In Russia, migrants who do not teach their children the Russian language are held accountable

^{Photo: RIA Novosti}
The Russian Ministry of Education has proposed to hold migrants administratively liable for failing to provide additional education for their children who failed the Russian language proficiency test during school admission. The agency has drafted a procedure for conducting tests.

According to the document, if a child fails the test, he or she will be offered an additional program to study the Russian language. Such a training system should last three months and its costs should be covered by the parents.

The regional government will be required to send information to the territorial internal affairs bodies and guardianship authorities about the children of migrants who have been admitted to school, as well as who failed the test and was sent for additional classes.

If, within a month after the child failed the test, it is determined that he or she is not attending additional classes, the guardianship authorities will conduct an inspection at the foreign citizen’s place of residence. They must notify the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Commission for Work with Minors of “failure or improper fulfillment of the obligation to educate the child.” In turn, they will hold the child’s parents administratively liable.

In December 2024, the Russian State Duma adopted a law prohibiting Russian schools from admitting children of migrants who have failed the Russian language proficiency test. According to the law, when enrolling in a school, “the child’s legal stay in the territory of the Russian Federation is verified.” The Russian language test will be free for children of migrants.

According to analysts at Migrant Service, in 2024, about 1 million migrants left Russia, mainly citizens of countries such as Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan. In 2025, this trend will continue and, according to the hypothesis, about 1 million more migrant workers will leave Russia in search of more attractive working conditions abroad. Follow “Zamin” news on “Telegram”