GR and regulatory risk expert at Baikal Lobridge Zhanna Logacheva has analyzed a draft package of bills from Russia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs introducing an experiment on organized recruitment of foreign workers. The plan would mark a shift away from the current system, where migrants enter Russia independently and look for jobs on their own, toward a model in which workers arrive directly to a specific employer.
At the core of the proposal is a registry system. Employers’ right to hire foreign workers would depend on being included in an official register, while foreign nationals would be listed in a separate register of workers. During the pilot, companies would hire staff through fixed-term contracts or civil-law agreements. The experiment is expected to run from 2027 to 2030 in regions selected by the government. In those regions, other ways of hiring foreign labor would not be allowed. Highly qualified specialists, holders of temporary or permanent residence permits, and citizens of Belarus are excluded from the scheme.
The updated draft also adds a number of technical requirements. All payments, from salaries to cross-border transfers, would go through an authorized bank. Foreign nationals staying in Russia for more than 90 days would receive biometric ID cards, subject to a state fee. Those undergoing medical checks would also be required to submit DNA for genomic registration. The bill also proposes creating migration hubs where workers would go through mandatory procedures before being assigned to employers.
Participants would pay a fixed advance personal income tax, which would increase depending on the number of dependents.
Zhanna Logacheva says the Interior Ministry’s approach is fundamentally different from parallel proposals by the Finance Ministry, which focus on tightening the existing patent system and using fiscal tools to tackle the shadow labor market. The Interior Ministry, she notes, is trying to redesign the system itself.
At the core of the proposal is a registry system. Employers’ right to hire foreign workers would depend on being included in an official register, while foreign nationals would be listed in a separate register of workers. During the pilot, companies would hire staff through fixed-term contracts or civil-law agreements. The experiment is expected to run from 2027 to 2030 in regions selected by the government. In those regions, other ways of hiring foreign labor would not be allowed. Highly qualified specialists, holders of temporary or permanent residence permits, and citizens of Belarus are excluded from the scheme.
The updated draft also adds a number of technical requirements. All payments, from salaries to cross-border transfers, would go through an authorized bank. Foreign nationals staying in Russia for more than 90 days would receive biometric ID cards, subject to a state fee. Those undergoing medical checks would also be required to submit DNA for genomic registration. The bill also proposes creating migration hubs where workers would go through mandatory procedures before being assigned to employers.
Participants would pay a fixed advance personal income tax, which would increase depending on the number of dependents.
Zhanna Logacheva says the Interior Ministry’s approach is fundamentally different from parallel proposals by the Finance Ministry, which focus on tightening the existing patent system and using fiscal tools to tackle the shadow labor market. The Interior Ministry, she notes, is trying to redesign the system itself.
“The Ministry of Internal Affairs aims to minimize the very possibility of an illegal labor market by creating a fully state-controlled model of labor migration,” she said.
If implemented, the system would shift Russia from open job search for migrants to a centralized recruitment model tied directly to employer demand and state control.
The full analysis of the initiative is available in Zhanna Logacheva’s article on the Milknews website.
The full analysis of the initiative is available in Zhanna Logacheva’s article on the Milknews website.
