The legislative framework
The main points regarding citizenship are spelled out in the relevant law. But there are provisions in the Constitution of the Russian Federation and in other acts. And it is clearly established by law that Russians have the right to obtain citizenship in other states. But at the same time, Russian will be a priority for the homeland. However, until recently there were no provisions in the legislation as such on the topic of punishment for second and subsequent citizenship.
Starting in 2014, the authorities decided to make adjustments. They not only outlined what kind of punishment Russians could face in Russia for dual citizenship, but also indicated when they would resort to it. The main requirement is that a citizen of the Russian Federation is obliged to notify the competent authorities at home when he receives special status abroad.
This means that punishment is faced not only for second citizenship. There is a risk of earning a fine both for a residence permit and for other legal grounds for residence in another state. But only on the condition that the Russian did not warn government agencies about this. Namely, he is obliged to submit a corresponding notification to the Main Migration Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. This must be done within 60 days from the date of receipt of second citizenship or other permission to reside in another country.
There is another significant nuance in the legislation. A fine is imposed only in the case where a Russian has dual citizenship, which he did not inform anyone about, but lives in his homeland. If he went abroad, received a residence permit there and successfully settled in a new place, then he does not need to rush to notify. Only when he gets ready for Russia will he have to prepare for a visit to the Department of Internal Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Within 30 days from the moment of crossing Russian borders, he is obliged to notify government agencies of dual citizenship, otherwise he faces punishment.
Informing the Russian Migration Service about a Russian citizen obtaining a second or more citizenship
Despite the fact that the Constitution of the Russian Federation allows Russian citizens to have a second citizenship, or rather does not prohibit it, there is a certain obligation to such persons, as mentioned above - timely informing the home state about the occurrence of such a case, otherwise a certain responsibility will be imposed on this person .
To convey information to Russian government agencies, it is necessary to send some kind of notification. He is sent to the migration service authorities - the Main Directorate for Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia. In this case, one of the following conditions must be met:
- The temporary restriction involves informing within 60 calendar days from the date of receipt of second citizenship by persons living in Russia;
- The time limit for reporting for persons not residing in Russia is no more than 30 days from the moment of crossing the border of the Russian Federation.
In case of delay in the above deadlines or complete concealment of the fact of obtaining a second citizenship, such a Russian will be punished in accordance with Russian law. The thing is that both the Constitution and the Federal Law “On dual citizenship of the Russian Federation” dated May 31, 2002 N62-FZ do not provide for any punishment, but amendments to the legislation in 2014 introduced changes to the system of information and voluntary renunciation, as well as a mechanism for punishment for non-compliance with articles of the law.
Submitting a notice
The legislation clearly defines the algorithm of actions for Russians. They are required to pay a visit to the Main Directorate of Migration Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs within a limited time frame to notify them of obtaining legal status abroad. But you can also send notification of your second citizenship by mail. Only such transfers are possible within Russia, and there is no point in sending a letter from abroad. Consulates do not have the right to accept the notification, just as it cannot be submitted to the competent authorities by e-mail.
Collection of documentation
There is a special form for informing the Main Directorate for Migration Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. So for notification it is enough to fill out a ready-made form, but documents are attached to it. This is an internal Russian passport and a paper that confirms permission to reside in another country. If we are talking about dual citizenship of a child, then the package of documents will be wider. Since it includes papers for both the minor citizen and his legal representative.
Liability for failure to notify
It is worth understanding the main thing: a citizen is obliged to report dual citizenship, and not to decide whether to do it or not. It is established by law that submitting a notification to the Main Migration Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is an obligation. And for failure to comply, the Russian bears a well-deserved punishment.
It is important to know that there is a risk of being held accountable if citizens simply do not submit information about dual citizenship in a timely manner. And for concealment there will be even more punishment. Moreover, it is necessary to realize that since 2014, such an act will attract prosecution under an article of the Criminal Code (Article 330.2).
Download Article 330.2 (DOCX)
Administrative measures
There are provisions that relate to dual citizenship and responsibility for it in the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. Namely, it is worth reading article 19.8.3. It says here that a citizen will be punished if he violates the procedure for submitting a notification of dual citizenship. What could it be?
This implies violations of the deadlines that the Russian must meet. And this time is more than enough. You have 60 days to fill out a form for dual citizenship. At the same time, the law even allows for the notification to be submitted to the Main Department of Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs by the applicant’s representative by proxy.
However, the fine under the Code of Administrative Offenses is not only for violation of deadlines. If a citizen provided incomplete or unreliable information, he may also be held accountable. What exactly is the punishment? The law clearly establishes that violators face a fine. The amount of recovery is limited to between 500 and 1000 rubles.
Download article 19.8.3. (.DOCX)
Article in the Criminal Code
If a person completely ignores his duty and does not submit a notification of dual citizenship, he may be punished under a criminal article. In such a case, the fine will be much higher. It is also possible that the culprit will be assigned to compulsory labor.
According to the provisions of the Criminal Code, the fine for ignoring the obligation to inform about dual citizenship can be up to 200 thousand in domestic currency. Alternatively, the amount can be calculated based on the salary or other income of the offender. Namely, those who violate the law are charged money within the limits of their annual salary. If the court decides that it is necessary to punish the citizen more harshly, then he may be assigned up to 400 hours of compulsory labor.
It is worth emphasizing that Russians face criminal liability for failure to notify about a second citizenship, a residence permit or another status that allows them to live in another country. And in Russia there have already been precedents for attracting citizens who ignored their obligations to the state. In fact, the most severe punishment occurs when a person deliberately and for a long time conceals information about dual citizenship.
Criminal liability has been introduced for concealing citizenship
The law amends the law “On Citizenship of the Russian Federation”, obliging Russians who also have another citizenship to notify the territorial body of the Federal Migration Service at their place of residence within 60 days from the date of acquisition. An exception is made only for citizens of the Russian Federation permanently residing outside the country.
In addition, it will be necessary to notify the FMS about the presence of a second citizenship in children. In these cases, data to the FMS will need to be transferred to “the legal representatives of a citizen of the Russian Federation who has not reached the age of 18, with the exception of the category of permanent residents living abroad.”
The form of notification will be determined by the FMS. It will be possible to report the presence of a second citizenship in person or in the prescribed manner by mail.
In case of failure to comply with the new requirement, criminal liability will be provided - in the form of a fine of up to 200 thousand rubles. or in the amount of wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to 1 year, or in the form of compulsory work for a period of up to 400 hours.
The head of the constitutional committee of the Duma, Vladimir Pligin (United Russia faction), clarified that criminal liability will be imposed only for failure to fulfill the obligation to notify about the acquisition of foreign citizenship. If the notification is submitted late, with gaps or with deliberately false information, it is proposed to establish an administrative fine in the amount of 500 to 1 thousand rubles.
Criminal liability for failure to notify of second citizenship is being introduced because, according to deputies, administrative liability will not motivate citizens to notify of their second citizenship, explained Rizvan Kurbanov (ER), Pligin’s deputy.
The author of the initiative, Andrei Lugovoy, told reporters that the Investigative Committee of Russia will be in charge of determining whether Russians have citizenship of another state. “It is obvious that the presence of dual citizenship reduces the importance of Russian citizenship and the attitude towards one’s fatherland. This is especially important in light of recent geopolitical events, when Russia continues to face aggressive pressure from the West,” the deputy believes.
The standards of many countries regarding second citizenship, including leading European ones, are significantly stricter than the amendments adopted in the Russian Federation on mandatory notification of it to the FMS. This was emphasized by State Duma deputy from the LDPR Mikhail Degtyarev, speaking at the beginning of the plenary session of the chamber. “The purpose of the bill is just to take into account persons who have citizenship of other states,” Degtyarev assured. “As it was allowed to have citizenship, so it will be allowed.” “You just need to spend 5 minutes of your time, 15 rubles to notify the FMS authority by mail,” he explained. A deputy with the irony of a green card "by some comrades."
Verification methods
In some cases, it is fundamentally important for citizens to prove that they do not have dual citizenship. For example, when entering the civil service, such a need may arise. But how to get a certificate of absence of a second citizenship?
Consulates and embassies deal with such issues. If a citizen of the Russian Federation is suspected of having a second citizenship of a particular state, he will need to contact its representative office in Russia. Sometimes you can resolve the issue through the Main Department of Migration Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs: when a Russian has not lived anywhere other than the Russian Federation, he will be given an appropriate certificate.
Institute of dual citizenship and legal aspects
The issue of dual citizenship is controversial in many countries around the world. There are states where they are not ready to issue national passports to foreigners if they have not renounced the documents received at home. For example, citizenship in Germany and Switzerland is granted subject to the renunciation of the status of a citizen of another country. But there are also more loyal countries. A striking example is the United States, where many binationals live.
Although dual citizenship is not prohibited by law in Russia, essentially the second passport will not play any role unless it is issued by Tajikistan. Only this state has signed an international agreement. According to it, the citizenship of both countries is mutually recognized in both Russia and Tajikistan.
If a Russian receives dual citizenship in another country, then he should be concerned not only with the fine for failure to notify, but also with other legal aspects. For example, you should be prepared for the fact that he will be required to fulfill his obligations both in Russia and in another state where he managed to obtain a special legal status. If military service is compulsory, then in fact it will have to be performed both at home and abroad.
This is true for taxes as well. So the issue of dual citizenship is controversial not only because in Russia they require mandatory information about it to the Main Directorate for Migration of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Whether it makes sense to receive it at all, you need to decide in each individual case whether it is advisable to become a citizen of another state.
Dual citizenship in our country
In the full sense of the word, it is only theoretically possible to have dual citizenship in the Russian Federation. The law does not prohibit this, but there are still no corresponding agreements. For a quarter of a century, by the way.
But no one will prevent you from acquiring a passport from another country; for Russia you will still be its citizen and will not lose your status due to the acquisition of an additional set of documents. But it is dual citizenship that is not recognized here. First of all, the person will be a citizen of the Russian Federation and wherever possible he will be required to present a Russian passport. Including abroad.
On the other hand, it is not so easy to control this issue. If all your concerns are related to whether or not any problems will arise during a short-term return to your native land, you don’t have to worry.
The fact of having foreign citizenship will be treated quite calmly
, no violent reactions, accusations, detentions, revocation of your Russian passport or anything like that, don’t worry.
Many migrants are interested in whether it is possible to have dual citizenship in Russia? This is especially important for immigrants who came to the Russian Federation and decided to stay. One conclusion can be drawn from the article - yes, it is possible!
