A notification of hiring a foreign national reports the conclusion of a contract to the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA); it is not migration registration. Under the general rule, the employer or customer reports both conclusion and termination of an employment contract or a civil-law contract for work or services. The deadline is no more than three working days from the relevant event.
Checked on 2 November 2026. MIA Order No. 290 of 12 May 2026 has provided the applicable forms and procedure since 1 September 2026. Future legislative changes for 2027 are not applied below.
§ Who notifies the MIA and which contract is reported
First identify the contracting party and the place where work is actually performed. The employer or customer engaging the foreign national files the notice. Using a recruitment agency or accountant does not in itself transfer the duty to someone else. A representative must have documented authority.
Check the right to work separately: a work patent, work permit or legal ground for working without either document. Exemption from a work authorisation must not automatically be treated as exemption from contract notification. The form itself provides for identifying the legal basis for work without a patent or permit.
Nationality and international agreements may require special treatment. For Belarusian citizens, consider the Supreme Court’s ruling of 7 June 2018 No. 83-AD18-6 concerning the non-application of the national foreign-labour recruitment regime to their employment. Do not extend that conclusion to all foreign nationals or all EAEU citizens. In a dispute, identify the actual nationality, contract and legal ground relied on.
🎓 Hiring a foreign student: work authorisation and MIA notice
For an adult foreign student, first establish the specific legal basis for employment. Law No. 115-FZ Article 13(4)(7.1) permits work without a patent or work permit where the person studies full-time on a qualifying programme and works in time free from study. The ground covers state-accredited secondary vocational, bachelor’s, specialist, master’s, residency and assistantship-internship programmes, as well as postgraduate research and academic training programmes.
A photograph of a student card alone is insufficient for a proper assessment. Gather evidence of the conditions of the chosen ground. This is a working employer checklist, not an exhaustive statutory hiring-document package.
| Establish | Check and keep |
|---|---|
| Current study and study format | Up-to-date confirmation from the educational or scientific organisation: programme, full-time status and study period, with issue date and enrolment information |
| A qualifying programme | Programme type and state accreditation where Article 13(4)(7.1) requires it. The institution’s name alone is insufficient; the provision is not restricted to state-owned universities |
| Work in time free from study | An agreed work schedule and study timetable supporting compliance. Set working hours with regard to the timetable and applicable employment law |
| Separate migration status | Lawful stay or residence records, expiry dates and the actual legal basis for working. If an RVPO is held, check the permit and its continuing validity |
Patent exemption does not remove the general duty to notify the MIA of the contract. Where Article 13(8)’s general procedure applies, conclusion and termination are separate notifications, each due within no more than three working days of the event. Enter the applicable legal basis for work without authorisation in the form. Check any nationality or treaty-specific consequences separately, as explained above.
Schedule a fresh status check for the study end date and whenever a transfer, change of study format or expulsion is reported. Article 13(8.1) addresses contract termination when studies end early; for an RVPO holder, paragraph 8.2 provides a special rule ending those contracts when the permit expires. Separately assess possible permit cancellation and whether the legal basis for working continues. The label ‘student’ or ‘expelled’ alone is insufficient without checking the documents.
This section was checked on 3 November 2026 against Law No. 115-FZ Article 13: paragraph 4, subparagraph 7.1, and paragraphs 8, 8.1 and 8.2; version of 26 July 2026 with amendments effective from 25 October 2026. Future 2027 changes are not applied.
📅 Three working days: event and receiving region
Identify the contract conclusion date separately from the work start date, and the termination date when the contract ends. A later start of performance does not let the employer arbitrarily move the deadline for reporting conclusion. Prepare a calendar that accounts for working and non-working days; do not substitute calendar days for working days.
| Situation | Report | Recipient and deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Contract concluded | Separate notice of conclusion | Regional MIA where the foreign national works, within no more than three working days from conclusion |
| Contract terminated | Notice of termination | Regional MIA at the place of work, within no more than three working days from termination |
| Work in two regions under Article 13.3-1 of Law No. 115-FZ | Notices in each relevant region | The special route applies only where the statutory ground exists |
| One region was already notified, then work starts in the second under Article 13.3-1 | Notice in the region where the new work starts | Within three working days from starting work there |
The reference point is the place of work, rather than only the head office address. If documents mention several addresses, identify the actual work locations and whether the special cross-region regime applies. It does not generally permit work in any region using a single patent.
▤ Which forms apply from September 2026
Order No. 290 contains the conclusion form in Appendix 7, the termination form in Appendix 8 and the filing procedure in Appendix 9. Appendices 2 and 3 to that procedure contain recommended personal-data consent templates. Distinguish appendices to the whole order from appendices to its individual procedure.
- Match the parties. Employer or customer details, the foreign national’s identity and identity-document particulars must match the documents used to complete the form.
- Check work and status. Enter applicable patent or permit information, or the legal ground for work without them, the occupation and work address.
- Separate the dates. The conclusion form has the contract date, its period of validity and a box for an indefinite contract. Do not replace conclusion with the date of an internal hiring order.
- Prepare attachments. Attach the consents required by the procedure; a representative needs authority documents. If space is insufficient, use an additional sheet identifying the field and the foreign national.
- Check the paper package. Complete applicable fields legibly in Russian, without corrections or unauthorised abbreviations. A package of two or more sheets must be stitched, numbered and certified on the reverse of the final sheet as prescribed.
Prepare an individual notice for each foreign national. A combined employee list does not replace the individual forms. Before signing, compare the final copy with the contract and source documents; a second person can independently check dates, names, region and signature.
↘ Notification of a foreign worker’s dismissal
Procedure and form fields checked on 7 November 2026. Where MIA notification is required, termination must be reported separately from hiring. For employment contracts and civil-law contracts for work or services, use the form in Appendix 8 to MIA Order No. 290, effective from 1 September 2026. Do not substitute an old hiring notice with a changed heading.
Checks before submission
| Field | Check | Common error |
|---|---|---|
| Contract type | Select employment or civil-law contract according to the original document | Marking a services contract as employment |
| Termination date | Compare the contract, termination agreement or other termination record and personnel documents | Entering the notice preparation or sending date instead |
| Foreign national’s initiative | In paragraph 3.4, select yes or no according to the actual termination ground | Automatically selecting yes for every dismissal |
| Region and worker | Check the workplace, passport details and applicable legal basis for working | Copying outdated details from the hiring notice |
| Signature and documents | Check the signatory’s and presenter’s authority, required consents and additional sheets | Saving a completed file without signing or submitting it |
The general deadline is no more than three working days from termination. Create a separate notification task when processing dismissal, even if hiring was previously reported. A worker’s departure does not replace checking contract termination and the employer’s duty.
Submitting through Gosuslugi and preserving evidence
- Select the service for notifying a contract with a foreign national and the termination event. Check whose behalf the account represents and the user’s authority.
- Compare transferred details with current documents. Autofill does not establish that information is correct.
- Attach the required documents, sign and submit by the method provided by the service.
- Keep the submitted version, reference number, date and time, followed by the acceptance message. If an error occurs, save it and establish the status; a draft or incomplete upload does not prove submission.
This is a working checklist, not a description of fixed button locations: the Gosuslugi interface may change. If electronic filing is not completed, consider another prescribed route below before the deadline expires. When resubmitting, retain both versions and the reason; do not assume that a missed deadline is automatically cured.
Is a separate notice required when a services contract ends?
The general procedure also covers termination of a civil-law contract for work or services. First establish when the contract actually ended under its terms and supporting records: do not mechanically substitute the date of an acceptance certificate for the termination date. Then check whether the duty applies and submit the appropriate form.
Source: MIA Order No. 290 of 12 May 2026, Appendix 8 and paragraphs 1–8 of the procedure in Appendix 9. The official form must be completed in Russian; this English article provides explanations only.
↗ In person, by post or through Gosuslugi
| Route | Checks | Evidence to keep |
|---|---|---|
| Directly to regional MIA | Paper package; the presenter’s identity and authority are checked | Acceptance certificate and a copy of the submitted package |
| Through the subordinate enterprise or authorised Moscow organisation specified by the procedure | Check whether the particular recipient is authorised to accept this notice | Actual acceptance record, date and recipient details |
| By post | Registered mail with delivery notification to the relevant regional MIA | Receipt, tracking, delivery notification and copies; an enclosure inventory helps prove contents |
| Gosuslugi | Electronic notice signed under the applicable requirements; a draft is not a filing | Submitted package, sending time, reference number and acceptance message |
The procedure requires an electronic acceptance message by the working day following receipt. This is the authority’s processing period, not an extra day for the employer to file. An ordinary email is not equivalent to the prescribed Gosuslugi submission.
✓ Proving submission and responding to defects
Create a record for each contract: worker, event, conclusion or termination date, deadline, region, sending method, registration number and acceptance evidence. In-person filers receive a certificate based on Appendix 5 to the procedure. A screenshot of a completed but unsent form does not establish acceptance.
If a defect message arrives, preserve it in full, compare the disputed fields with the submitted file and clarify the correction route with the receiving authority. Do not backdate a correction or present it as an initially flawless filing. Resubmission does not automatically eliminate a possible deadline or form violation.
If the MIA raises a claim, gather the contract, termination records, notice copies, postal or electronic evidence and correspondence. Separately check whether the duty applied and whether the recipient was correctly identified. A dispute over work-patent cancellation needs its own decision and evidence: contract notification does not itself reverse cancellation. Status and challenge routes are covered in the migration assistance section.
Questions and primary sources
Must the MIA be notified of a student working without a patent?
Yes where the general procedure applies. A full-time-study patent exemption does not itself remove notification of contract conclusion or termination. Separately check the actual work ground, nationality, applicable treaty and the three-working-day deadline.
Must termination be reported if hiring was already notified?
Yes, where the general duty applies, termination is a separate event requiring a separate form. The conclusion notice does not replace termination notification.
Is a combined list of foreign workers sufficient?
No. Paragraph 7 of the procedure requires an individual notice for each foreign national. Different events also use different forms.
Can the employer wait until the worker actually starts?
The ordinary conclusion-notice deadline runs from the contract date. The work start date is checked separately and does not replace it. The special rule for starting work in a second region is explained above.
Can a notice be filed without a patent where no patent is required?
Check the legal basis for work without a patent or permit and complete the relevant field. Exemption from obtaining a patent does not automatically remove contract notification duties.
Does a Gosuslugi error mean the notice was accepted?
An error message alone cannot establish that. Keep the time, reference, submitted documents and status; check for acceptance confirmation. Take action before the three-working-day period expires.
Where can current forms and rules be checked?
Checked on 2 November 2026: Article 13 of Law No. 115-FZ; MIA Order No. 290 of 12 May 2026, Appendices 7–9, effective from 1 September 2026 until 1 September 2032; and Supreme Court ruling No. 83-AD18-6 on the special regime for Belarusian citizens. The ruling is cited as a source of legal reasoning, not as a case handled by this article’s author.