Six key changes to migration law regarding HQSs effective from 2024 + action plan for the future

Until now, the minimum salary of highly qualified specialists (HQSs) for foreigners not falling within special categories was 167,000 rubles per month.

From 1 March 2024 onwards the minimum salary of such HQSs will be 750,000 rubles per quarter.

The change takes effect in the middle of the first quarter of 2024, which raises a question as to the level of the minimum salary for the first quarter (584,000 rubles or 750,000 rubles).

According to guidance issued by the migration authorities, employers must pay HQSs salaries not below the new threshold of 750,000 rubles starting from the first quarter of 2024 and must confirm this when filing notifications of the fulfilment of HQS salary payment obligations for the first quarter of 2024.

The simplest way of meeting the new criterion is to increase basic salary to 250,000 rubles per month. There are, however, alternative options (such as paying bonuses). In the case of alternative options, it is important to examine whether the relevant expenses would be deductible for profit tax purposes.

If the employer is not willing to increase salary expenses, the contract with the employee in question must be terminated before 1 March 2024 and the migration authorities must be notified accordingly. The employee may subsequently be rehired under the standard (non-HQS) procedure upon receipt of all necessary permissions for the employer and the employee.

An employer that fails to comply with the minimum salary requirement may be banned from employing HQSs for two years.

Previously, an employer could be banned from hiring HQSs on account of a failure to fulfil its obligations to an HQS (for example, failure to pay the right amount of salary) or the submission of falsified documents to the Internal Affairs Ministry.

Now, a third ground has been added, namely the failure to submit information on amounts of personal tax calculated, withheld and remitted in relation to HQSs to the tax authorities within six months after a reporting period (or the submission of false information within that period).

These measures are designed to target firms that seek to assist illegal immigration to Russia (a three-year visa is obtained but no salary is paid, so the foreigner enters the country but is not genuinely employed as an HQS).

It is possible for even law-abiding employers to find themselves in this kind of situation. For example, it may happen that an HQS was on sick leave, but the employer did not keep track of his income and his pay for the quarter amounted to less than the minimum level. Or the employer might pay less than 750,000 rubles for the first quarter of 2024 because it interprets the law differently from the migration authorities.

To help monitor compliance by employers with the conditions for employing HQSs, the tax authorities provide migration authorities, upon their request, with information on amounts of income received by HQSs.

New forms came into force from January 2024 for:

• notifications of the conclusion/termination of employment agreements and civil contracts;
• quarterly notifications of the fulfilment by employers of salary obligations to HQSs;
• applications for work permits for HQSs.

For example, if it is not possible to raise an HQS’s salary to the new required level and the employment agreement with the individual has to be terminated, it is essential to make sure that the notification of the termination of the employment agreement is submitted within the prescribed time limit (3 working days from the date of termination) and in the correct form (we also recommend always checking the filing address).

Submitting notifications using the old form may result in fines of up to a million rubles or the suspension of activities for a period of up to 90 days[1].

Previously, an HQS could remain in Russia for 60 working days after the termination of an employment agreement: he was given 30 days to look for another employer and 30 working days to pack his things and leave (if a new employer was not found).

Now, the time allowed to pack and leave is 30 calendar days (the employee still has 30 working days in which to look for a new employer). After that period has expired, the HQS’s work permit, visa and residence permit as well as visas and residence permits issued to members of his family cease to be valid.

Previously, a work permit could be collected at any time during its validity period. An HQS could, if he wanted, wait a year after the issue of a work permit before entering Russia, undergoing all the required procedures, collecting the work permit and starting work.

An HQS whose work permit application is submitted in 2024 faces the challenging task of doing all this within 30 calendar days (even less if the visa invitation is issued on a later date than the Internal Affairs Ministry’s decision).

Furthermore, it is not completely clear from which date the 30-day period is counted. At present, the Internal Affairs Ministry does not notify the employer/foreigner of the date of its decision to issue a work permit. The date has to be confirmed in each individual case.

The following preliminary steps are needed to obtain a work permit:

1. Obtain an invitation for an HQS visa, book an appointment with the Russian consulate and receive a visa (the invitation may contain misprints, in which case time would be needed to correct them; the consulate may not have appointment times available in the near future; it may take several days for the visa to be issued even under the expedited procedure).
2. Enter Russia (there may be no plane tickets available, or the HQS may go down with the flu, or a Covid-19 quarantine may be imposed).
3. Complete migration registration procedures (the host landlord might have left Russia, might not have an account on the government services portal, or even if he has submitted an application on the portal, he might not have received the email with the registration document, and there might be no slots for migration registration with the Internal Affairs Ministry within the next 2 weeks).
4. Undergo medical examination and fingerprinting and receive a “green card” (it takes about 5 working days for medical certificates to be issued).
5. The HQS must collect the work permit from the migration authorities in person (work permits for Moscow are issued at the Sakharovo Multifunctional Migration Centre, which is about 50 km from the MKAD ring road, and there may be a queue).

At each stage, therefore, circumstances can arise which cause delays and could prevent a work permit from being obtained on time. In this case the law requires the work permit to be annulled.

An employer has the right to apply for the time limit for receiving a work permit to be extended by a further 30 calendar days if the HQS has a legitimate reason for failing to obtain it on time. The Internal Affairs Ministry will decide whether to grant extensions on a case-by-case basis.

The same time limit (30 calendar days from the date of the Internal Affairs Ministry’s decision) is also set for obtaining an extended work permit. The visa extension can be applied for in Russia, so the process is somewhat simpler. However, difficulties with migration registration, the employee’s own busy work schedule, medical examinations, the loss of the green card with fingerprint data, public holidays and other factors can turn migration procedures into a challenging undertaking.

If a work permit is not received on time, the visas received by the HQS and members of his family will cease to be valid 15 days after the expiry of the time limit for obtaining the work permit.

In other words, if a foreign citizen does not manage to receive a work permit on time, he must leave the country while his visa is still valid (if he has entered Russia), and the employer will have to start the whole process from the beginning.

An HQS may obtain a residence permit under the simplified procedure for the duration of his work permit. This will change the foreigner’s status from temporarily resident to permanently resident with all the consequences that that entails[2], including:

• the obligation to register where he resides and submit annual notifications confirming residence within the prescribed time limits;
• residence in Russia for more than 6 months, which affects the foreigner’s tax residence status in Russia and potential payment of personal tax in Russia, including on personal income received outside Russia;
• currency resident status with reporting requirements, restrictions on payments to foreign accounts and other requirements;
• a requirement for the employer to pay social contributions on the employee’s salary (plus, the salary must meet the HQS criteria and quarterly reports must be filed).

From January 2024, an HQS and accompanying family members may obtain an indefinite residence permit if the conditions specified in law are met, and specifically:

• at the time of submitting the application for the indefinite resident permit, the HQS has already worked in Russia on the basis of an HQS residence permit for at least two years;
• at the time of submitting the application, members of the family of the HQS have lived in Russia on the basis of an HQS residence permit for at least two years;
• for two years in which the HQS worked in Russia, the employer or purchaser of works/services paid social contributions in relation to that employee and withheld and remitted personal income tax.

The Action Plan for the Implementation in 2024-2025 of the State Migration Policy Framework of the Russian Federation has been adopted[3].

B1’s Migration Team will continue to monitor legislation and related practice and keep you updated on important issues. Should you have any questions about the changes or need our assistance, please contact us.

• Ekaterina Ukhova, Partner People Advisory services
• Maria Tkacheva, Senior Manager, People Advisory services
• Maria Moskaleva, Senior, People Advisory services
• Anna Iarmosh, Advanced Staff, People Advisory services