Russia also plans to ban migrants from sending money home

A bill prohibiting labor migrants in Russia from transferring money abroad in amounts exceeding their monthly salary has been submitted to the State Duma for consideration, TASS reported.

The initiative was put forward by deputies from the New People faction. According to the explanatory note, current regulations do not provide effective mechanisms to ensure that funds transferred abroad correspond to migrants’ officially confirmed income.

“A significant part of labor migrants is employed in the informal sector of the economy. Many of them do not pay taxes. The state budget is deprived of a large amount of tax revenues,” the deputies stated.

Lawmakers argue that adoption of the bill would prevent the transfer of funds of unconfirmed origin abroad and allow authorities to block transactions that raise “reasonable suspicions.”

It is worth noting that Russia is also considering restrictions on migrants bringing family members into the country. That draft law was submitted to the State Duma on September 9 by deputies from the A Just Russia – For Truth faction led by Sergei Mironov. The proposal includes exceptions for Belarusian citizens and highly qualified foreign specialists.