The State Duma is considering several legislative amendments that will tighten control over migration.  Once these amendments are adopted, migrants who violate the law will no longer be able to “live a relatively normal life while evading the state,” according to State Duma (Tajikistan’s lower chamber of parliament) members.

New measures and restrictions

Alongside deportation and administrative expulsion, a new "expulsion regime" will be introduced. A Register of Controlled Persons will be created to store data on all migrants for whom a deportation decision has been made.

From the moment a migrant is ordered to be expelled until they leave Russia, they will face a series of restrictions:

• Driving ban: migrants under expulsion will be prohibited from driving vehicles.
• Bank account restrictions: they will not be allowed to open new bank accounts or spend more than 30,000 rubles per month from existing accounts.
• Reduced stay duration: the period of temporary stay for migrants will be shortened. Instead of being allowed to stay for 90 days within six months, they will only be allowed 90 days within a year.
• Behavioral expectations: new conditions for entry and stay will include respecting nature and traditions.

Aimed at compliance and control

These amendments are aimed at ensuring that migrants comply with Russian laws and integrating them into the country's societal norms. The restrictions will make it more challenging for migrants to evade legal and administrative oversight.

The new expulsion regime and controlled persons register are expected to enhance the state's ability to monitor and manage the migrant population, ensuring that those who violate the law are effectively tracked and their activities restricted until they leave the country.

The bill also grants police the authority to make decisions on administrative expulsion of foreign citizens and stateless persons from Russia.  Currently, only courts or the border service can make such decisions if a foreigner commits an offense upon entry into the country.

Overall, these legislative changes reflect Russia's ongoing efforts to tighten migration control and address concerns related to legal compliance and integration of migrants into Russian society.

The explanatory note to the document states that the draft law aims to unify deportation mechanisms.  The authors pointed out that current legislation effectively contains two overlapping systems for deportation of foreign citizens from Russia.  Police officers draw up protocols for administrative offenses, which lead to administrative expulsion ordered by courts.  Bailiffs carry out the expulsion.  Meanwhile, the internal affairs bodies carry out deportation, which is “similar to administrative expulsion in terms of categories of individuals, grounds, and consequences but is executed extrajudicially by decisions of the internal affairs bodies.”

It is noted that until administrative expulsion and deportation are enforced, foreigners are held in special detention facilities of the internal affairs bodies.

"The bill aims to unify deportation and administrative expulsion mechanisms for foreign citizens and to concentrate the powers of expulsion with the internal affairs bodies (police).  This innovation will reduce time and financial costs associated with transporting foreign citizens to courts and will allow for the prompt removal of foreign citizens who have violated Russian law,” the note states.

According to data from the Russian Interior Ministry, Russia is home to an estimated 1 million Tajik migrant workers and others who are dual citizens.  Working in Russia provides a lifeline for them as there are not many jobs or other opportunities in impoverished Tajikistan.

Meanwhile, some sources say 652,014 Tajik nationals, including 554,804 men and 97,210 women, traveled abroad last year seeking better employment opportunities, which is 123,564 people less than 2022 (in 2022, 775,578 Tajik labor migrants traveled abroad, primarily to Russia, but also to Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan).