Russia and China are friendly countries. Chinese citizens choose Russia for study, work, life and business.
However, during entering Russia, a Chinese may be surprised by some unexpected news. He was banned from entering the country. The foreigner has a connection with the Russian state and of course he worries about this.
However, do not immediately worry, many entries ban can be legally lifted or reduced. Every decision of the authority can be appealed. This article will talk about this, as well as about the reasons for the ban, the terms of the ban, and most importantly, we will give useful instructions for Chinese citizens from practicing lawyers.
Our advantages are that we deal with entry bans for a long time and we know the real practice of working with courts and authorities.
In addition, we can:
- Check and find out the reason for 1 day. If there is no reason for the ban in the notice of the Chinese citizen;
- Evaluate each individual situation;
- Draw up procedural documents (application to the authority, statement of claim to the court).
For the convenience of foreigners, we can accept payments to an account in the European Union.
Entry ban from the point of view of Russian law
An entry ban is a fairly common administrative measure. It exists not only in Russia, but also in other countries. As a rule, a foreigner breaks the law and receives a ban from the authorities for this.
The term of the ban depends on what law the foreigner violated and what consequences it had. Each situation must be assessed individually.
In Russia, about ten state authorities can impose an entry ban. The most common is a ban from the Ministry of Internal Affairs or Rospotrebnadzor.
To find out all the reasons for the ban, you need to read Federal Law No. 114 “On the procedure for leaving and entering the Russian Federation”.
Now it is worth considering the possible reasons for the ban on entry. The law contains more than 15 and it is necessary to pay attention to the most common ones.
Entry ban due to administrative responsibility of a Chinese citizen
All entry bans begin with notice to the Chinese citizen. May be orally or in writing. Most often, a notification is handed to a foreign citizen at the border – at the border checkpoint: at the airport of arrival, when you are already in the Russian Federation, at the land border, when you are standing at the border of the Russian Federation.
Very often there are cases when a foreigner does not receive a notification, but he is prohibited from entering the country. In this case, you need to find out the reason for the ban. You can do it yourself or get help from a lawyer.
So, a Chinese citizen received a notice and sees in it that he is denied entry under part 12. Art. 27 or part 4 of article 26. For a foreigner, of course, it will be a mystery. However, the lawyer will answer you that this ban can get if a foreigner has been brought to administrative responsibility in Russia more than twice. This may be within a year or five years, depending on the administrative offense.
For example, a foreigner violated the regime of stay in Russia twice. He was deceived with registration, he bought it.
First of all, we must find out the reason and duration of the ban. Remember that any decision of the authorities can be tried to appeal. To do this, you need to write a statement to the authorities, where we will describe our situation, give evidence and ask to remove or reduce the ban.
What will be important facts:
We have the right to appeal to any level of the law, which will help protect our rights.
1.International conventions.
For example, Article 12 of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights “No one may be subjected to arbitrary interference in his personal and family life. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or such attacks.”
Here we should note that the family and the presence of close relatives in Russia will be an important factor for the authority or court. A Chinese citizen can have a spouse, children, parents in Russia, and this will be a big plus for lifting or reducing the ban.
2.Constitution of the Russian Federation
The basic law of Russia is the Constitution. The principles of the Constitution must be respected and observed.
Article 35 of the Constitution. Everyone has the right to own property, own, use and dispose of it both individually and jointly with other persons.
This is true. The presence of real estate in Russia for a Chinese citizen will be a plus, as well as a family. A ban on entry into Russia can take away a foreigner’s right to use their property. The authorities and the courts should also pay attention to this.
Also under Art. 43 of the Constitution, everyone has the right to education. Many students from China study in Russia. It should be understood that if a foreigner receives an entry ban, he will be deprived of the right to complete his education in Russia and may even lose the money he paid.
In general, the logic here is simple. If something connects a Chinese citizen with Russia, then it will be easier to appeal, remove or reduce the ban on this point.
Lawyers appeal the decision of the authority by filing a complaint with the authority itself. By law, the authority has 30 days for make an answer for Chinese citizen.
If it doesn’t work, then we go to court. Every situation is different, and every claim will be different. The claim is submitted to the district court at the location of the authority, or at the place of registration.
The claim consists of several parts. It should be clear to the court and describe the situation in detail. The lawyer refers to the evidence and norms of the law. For example, if there was a canceled decision on bringing to administrative responsibility, then it must be indicated.
In three days after the filing of the claim, the judge decides whether to accept the claim for proceedings. If the claim is accepted, it is considered in two months. Although in fact it takes all 3-4 months. You can appeal the decision to a higher court within a month.
If the ban is lifted, then you need to wait a bit. The base of the Ministry of Internal Affairs should be updated.
Chinese citizen violated terms of stay in Russia
Violation of the terms of stay is also an administrative offense. However, it is separated in the law.
In Russia, there are limits on stay for foreigners. It is set to 90 days and 180 days. For violation of the terms, a foreigner may receive a ban from the Ministry of Internal Affairs for three years and for five years.
Migration documents are important. The authority could also make a mistake and incorrectly calculate these terms. The lawyer will analyze the situation and appeal the decision.
Also, do not forget about the connection of a foreigner with the state, about which we wrote earlier.
In general, as practice shows, a ban due to an administrative offense is removed mainly through the courts. This is the most working system. If the Ministry of Internal Affairs made a mistake in the migration registration documents, then we indicate this in the statement of claim.
Quite often there is a situation when a foreigner has already left the country, but the Ministry of Internal Affairs did not note this in the documents. Each situation must be evaluated and not afraid to go to court with a statement.
Entry ban due to debt to the state
This is a ban for a debt to the state: for a fine, for a tax debt, for a customs debt. It’s also an administrative measure. It is important to remember that the debt must be related to the state. If you took a loan from a commercial bank, then no one can impose a ban on entry. This is a matter of civil law.
Let’s take a look at the situation with an example. The Chinese citizen did not receive a letter that he needed to pay property tax and did not pay this tax. There was a tax debt for a certain period. The Chinese citizen then found out that he had received a ban on entering Russia.
→ Here the first question that arises is how to understand why the ban was imposed. Foreigners do not always receive a notification, very often they have to find out the information in the database themselves.
→ You also need to find out why the debt to the state arose. To do this, you need to write a request and get an answer what kind of debt (fine) with details. Therefore, most often, people do not know how to pay off debt and where to transfer money
A foreigner must write a statement to the authority that imposed the ban. In our example, this is the Federal Tax Service or the territorial authority of the Federal Tax Service.
→ Next, a Chinese citizen must pay this debt. If he is in Russia, then he can do it through a Russian bank, if in another country, then ask someone to pay the debt through a Russian bank. You can also use the online banking application. It is important to get a receipt for payment – this is our proof
→ Next, we write to the authority that we have paid the debt for this period and attach a scan of the passport, a receipt for payment and a response from the authority, where they write about the foreigner’s debt.
If the ban is lifted, then you should not immediately enter. You have to wait about a month for the database to be updated.
The undesirability of staying in Russia
The undesirability of staying is a separate section that is worth paying attention to. From the point of view of the law, this is a legal regime in relation to a foreign citizen or stateless person, arising by decision of an authority and prohibiting a person from being on the territory of the Russian Federation for reasons established by law.
Now in simple words. Due to the undesirability of the stay, an entry ban may be imposed. This is done by the authority, if it has a reason. The grounds may be a conviction of a foreign citizen for a crime committed in the Russian Federation or an illness of a foreign citizen.
Let’s take a look at each case.
- Unwillingness to stay due to a criminal record
A criminal record is a legal situation in which a foreigner was sentenced by a court under an article of the Criminal Code. This type of prohibition is imposed by the penitentiary service.
The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation wrote several times that this should be a temporary measure. However, from time to time this principle is violated, and the foreigner receives a ban without a time limit. Here, his goal is to try to reduce the ban to a criminal record.
As we have already said, the penitentiary service issues an order. In the event that the term of the criminal record has expired, the order disappears.
If the criminal record has expired, or it has been withdrawn or extinguished, then the foreigner can try to remove the entry ban. This happens with a statement to the territorial body of the penitentiary service or with the help of the court.
An important point here will be, as in other cases, the connection of a Chinese citizen with Russia. Education, close relatives, real estate. In addition, it is important to indicate in the claim that the foreigner does not pose a danger to the society of the Russian Federation.
- Undesirability of staying in Russia due to illness
Another important point to pay attention to. The state may impose a ban on a foreigner who suffers from a disease listed by the Ministry of Health. These are tuberculosis, leprosy, syphilis, HIV, drug addiction.
The decision on the ban is made by Rospotrebnadzor. The decision on the undesirability of stay is made within a period of not more than 1 month from the date of receipt by the authority from the medical organization of a medical document confirming the detection of an infectious disease in a foreign citizen or stateless person that has a danger to others
Here it is immediately worth noting that the ban can be lifted only with two facts:
- The foreign citizen has fully recovered;
- The foreigner has a certificate of this or a medical opinion.
Based on this, we understand that in order to lift the ban on entry, the disease must be curable. With incurable diseases it is more difficult. Here you have to prove the connection of a foreigner with Russia. Such a situation, for example, with HIV. Only close relatives in Russia will help in this matter.
If a foreigner is sick with tuberculosis or syphilis, then first he needs a course of treatment and get rid of the disease. Further, he must pass a medical commission in his country, if a citizen of China, then, of course, in China, and receive a conclusion on recovery.
Then you need to make an application to Rospotrebnadzor. Here is an example (https://drive.google.com/file/d/1P6Y0zBIz3TCNR9vaIImLi5dTDTFm_kyZ/view
The application for suspension of the decision on the undesirability of stay must be accompanied by medical documents confirming the passage of treatment for a disease in the territory of another state and containing information about the treatment performed and its results, issued no earlier than 3 months before the date of sending the application and the original translation of these documents into Russian.
Also, if Rospotrebnadzor refused you, we can go to court. In one of our cases, in the position of the statement of claim, we indicated that the foreigner had recovered from the disease and had a medical certificate about it. And the decision on the undesirability of staying in the Russian Federation violates his right to free entry and exit from the country, the right to personal and family life. (Constitutional principles).
With good evidence, the right legal position that a qualified migration lawyer can help with, you have a chance of successfully lifting the entry ban.
Instruction for Chinese citizens
We have told you about the most common reasons for a ban on entry. Now from business to practice. We give instructions on what to do if you have received an entry ban.
First, you need to find out the reason for the ban. There are two options here. a foreigner must receive a notification, it contains information about the authority that imposed the ban, its name. Then the document contains an article and a paragraph of the law that became the basis for this measure, as well as the term of the ban.
Life hack from lawyers:
We look at the article number in the notification and determine why the entry ban was imposed.
- Part 4 Art. 26, part 8 of article 26, paragraphs 12 and 13 of part 1 of Art. 27 – Administrative responsibility, The ban on entry is removed mainly through the court and in the presence of close relatives who are citizens of the Russian Federation;
- Subparagraph 10 of part 1 of Art. 27 – debt to the state (must be paid);
- Subparagraph 7 of part 1 of Art. 27 – from the Ministry of Justice, if a person was serving a sentence in the Russian Federation for violating the Criminal Code, the term of the ban is reduced by the term of the conviction;
- Subparagraph 7 of part 1 of Art. 27, a ban from Rospotrebnadzor, this is a ban due to illness, is also removed if it is syphilis or tuberculosis.
Not always a foreigner receives a notification on paper. Often you have to find out the reason for the ban yourself.
In this case, it is worth going to the official website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and filling in the data. (http://сервисы.гувм.мвд.рф/info-service.htm?sid=3000) Here you will not find out the very reason for the ban, but you will understand which region is the initiator. Well, if your name is on the lists on this site, you will at least understand which body imposed the ban.
The official website may report that no grounds were found preventing entry, this does not always mean that they really do not exist. The system contains only information from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, other bodies have their own sources, they must be contacted separately.
If a foreigner knows only the region where the ban came from, then you need to write a request in the form of the Ministry of the Interior. The request must be understandable to the employee, which is why it is necessary to indicate the last name, first name, date of birth, telephone number, postal address, citizenship, passport data, the subject of the appeal will be that the foreigner does not know the reason for the ban on entry, and does not see clear grounds for this , did not commit illegal acts, complied with all the requirements of Russian legislation. A copy of the passport must also be attached to the request.
So, after we found out the reason for the ban. We work individually with the different types of bans. A lawyer can evaluate your situation, he knows the practice and will tell you what needs to be done (pay a fine, get a medical certificate, look at migration registration documents, there are different actions for each situation).
Next begin the legal process. This:
- Application to the authorities (We ask to lift the ban, describe our situation);
- Statement of claim to the court (We also describe our situation, give a legal position, write what the authority is wrong about).
Do not panic because of the ban on entry. You need to assess your situation and take it seriously.