New Russia's Law on Legal Status of Foreigners to Affect Employment Quotas

The law 'On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the Russian Federation', which was passed by Russia's State Duma in June and will go into force on November 1, 2002, affects employment quotas for migrants. According to Andrei Chernenko, the head of Russia's Federal Migration Service, each region will now submit the numbers of foreign workers needed to the federal government for approval.

According to Mr. Chernenko, 300,000 migrants are registered in Russia at this time. 'In the meantime', he said, 'it is known that over 1 million foreigners are employed illegally in Moscow alone'.

Mr. Chernenko also said that in order to assure the effectiveness of the new law, 17 sub-legislative acts were needed to regulate the way employment quotas for foreigners are calculated, the issuing of migrant's cards, etc. The introduction of the cards will allow migration services to keep track of incoming and leaving foreign residents. These documents will be issued to foreigners at the moment they enter Russia. They will serve as identity cards and specify the purpose and length of the visit. The cards will consist of two parts, one kept by a visitor, the other by the migration service.