Starting from January 1, 2026, the cost of a patent for labor migrants in Moscow will increase from 8,900 rubles ($111) to 10,000 rubles ($125) per month. This information was published on the website of the Moscow City Duma.
Deputy Head of the Department of Economic Policy and Development of Moscow, Darya Murchenko, commented on this decision, noting that the increase in the cost of the patent will equalize the tax burden on labor migrants and Russian citizens.
According to the explanatory note to the bill approved by the Moscow City Duma, the current coefficient that takes into account the labor market characteristics in Moscow is 2.8592, which justified the patent fee of 8,900 rubles. However, with the rise in average salaries in the sectors where migrants work, the coefficient will increase to 2.9323, leading to an increase in the patent cost to 10,000 rubles.
Additionally, it is planned that the cost of the patent will also change in other regions of the country. For example, in the Kamchatka Territory, the amount will rise from 9,000 rubles ($112) to 13,800 rubles ($172), in the Novosibirsk region — to 10,860 rubles ($135), and in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region — from 6,000 rubles ($75) to 8,000 rubles ($100). In the Krasnodar Territory, the cost of the patent will increase by 59%, amounting to 27,000 rubles ($337) instead of 17,000 rubles ($212).
It is worth noting that to obtain a patent, migrants need to gather an extensive package of documents and undergo a medical examination, fingerprinting, and other procedures, which also require financial expenditures, approximately 30,000 rubles ($375).
The labor patent is required for migrants from countries that do not have a visa regime with Russia, except for citizens of the Eurasian Economic Union countries, such as Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. This document is limited to a specific region and field of activity indicated in it, and the cost is set at the level of each subject of the Federation.
