Russia to enforce location tracking app on all foreigners in Moscow

The Russian government has introduced a new law that makes installing a tracking app mandatory for all foreign nationals in the Moscow region.

The new proposal was announced by the chairman of the State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin, who presented it as a measure to tackle migrant crimes.

"The adopted mechanism will allow, using modern technologies, to strengthen control in the field of migration and will also contribute to reducing the number of violations and crimes in this area," stated Volodin.

Using a mobile application that all foreigners will have to install on their smartphones, the Russian state will receive the following information:

• Residence location
• Fingerprint
• Face photograph
• Real-time geo-location monitoring

"If migrants change their actual place of residence, they will be required to inform the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) within three working days," the high-ranking politician explained.

The measures will not apply to diplomats of foreign countries or citizens of Belarus.

Foreigners attempting to avoid their obligation in relation to the new law will be added to a registry of monitored individuals and deported from Russia.

Russian internet freedom observatory Roskomsvoboda's reactions to this proposal reflect skepticism and concern.

Lawyer Anna Minushkina noted that the proposal violates Articles 23 and 24 of the Russian Constitution, guaranteeing the right to privacy.

President of the Uzbek Community in Moscow, Viktor Teplyankov, characterized the initiative as "ill-conceived and difficult to implement," expressing doubts about its feasibility.

Finally, PSP Foundation's Andrey Yakimov warned that such aggressive measures are bound to deter potential labor migrants, creating a different problem in the country.

The proposal hasn't reached its final form yet, and specifics like what happens in the case of device theft/loss or similar technical or practical obstacles are to be addressed in the upcoming period during meetings between the Ministry and regional authorities.

The mass-surveillance experiment will run until September 2029, and if deemed successful, the mechanism will extend to cover more parts of the country.