Work Permit for Foreign Students in Russia, description of the service and price in Moscow, Russia, CIS states, and in foreign countries

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Every year, several hundred thousand foreigners arrive in Russia to study in Russian higher education institutions. Many of them would like to balance a job along with their studies; however, until recently, it has been impossible to get an official job while holding a student visa.

This situation has finally been addressed by Federal law #115-FZ on July 25, 2002 with amendments entered by Federal law #16-FZ on February 6, 2020. This law regulates the opportunity for international students to obtain employment during the time of their study.

The following conditions are required for them to obtain a work permit:

1. The application can only be submitted by international students undergoing in-person education, whether it’s for a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree.

2. A student can only work on the territory where the education center is located and can only do work where he has been hired at on the basis of a work agreement.

3. Students are issued a work permit without limitation by any quotas or work permits regulated by internal affairs authorities. Thus, employers who hire students will not need to obtain any special permit to do so.

4. The work permit will have a limited term of validity equal to the work agreement but cannot last for a period of longer than one year. It can be extended, but also only for a period of one year in the case of each extension.

Here are the documents required to obtain a work permit:

An application;
A passport and a notarized translation of the passport into Russian;
An immigration card;
A certificate confirming that the student is studying in person;
A labor agreement;
A government fee payment receipt;
A power of attorney (if the documents are provided by a representative of the student).

However, the student must obtain the work permit himself or herself in person.