In February 2021, the Internet was blown up by terrible figures: Levada Center calculated that over 40 percent of young people would like to leave Russia. And many carried out this plan! But nature abhors a vacuum: according to official data alone, 700 thousand people came to the Russian Federation in 2021. True, many of them risk leaving Russia just as quickly. Deportation is the worst word for every immigrant. And unpleasant - for tourists and travelers. What is this anyway? Who can be subjected to it and can the verdict be appealed? Let's talk about this in the article.
701,234 people migrated to the Russian Federation in 2021. Most often, Ukrainians (161,351 people) and Tajiks (89,553 people) chose our country as their “second homeland”. And the most unusual thing: 857 people came to the United States, and 1,414 citizens left there.
What is deportation?
According to Article 2 of Federal Law N115 of July 25, 2002, which defines the legal status of foreigners, deportation is a forced expulsion applied to foreign citizens when the legal grounds for the person’s further stay in the Russian Federation have disappeared
. An interesting fact: in Russia, unlike many states, such a compulsory measure is not an administrative penalty.
On the one hand, this increases the protection of foreigners, on the other hand, it takes the process of their forced expulsion in a different direction. Some scholars suggest not to confuse deportation with expulsion. Allegedly, the second type of forced expulsion can also be used against one’s own citizens. Let theorists argue about this, but we are much more interested in the practical question.
Migrants’ salaries violate the rights of Russians – opinion of the head of the Human Rights Council
The head of the Human Rights Council, Valery Fadeev, raised an important issue for all Russians - he argues that low wages for migrant workers violate the rights of Russians themselves. He came to this conclusion based on stories from employers.
According to him, according to various estimates, there are about 2.5 million foreign citizens in Russia who do not have the appropriate documents to stay on the territory of the state. Illegal immigrants are not paid decent wages, thereby depriving Russians of the opportunity to earn a decent living.
Some employers admit that they benefit from illegal workers, as this exempts them from paying taxes.
The situation is unacceptable, it openly prevents Russians from finding work for a decent salary, and requires an immediate solution.
What is expulsion?
Administrative punishment is often confused with deportation.
, provided for in clause 7, part 1, article 3.2 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. Expulsion is a punishment imposed for various offenses (for example, Article 6.8 of the Code of Administrative Offenses - illegal trafficking of prohibited substances). In essence, expulsion is when a person is told that his stay in the country is undesirable. The penalty may consist of either forced expulsion or controlled departure by the person himself.
Important! The decision on deportation is appealed before the decision enters into legal force, on deportation - after
.
Removing the “deported” status
Deportation is not always a final sentence; it can be canceled for one reason or another:
- if the deported person has relatives and friends who have Russian citizenship;
- when extending a visa;
- if a residence permit is purchased;
- if you have a marriage certificate with a resident of the Russian Federation;
- if there is a need for treatment in medical institutions in Russia;
- if you have a patent for carrying out labor activities on the territory of the Russian Federation;
- if the status of a student of any accredited Russian university is acquired.
These are the main reasons why a person can appeal in court the decision of the Federal Migration Service regarding his deportation. However, such annulment is a complex and lengthy process, and even a court decision in favor of a foreigner does not immediately exclude him from the list of deported citizens. A citizen is required to collect an additional package of documents, according to which he can confirm the legality and necessity of staying in the country.
Why can a citizen be expelled from Russia?
Deportation is an extreme
, it is subjected to those foreigners who could not otherwise be called to order. First, let's list the cases when a guest must leave Russia:
- The visa has expired or has been cancelled;
- The residence permit has expired and has not been renewed, or it has been canceled by the authorized body;
- Fake documents were used to cross the border or stay in Russia.
In turn, the residence and stay permit in the Russian Federation may be revoked
in the cases listed in Article 7 of Federal Law No. 115, if the foreigner:
- Not the one he claims to be (the falsification of documents and information about the person has been established);
- Creates a threat to Russia, advocates a violent change in the system, is related to terrorism;
- Previously subjected to deportation or administrative expulsion (within 5 years), readmission (within 10 years);
- Convicted or has a criminal record for committing a serious or especially serious crime, was held accountable for trafficking in prohibited substances;
- Has no income or means to support himself and family members (does not apply to students and some other categories of guests);
- Two or more times during the year he was brought to administrative responsibility for offenses against public order and safety or against the trafficking of prohibited substances.
The Law also lists more exotic ways to lose the right to reside in Russia, but there is no point in dwelling on them.
Important! If the stay (residence) in the Russian Federation is shortened, the foreigner must leave the state within 3 days
, upon cancellation of a residence permit -
within 15 days.
If a guest wishes to remain in Russia illegally, he will be forcibly expelled.
Causes
Grounds for deportation arise when there are sufficiently serious violations of the law that lead to a threat to life, health, or the national security of society. Let us name the key grounds for the deportation of a foreign citizen from Russia:
Any of the above violations will serve as a reason for forced departure from the country. The purpose of deportation is to regulate the flow of migrants who arrive in the country illegally, without health certificates. When getting a job, illegal migrants do not pay taxes to the country's budget and harm the economic situation of the country. By making their labor cheaper, illegal migrants negatively affect the quality of labor services and the amount of wages.
Deportation process
The entire procedure lies on the shoulders of the Main Directorate for Migration Issues
Ministry of Internal Affairs (GUVM MVD), the court is not involved in it. At least initially. The decision is made by the head of the territorial body of the GUVM and communicates it in writing to the foreigner. For those who do not understand the state language, translation is provided.
If the foreigner did not leave Russia voluntarily, the following procedure applies:
- Detaining the offender and placing him in a temporary detention center for 48 hours;
- Sending a person to his homeland or country of last stay by a suitable means of transport (most often by plane).
Only the court can extend the period of detention in the center, but it rarely does this
“favor” for migrants. To avoid deportation, a foreigner must fill out a migration card and register. In some cases, a residence permit will be required, and you will have to work strictly under an employment contract.
Options for deportation from the country
Despite the fact that they are expelled from the state not by the decision of the person, but by the decision of the country, deportation can also be:
- voluntary – when a foreigner independently leaves the country from which he is being deported within the time frame established by the state;
- involuntary - when a citizen refuses to leave the country under any circumstances or goes into hiding, then his deportation is carried out under escort.
It is worth noting that deportation is a type of administrative, not criminal, punishment.
Can I appeal against deportation or expulsion?
A decision made by the GUVM or a court can be challenged. The expulsion is being appealed to a higher court
, and the application is not subject to state duty. A petition to cancel a previously issued decision is considered promptly - in just 5 days.
You can appeal the decision on deportation either to a higher authority of the Main Directorate for Migration Affairs or to a court
. You need to pay 300 rubles of state duty to submit an appeal. The official is obliged to consider the application within 1 month from the date of its receipt.
By the way! Check travel ban
in the Russian Federation, a foreigner can visit the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. For the convenience of foreigners, all fields are filled in only one language - Russian, of course.
Appealing a deportation decision
The ability to cancel deportation from Russia depends on the situation. The expulsion and deportation of foreign citizens are distinguished by their complexity. What steps should a migrant take:
- Appeal of deportation from senior management in relation to those FMS officials who made such a decision;
- Appeal to the court to review the case, taking into account all mitigating circumstances.
Having received the court's notice of expulsion, you should submit a written application to the judicial authorities within 10 days with a request to appeal the decision. In court, a migrant has a higher chance of successfully appealing. Since it allows you to challenge the procedure, prove the fact of an error, violation of civil rights and freedoms.
Whereas the lifting of deportation does not involve lengthy proceedings. Because this penalty is mandatory in case of obvious violations of the law on staying in Russia. Certain categories of persons are not subject to deportation. These are diplomats, refugees who have suffered from political, religious or national discrimination.
Summary
So, only those persons who have committed a serious crime, are involved in the trafficking of prohibited substances, or do not want to comply with immigration laws are subject to deportation. The decision is made by the Main Directorate for Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation and conveys it to the guest in the form of an ultimatum. An alternative to deportation is deportation, which is imposed as punishment for an administrative offense.
Both procedures are complex and simple at the same time; theoretically, a foreigner can count on judicial protection. But we understand that this requires significant financial resources. For those who do not have them, all that remains is to strictly comply with migration legislation and not violate public order. And not to create a threat to national security and the constitutional order, of course.
Pay
As a general rule, deportation is carried out at the expense of the foreign resident himself. If he does not have money to pay, the funds are contributed by relatives or the party who received the guest. These include the consulate and embassy. If money is not given, then the Russian state pays for the procedure.
The reasons for deportation and the consequences of deportation for illegal immigrants are the most pressing issue. In practice, if during work someone encounters a foreigner who does not have a work permit, the manager or administration must voluntarily offer to leave the Russian Federation. If the illegal immigrant does not want to do this, they apply to the migration service.
Why did the Armenians rush to this “damned Russia”?
In early February, the Russian government allowed citizens of Armenia and Belarus to enter the country for a month. There are two conditions: they must present identification documents, as well as a negative coronavirus test result.
Yerevan Zvartnots Airport is overcrowded. Let us note that we are talking about people, a significant part of whom angrily accuse “this damned Russia” of returning the occupied territories to Azerbaijan. Departing travelers take one-way tickets, and their prices reach $900. On the first day of border opening alone, 6 flights were carried out from Yerevan to Russia.
A deputy from the opposition party “Prosperous Armenia” Naira Zohrabyan shared her observations with Vestnik Kavkaza: “There has never been such a rush of demand for flights to Russia. Armenia is facing the largest migration in the last 30 years. … Judging by the general atmosphere, there will be … a demographic crisis in Armenia.” She does not condemn the desire of her compatriots to leave, save and feed their families: “The authorities are to blame for closing all opportunities for Armenians to live in Armenia.”
2222 “Dad said your parents are newcomers”
The population of the Republic of Armenia, according to official data, is slightly less than 3 million people. According to unofficial estimates, about 2.5 million. The fact that the migration of Armenians to Russian spaces is predominantly labor is not a new fact. Citizens of Armenia are good at finding “clean” jobs and doing business. There are few of them on construction sites, and even more so in the housing and communal services system - in any case, they are not noticed among the janitors.
The coronavirus pandemic forced many Armenians to return from Russia to their homeland, closer to family. But not only was the economic situation at home not conducive to their employment, but internal political divisions also worsened and the Karabakh war broke out. That is, in addition to the problem of “feeding”, the issue of security arose. Where to go? And in Russia there is a fairly large and influential Armenian diaspora. Many people in the Russian Federation have relatives who have already linked their future with this country. So everything is logical. Moreover, for citizens of Armenia, as a member of the Eurasian Economic Union, in the republics of the bloc, including Russia, which is the largest labor market in the EAEU, there are good preferences, including those of a social nature.
According to Armenian sources, in 2021, 816 thousand people entered the Russian Federation from the Republic of Armenia, half of them for “private purposes.” And to work - a little more than 170 thousand. We are talking about the so-called “registered” citizens. How many were and are “not taken into account”? It is also tempting to obtain Russian citizenship, and over the past three years 80 thousand Armenians have achieved it. And, interestingly, according to data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation, cited by Sputnik, last year, that is, at the peak of the pandemic, 30 thousand people received it - more than in the previous two years.
In Armenia they are already sadly joking about the “great migration”. “I can say for sure that next month there will be unprecedented emigration,” Narek Malyan, head of the VETO socio-political movement, wrote on his Facebook page. According to him, “the largest migration in the history of Armenia” is beginning.
4512
"Take care of the Jews!"
In principle, there is nothing wrong with migration if it suits both the receiving party and the individual who has decided to leave their homeland temporarily or permanently. Russia is happy with migrants, if they are, of course, law-abiding; it is experiencing a major shortage of workers. Imported labor is also beneficial for Russian business - it, as a rule, reduces its costs. The question, however, is the reasons for changing the country of residence. Moreover, if not for happiness, then for a better life (in this case we are talking about citizens of the Republic of Armenia), they go to a state that, as many of them believe, helped “enemy” Azerbaijan win the Karabakh war and recapture the “original Armenian lands.”
Paradox? Rather, the instinct of self-preservation is triggered. Arrests of dissidents are underway in Armenia; At rallies there are calls for a forceful seizure of power. The government is in complete chaos, the laws don’t work. Not everyone is ready to survive another revolution. The country's economic situation does not provide hope for employment and wages that will allow people to crawl out of poverty. Plus the problem of refugees. And also the unknown - is another war coming? Moreover, in conditions when the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army, by the decision of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and the head of the Armenian defense department Vagharshak Harutyunan, will be disbanded. In any case, this is the information disseminated by wanted Mikael Minasyan, the former Armenian ambassador to the Vatican and the son-in-law of ex-President Serzh Sargsyan.
But what kind of “fuss” is going on around Russia in the Armenian leadership? As the Past newspaper writes, citing an anonymous source, Pashinyan took up the task of changing ambassadors, including those in the Russian Federation. It will be some kind of “political figure” - which one is not named, although the candidacy of the former head of the Armenian Foreign Ministry Zohrab Mnatsakanyan is not excluded. After the Karabakh war, Pashinyan announced his decision to dismiss him, and he himself wrote a letter of resignation. But even if Mnatsakanyan is still in Pashinyan’s circle, and his reputation as a “representative of the Soros school” is correct, will Russia agree to host him as an ambassador?
Interesting information was published by the Haqqin.az portal, which referred to the Weekblad Elseveir publication, which was interviewed by the Armenian Ambassador to the Netherlands Tigran Balayan. In it, he positively assessed the introduction of sanctions by the West against Russia in connection with the case of the “poisoning” of Alexei Navalny. These are the statements regarding the “ally” to whom the population of Armenia is now flocking.
5523
Pashinyan is being pestered for making concessions to Aliyev and Putin
The above-mentioned Azerbaijani portal also recalled the story when the issue of extending sanctions against Russia was raised in PACE, and “there were deputies from Armenia who abstained and did not vote against.” And further: “Any alliance with Armenia is “the path until the first turn,” until Yerevan decides that there is nothing more to suck from this partner, it’s time to move onto the neck of another. Membership in the EAEU, the CSTO, concrete guarantees from Moscow in the form of a military base - for the Armenian elites it does not matter if they ... only think that by “taking sides” they can get more.” It is unfortunate that this kind of reasoning is difficult to attribute to the malice of the Azerbaijani media - they reflect the real situation in the camp of the powers that be in Armenia and even in certain layers of the “ordinary” population.
Meanwhile (or despite this), the idea of moving to the format of a union state with Russia began to be heard more and more often in Armenia. Currently, his active lobbyist is the leader of the Alliance party, parliament member Tigran Urikhanyan. At the same time, he said at a press conference, Armenia must remain independent. The politician explained: “We have no alternative: no other country offers us cooperation, especially the formation of a unified security system, the creation of a new format of joint troops, and the protection of the border with Azerbaijan.” He emphasized that neither NATO nor any other organization or country has offered or is offering Yerevan such terms of cooperation. The Alliance leader, in addition, recalled that more than 100 thousand labor migrants from Armenia annually go to Russia to provide for their families.
Another question, and Urikhanyan rightly asks it: does Russia want to create a union state with Armenia - after all, it has its own interests. But this issue, he is convinced, should be discussed, but the RA authorities are not able to do this. The politician announced the Alliance’s readiness to participate in early elections, and if it enters parliament, to negotiate on the above topic. But for this, he emphasized, certain changes must take place in Armenia’s foreign policy, including taking into account the interests of Russia. In particular, Yerevan’s relations with a number of countries, including Ukraine, that have demonstrated an unfriendly approach to Armenia - for example, during the war in Karabakh - are subject to revision.
It is against such a chaotic external and internal political background that Armenians are leaving their country. Not for the first time, and it was forced. Who will throw a stone at them? After all, we are talking about survival, which the authorities of the republic did not take care of on a national scale. And here angry speeches about the lack of patriotism, “desertion” and other shaking of the air are inappropriate. It would be better for the authorities and the nation as a whole to clearly define: where you are going, why you are going, who you are going with, and what you will do next. This determines what you end up getting.
Irina Jorbenadze
How to deport a person anonymously?
According to modern legislation, a person must receive a warning in order to independently leave the country, otherwise a convoy will be involved in the case. Most often, deportation is provided for if certain migration documents are cancelled. If an administrative offense was provoked, this will also be a sign of expulsion from the Russian Federation. After the warning, the foreigner has a period of deportation from the Russian Federation - up to five days for independent departure.
Next, the foreigner is subject to government influence in the form of protocols of decisions of the migration authority and other documentation. And after the warnings are ignored, people begin to go to their places of work or residence. But in practice, few people are expelled. This is quite expensive. The main financing concerns transportation costs, wages for the guard, and preparation of the necessary certificates.
This is what a deportation notice looks like:
Procedure
To begin with, it is worth noting that funds for deportation are provided by the citizen himself, his relatives or the inviting party.
In some cases, payment is made by the state. A certain procedure has been adopted and is in effect regarding the procedure, and the following conditions are met:
- the foreigner must leave the country within the period established by the court;
- before leaving, such persons are kept in a special room of the Federal Migration Service, where they can receive everything they need, including food and medical care;
- a special stamp is placed on the migration card and on the passport of the visiting person, prohibiting entry into the country for a certain period;
- After crossing the border, the foreigner receives an official notification that he will bear criminal liability if he tries to enter Russia within the specified period.
In fact, many migrants try to circumvent the current legislation by making new documents, but this option is obviously illegal and is very quickly suppressed.
