Member Article

We would like to remind you that on September 15th, 2020, the Government of the Russian Federation approved a list of measures that employers, who have invited foreign national employees, shall observe (“Decree”).The document came into force and will be valid for 6 years. The text of the Decree is available, in Russian only, here.

New measures

According to the Decree, the employer is required to take the following measures to ensure that the foreign national employee complies with the purpose of entering the Russian Federation and leaves the country in a timely manner:

• Provide the foreign national employee with the employer’s contact details for communication. This could be done by any means, including by email.
• Provide guarantees of material, medical and housing support for the period of stay of a foreign national employee, in the Russian Federation, which were detailed at the moment of issuing an invitation.
• Conclude an employment contract, or service (consultancy) agreement with a foreign national and provide him/her with a workplace (in case of employment contract).
• Notify the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia about the loss of contact with a foreign employee in the Russian Federation within 2 days. For this purpose, it is possible to contact the territorial body of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, or send a written notification in any form.
  
  

Risks for employers

For violation of the rules of stay of foreigners in the Russian Federation, the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation provides for liability for employers in the form of fines up to RUB 50,000 (approx. EUR 540, USD 630) for the company’s authorized officers and up to RUB 500,000 (approx. EUR 5,400, USD 6,300) for the companies.

Such high fines can have a significant impact on the activities of companies that hire foreign employees. Meanwhile, the proper implementation of the measures established by the Decree, as well as the timely notification of employees and public authorities, will eliminate the risks of imposing fines and will contribute to successful compliance with the requirements of labour and migration legislation.