Labor migrants to get personal cards in Russia

Labor migrants in Russia will be issued special personal cards, Andrei Chernenko, head of the Federal Migration Service (FMS), said on Monday.

The relative government decision will be undersigned this week, he said. Labor migrants will receive plastic cards with personal photos and microchips, containing information on the expatriates coming to work in Russia. Chernenko said that the quota for the number of labor migrants in Russia in 2003 is 538,000. If the required number of foreign workforce is more, the quota will be increased. Such cards will facilitate for legal migrants access to Russia and will protect their rights before employers. Plastic cards will appear in the first half of 2003.

Before the end of this year 8 million cards for migrants will be printed, Chernenko said. These cards do not go for labor migrants but ordinary people coming to Russia for different purposes. 26 million of these cards will be printed next year.

In January 2003 the Federal Migration Service through computer systems will get access to the world data bases, which will greatly facilitate its work.