Registration and records
Deadlines for migration registration
The general deadline is seven working days from the day of arrival at the place of stay. Part 3 of article 20 of Law 109-FZ, word for word: «The period for filing a notice of a foreign national's arrival at the place of stay is seven working days from the day of arrival at the place of stay». The same deadline is repeated in point 20 of the Rules approved by Government Decree No. 9 of 15 January 2007.
Working days, not calendar days. Weekends and public holidays do not count — and it is exactly this two- or three-day difference that makes people late most often.
But for many the deadline is different, and several times shorter or longer. It depends not on preference but on two things: where the person is staying and which country they are a citizen of.
Work out your own dates
The ninety days are counted in total over a calendar year, not from each entry. If you have already been in Russia this year, subtract those days yourself.
What is known for certain
Where you are staying
- A home owned by a private person or an organisation — seven working days, filed by the receiving party.
- A hotel, another accommodation facility, a children's camp, an in-patient hospital, a social service organisation — one working day following the day of arrival, and it is the administration that files it, not the guest (part 3.1 of article 20). If the arrival falls on a non-working day, the notice goes in within the first working day.
- A stay of no more than seven days — no registration at all, except in a hotel and similar places (point 5 of part 6 of article 20).
Which country you are a citizen of
- Tajikistan — fifteen days from entry. Article 1 of the Agreement between Russia and Tajikistan of 8 February 2013: citizens of Tajikistan «are exempt from the obligation to register at the place of stay with the competent authorities of the Russian Federation for 15 days». Staying longer than fifteen days requires registration.
- Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan — thirty days from entry, if the person came to work or to look for work. Point 6 of article 97 of the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union: «shall be exempt from the obligation to register (to be placed on record) within 30 days from the date of entry».
- Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and other countries without such a treaty — the general deadline, seven working days. We did not find a separate agreement setting a different period for citizens of Uzbekistan; claiming that no such agreement exists merely because we did not find it would be wrong — but so would writing up a relief that may not exist.
What follows from this
The clock starts at arrival at the place of stay, not at the border. If a person travelled across the country first, those are different dates. For citizens of Tajikistan and the EAEU countries it is the other way round: the exemption period runs from the date of entry, confirmed by the migration card with the border control stamp.
The thirty EAEU days are not for any trip. The Treaty speaks of those who arrived «for the purpose of carrying out employment or seeking employment» and of their family members. Someone visiting relatives is not covered by that provision.
A missed deadline is article 18.8 of the Code of Administrative Offences: a fine of two to five thousand roubles, possibly with expulsion. Expulsion closes entry to Russia for years, which bears no comparison to the cost of one form filed on time. From 3 November 2026 the paragraph on the fine is amended by law 294-FZ of 4 August 2026; the amount above holds until that date.
What a mistake costs
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If the visitor breaks the migration registration rules — a fine of two to five thousand roubles, possibly with expulsion.
ч. 1 ст. 18.8 КоАП РФ
From 03.11.2026 this clause of the Code of Administrative Offences is changed by law № 294-FZ of 04.08.2026 — check the amount after that date.
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For the host — two to four thousand roubles, for an official up to fifty thousand, for an organisation up to five hundred thousand.
ч. 4 ст. 18.9 КоАП РФ
From 03.11.2026 this clause of the Code of Administrative Offences is changed by law № 294-FZ of 04.08.2026 — check the amount after that date.
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The host is responsible for a notification that was not submitted, not only the visitor.
ч. 4 ст. 18.9 КоАП РФ
Where to go next
Who files the notice, what you keep and where to take it — migration registration.
What to do when the permitted stay runs out — extending registration.
Frequently asked questions
Seven days — working or calendar?
Working days. The law says «seven working days from the day of arrival at the place of stay».
I am a citizen of Uzbekistan. Do I also get fifteen days?
No. The fifteen days come from the agreement with Tajikistan and apply to citizens of Tajikistan only. The general deadline is seven working days. **I am a citizen of Kyrgyzstan and came to visit relatives, not to work. Are the thirty days mine?** The EAEU Treaty provision is written about those who came to work or to look for work, and about their family members. A family visit does not fit that wording.
I am staying in a hotel. Do I have to go to the migration office?
No. For guests the notice is filed by the administration, and its deadline is one working day.
I came for three days. Do I need to register?
No, unless you are in a hotel. People who came for no more than seven days are not registered.
The deadlines were verified on 22 September 2026 against the texts of Federal Law 109-FZ of 18 July 2006 in the version of 31 July 2025, Government Decree No. 9 of 15 January 2007, the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union and the Agreement between Russia and the Republic of Tajikistan of 8 February 2013. Every deadline on this page is stored with a verbatim quotation, and the check finds it in the text of the document.