It was stated that the number of crimes committed by migrants in Russia has decreased
Russia has tightened migration control: the number of crimes committed by foreigners has decreased by 40 percent, about 100 thousand people have been expelled from the country, and the entry of another 197 thousand people has been banned.
**It was reported that crimes committed by migrants in Russia have decreased**
In the first half of 2026, the number of crimes committed by foreign citizens in Russia decreased by 40 percent, amounting to 14.5 thousand.
For comparison, according to the results of last year, 41 thousand crimes were committed by foreigners.
Kikot explained this decrease in the indicator, among other things, by the expansion of the powers of the migration service. Currently, the main focus is on "identifying organized crime groups, illegal migration channels, and underground printing houses producing forged documents." The number of identified organized groups increased by 30 percent.
Just under half of the crimes committed by foreigners occur in the city of Moscow, the Moscow region, and Saint Petersburg. In other regions, this figure averages 2–3 percent.
At the same time, the Ministry of Internal Affairs has strengthened migration control. The number of raids increased to 155 thousand, and the number of inspected legal entities grew by 43 percent. About 100 thousand foreigners were expelled from Russia, 75 thousand of them forcibly. 197 thousand foreigners who violated the legislation were banned from entering the country.
In addition, the number of identified forged documents and documents containing deliberately false information increased tenfold. Based on the results of the inspections, 20 thousand temporary residence permits and residence permits were revoked.
Migration control points are being established at transport hubs and near state border checkpoints. Currently, 23 such points are operating. According to Kikot, the new mechanism allows preventing illegal migrants from passing through border checkpoints and "blocking the re-entry path" into the country for foreigners leaving Russia after committing an offense.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs notes that as a result of the measures taken, the number of foreigners staying in Russia has decreased by 8 percent. At the same time, "the number of legally working migrants is increasing."
In 2027, the Ministry of Internal Affairs plans to launch an analytical center that will also use artificial intelligence. It will integrate data from border and migration control, facial recognition cameras, employers, and government agencies.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, about 9 million foreigners come to Russia every year. Currently, 6–6.5 million foreign citizens live in the country, including about 3 million migrant workers and 1.7 million of their family members.