Business ombudsman Boris Titov proposes amnesty for migrants
MOSCOW. Oct 24 (Interfax) – Russian business ombudsman Boris Titov said that the one-time migration amnesty that he has proposed would allow legalization of labor in the migration market and would bring 74 billion rubles to the treasury.
“We propose a one-time amnesty for those who already are working in Russia on the condition of concluding a labor agreement and getting a tax identification number as a taxpayer,” Titov told reporters on October 23.
Labor agreements concluded should not exceed three years, Titov said. Those who will be amnestied should be insured from migration risks, he said. “According to the preliminary estimates, such insurance could cost employer around 30,000 rubles a year,” the ombudsman said.
According to Titov, such an amnesty could be potentially applied to about 5 million migrants – 3 million of those who have a work patent and 2 million with work permits.
Those who accept the conditions of the migration amnesty will be issued a migration card valid for the duration of their employment contract.
According to the proposals drafted by the administration of the business ombudsman, all foreign citizens and their family members, wives and children below 18 years old, can be amnestied upon showing a valid labor agreement with the wages of at least 7,000 rubles per month per person. Thus, in order to legalize a family of five, a migrant should show a labor agreement with the income of at least 35,000 rubles.
The amnesty does not apply to foreigners with convictions in Russia and other countries and foreigners, who were held administratively liable in Russia over three times within three years under articles related to the migration law.
It is proposed that all foreign citizens living in Russia illegally will be allowed to return to their homeland without any measures being taken on them, except for people who have a pending criminal cases.
The amnesty applies solely to foreigners who entered Russia legally.
About 11 million illegal migrant workers are in Russia and about 45% of them can be amnestied, the explanatory note regarding the economic viability of the amnesty said. The expected cost of legalizing a migrant is 15,000 rubles thus a one-time income is estimated at 74 billion rubles.