The debt threshold for Russians who are not allowed to leave the country is to be increased: today 30 thousand is no longer “money”

The idea of ​​the deputies to review the conditions of the ban on travel abroad for debtors at first glance looks like a concession: the "debt threshold", after which the iron curtain slams shut in front of a citizen of the Russian Federation, is proposed to be raised as "outdated". But when studying the issue, it becomes clear that in this way malicious repeat debtors will be able to get more attention, time and effort from bailiffs. "MK" looked into the initiative with the help of lawyers and citizens who suffered from the previous conditions.

The author of the proposal and the corresponding bill, the head of the lower house of parliament's committee on labor, Yaroslav Nilov, called the existing "thresholds" for non-departure outdated and gave an example. Today, restrictions on leaving the Russian Federation can be imposed for debts of 30 thousand rubles, and for "recidivism" - from 10 thousand. That is, in case of "malicious" non-payment, the basis can be ordinary unpaid traffic fines or overdue utility bills. The parliamentarian recalled that in 2017, when these rules were developed, the minimum wage (MW) was 7,500 rubles - that is, 30 thousand rubles were a very significant amount at that time. But since then, the MW has almost tripled, and for many, fines of "ten" are less noticeable, some may simply forget about them. For example, those who did not receive a notification because they do not live at the place of registration. At the same time, citizens who have forgotten or do not know about their unpaid fine may, by and large, be quite conscientious payers, and it is simply unreasonable to waste the time of bailiffs and passport control officers on them. But if the minimum debt threshold is increased by 3 times, as well as the minimum wage, then it will not be so easy to forget about the "debt" of 90 thousand. And for alimony payers, their existing threshold of 30 thousand rubles will remain with them.

— Alimony payers almost never say, when they are stopped at the border with a suitcase, “Oh, I didn’t know I owed my ex-family 30 thousand,” Natalya, a border control officer at one of the capital’s airports, shares in an informal setting. — They can say that “the transfer didn’t go through” or “wasn’t reflected,” that the ex deliberately hid the information, and so on. But most people understand perfectly well what the matter is. But a couple of outstanding traffic fines or unpaid utilities totaling 30 thousand rubles, not to mention 10 thousand, are a real surprise for many tourists. And it’s such a shame, considering that because of this, they lose foreign tours worth an average of 200 thousand.

Today's minimum wage is 22,400 rubles. A monthly payment for housing and communal services in a small Moscow apartment can reach up to ten thousand. In the 8 years since the last edition of the "travel ban rules", not only housing and communal services tariffs have increased, but also fines, penalties, and other mandatory payments.

— At today's threshold, even a fine for illegal parking or speeding can result in a ban on leaving the country! — Mikhail from Moscow supports the deputy initiative on behalf of his colleagues and neighbors. — Of course, many are simply not aware that the fine is hanging! Well, how can a person risk a foreign tour for several hundred or an expensive plane ticket in order to "squeeze" 30 thousand from the state?! It's good that at least they understood this! The border guards at the local level may understand everything, but the state machine has no soul: if your last name has a "check mark" for a fine, that's it, the vacation is cancelled. No one will listen to your explanations.

If the parliamentary initiative is adopted, the minimum amount at which a Russian citizen may not be allowed to leave the country due to a "tick" from the bailiffs regarding unpaid debts will be a round sum of 90 thousand rubles. And in the event of the debtor's failure to comply with the requirements for payment of the debt (that is, if he tries to leave again without paying off all the debts), exactly 30 thousand.

The new rules will not affect alimony debtors. The authors of the bill are confident that this approach will allow bailiffs to concentrate their efforts on systematic defaulters, without being distracted by forgetful citizens or those who have temporarily fallen into a financial "hole". Thus, it will be easier for conscientious payers, even if they have missed a couple of fines or "squandered" until payday, but for each repeat offender in the case of unpaid loans there will be more bailiffs.