cases expressly established by federal legislation.
On the basis of the information received, the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs will conduct an assessment of the presence and level of income. The procedure and timelines for such assessments are to be approved by the federal executive authority responsible for internal affairs.
Learn more about the interagency electronic interaction system.
How Permitted Periods of Stay Will Change
The bill introduces a new ground for reducing a foreign national's permitted period of temporary stay in Russia. Where an inspection confirms that a worker's income falls below the established threshold, or that no income data in respect of that individual is held by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the permitted period of stay may be reduced — applying both to the foreign national and to members of their family.
A decision to reduce the permitted period of stay takes effect fifteen calendar days after it is issued. Both the foreign national and their employer or service contractor are notified of the decision. Once the decision enters into force, the foreign national has three days to depart the country.
Separate rules govern the stay of minor children of foreign workers. Their permitted period of stay is extended in line with the validity of the parent's patent or work permit, but only until the child reaches the age of eighteen. A condition of this extension is that the parent's income is confirmed to be no less than the subsistence minimum per dependant.
Where a patent or work permit has been cancelled or not renewed, the foreign national and their minor children are required to leave the country within fifteen days, unless other lawful grounds for remaining exist.
What Will Change Regarding Residence Notifications
Foreign nationals holding a temporary or permanent residence permit are required to submit an annual notification confirming their continued residence in Russia. The bill substantially updates the requirements applicable to this procedure.
The key change is the introduction of an obligation for the foreign national to be engaged in employment or entrepreneurial activity for at least ten months in a given year. Failure to meet this threshold may result in the cancellation of the temporary or permanent residence permit. An exception applies where the combined income from other sources meets the established threshold.
Foreign nationals temporarily residing in Russia are required to submit to the Ministry of Internal Affairs notifications confirming residence not only for themselves, but also for their dependent children. In the case of minor or legally incapacitated children, the notification is submitted by the parent or guardian in whose care they are.
Together with the notification, the foreign national must submit one of the following: an employer's statement of income received for the reporting period in the prescribed format, a copy of the tax return for the preceding calendar year, or documents confirming payment of the fixed advance personal income tax payment.
In addition to the above, the following are accepted as evidence of income: interest received on bank deposits, dividends from participation in Russian organisations, income from securities transactions, remuneration of members of governing bodies of Russian companies, and payments under compulsory social insurance.
Income from investment activities is accepted only where it was received within Russian territory.
Where the foreign national does not attach a copy of a tax return, income data will be requested directly from the tax authority through the inter-agency system.
Where the foreign national was employed by multiple employers during the reporting period, income is confirmed by the aggregate of documents from all employers.
In cases of valid justification, the notification may be submitted after the established deadline, but no later than six months after the expiry of the relevant year following the date of issue of the temporary or permanent residence permit.
Failure to comply with the income and employment requirements constitutes an independent ground both for refusing to issue and for cancelling a temporary or permanent residence permit. This means that a foreign national who fails to demonstrate a sufficient level of income or does not meet the ten-month employment requirement risks not only being refused at the initial application stage, but also losing a status they already hold.
How Salary Thresholds for Highly Qualified Specialists Will Change
The minimum salary required for a foreign national to qualify as a Highly Qualified Specialist has been revised only once since the status was created. The original threshold was 167,000 roubles per month; Federal Law No. 316-FZ of 10 July 2023 raised it to 750,000 roubles per quarter, equivalent to 250,000 roubles per month. The new bill raises the bar considerably further and, for the first time, introduces an annual indexation mechanism.
For certain categories of specialists — in particular researchers, teaching staff, medical professionals, and foreign nationals engaged by residents of special economic zones and information technology organisations — the minimum threshold is set at 358,500 roubles per month.
For all other highly qualified specialists, the threshold will be 717,000 roubles per month. The new requirements apply both to newly engaged specialists and to those already working in Russia at the point of work permit renewal.
The threshold will be indexed annually in line with the rate of growth of the average monthly accrued wage across all organisations for the preceding year. The indexation coefficient is to be determined by the federal executive authority responsible for the regulatory framework governing labour remuneration before the commencement of the relevant calendar year.
Who Will Be Affected by the Separate Rules for Domestic Workers
The bill, for the first time, creates a dedicated legal framework for the employment of foreign nationals by private individuals for personal, domestic, and similar purposes unrelated to commercial activity — covering, for example, nannies, housekeepers, gardeners, and other workers hired by individuals for personal needs.
Russian citizens are permitted to engage foreign nationals who are temporarily or permanently residing in Russia for such work. The foreign worker is subject to a number of obligations. Within ten days of commencing work, they must notify the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and pay a fixed advance personal income tax payment in accordance with Article 227.1 of the Tax Code. A copy of the employment or civil law contract is to be attached to the notification; where the contract was concluded orally, its terms are to be stated directly in the notification.
Where the fixed advance payment has not been made, the employment contract is treated as terminated from the moment this fact is confirmed following an inspection, and the permitted period of stay of the foreign national and their family members is subject to reduction.
The form of notification and the procedure for its submission are to be established by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Who Will Not Be Affected
The bill expressly identifies categories of foreign nationals to whom the new income requirements do not apply.
First, the income requirements do not extend to nationals of states participating in the Union State Treaty — that is, citizens of Belarus — nor to members of their families.
The requirements are also disapplied in respect of foreign nationals enrolled in full-time programmes at Russian vocational, higher education, and research institutions. They do not apply to pensioners or to persons recognised as incapacitated, nor to their minor children.
A further exemption covers minor foreign nationals and adult foreign nationals who are legally incapacitated or have restricted legal capacity, where they are dependants of a parent who is a Russian citizen.
Finally, the new requirements do not apply to foreign nationals who received a temporary or permanent residence permit in connection with resettlement to Russia on grounds of disagreement with the policies of their home state, nor to foreign nationals who have resettled to Russia on a permanent basis and are deemed to be of particular interest to the Russian Federation.
When the Rules Take Effect
The bill provides for the phased introduction of its various provisions, a timeline that is important for both foreign nationals and their employers to bear in mind.
The majority of provisions take effect on 1 January 2027. From that date, the income threshold requirements, the new grounds for reducing permitted periods of stay, the updated residence notification requirements, and the rules for domestic workers will all come into operation.
The new salary thresholds for highly qualified specialists enter into force earlier — on 1 September 2026. Employers planning to engage such specialists should take this into account when preparing employment contracts.
The provisions on the automatic transmission of foreign nationals' income data from the tax authorities to the Ministry of Internal Affairs take effect on 1 October 2026.
Certain provisions will enter into force ninety days after the official publication of the law. The income threshold provisions apply to income data beginning with the 2027 reporting periods, which means in practice that the first assessments under the new rules will not take place before 2028.
The bill has not yet been adopted and remains under consideration by the State Duma. In practice, bills introduced by the Government of the Russian Federation are passed in the overwhelming majority of cases, typically without substantive changes to the underlying concept. This is because such documents undergo an extensive inter-agency coordination process before submission to the Duma and effectively reflect policy that has already been agreed at government level. We will continue to monitor the bill's progress and will report on any developments.