Until 2021, the Government of the Russian Federation only discussed the issue of limiting the travel abroad of law enforcement officers, and today there is already a decree imposing a ban on police and civil servants leaving the country. Currently, such restrictions are becoming especially relevant due to the imposition of sanctions by the West against Russia. Traveling abroad for police officers in 2021 becomes possible only when foreign countries are selected from the list of permitted countries, which is constantly changing due to the unstable political situation in the world.
The head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia Vladimir Kolokoltsev approved the list of countries where employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are allowed to travel in 2021. The list lists 13 states that are considered safe for police officers. Among them: Vietnam, Cuba, China, Abkhazia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and South Ossetia. According to the approved list, civil servants can also go on vacation. I would like to recall the fact that travel by the Russian police was prohibited in the spring of 2021 due to the international political situation.
Reasons for imposing a ban on travel abroad for police officers
The directive of the Ministry of Defense does not contain a categorical ban on employees of internal organs from leaving Russia, but rather narrows the list of foreign countries where they are allowed to travel. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also issued a warning that the safety of police officers in some countries may be in question. The leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and other power structures took the warning as an order and confiscated the foreign passports of the employees. The main reasons for introducing a ban on holidays abroad are considered to be:
- Attempts to protect law enforcement officials from provocations that are possible on the territory of countries that have concluded an extradition agreement with the United States of America.
- Protection of state secrets. In this case, the ban on leaving the country applies only to employees admitted to classified information. A permit to travel abroad is issued on an individual request, while the authorized person of the department is guided by the degree of secrecy of the documents with which the employee was familiarized.
- Ensuring the safety of the police officers themselves. We are talking about countries where Russian legislation does not apply.
Is there a law restricting travel outside Russia for employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs
The bill prohibiting employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation from traveling abroad was withdrawn (not adopted), but at the level of recommendations it is proposed to refrain from traveling abroad. That is, there is no strict ban on foreign travel at the moment. Establishing restrictions on travel outside Russia is the prerogative of the leadership of the territorial divisions of power structures: somewhere there have been no changes in relation to the rest of police officers abroad, and somewhere the recommendations of the Ministry of Defense were taken as an order. As for the employees who have access to secret information of a high degree of secrecy, the ban applies to them on the basis of the current Federal Law of 21.07.1993 No. 5485-1 “On State Secrets”. The issue of granting them permission to travel abroad is considered on an individual basis and only if there are good reasons for the temporary lifting of the ban on crossing the borders of Russia. A similar procedure for restricting exit from Russia applies to civilians who have entered into an agreement with the RF Ministry of Defense, which provides for the imposition of a temporary ban on leaving. The last proposal from the State Duma deputies to consider a draft law imposing a temporary ban on travel abroad for police officers and representatives of “certain positions in the Ministry of Internal Affairs” was received in March 2021. One of the points of the document is the study of the issue of exclusion from the ranks of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of holders of a residence permit and other documents that are the basis for residence on the territory of foreign states. After a preliminary study of the proposal, the government instructed to develop a list of positions that will be subject to the ban on leaving Russia. No conceptual basis for rejecting the bill was found. If the law is adopted, the labor contract of employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs will be supplemented with an appropriate article, which implies the imposition of a temporary restriction on foreign travel by employees of law enforcement agencies.
What are the established degrees of data secrecy
Information that is not subject to disclosure by employees of law enforcement agencies, which were admitted to state secrets, is conditionally divided into three degrees:
- Information classified as "Secret" is available to law enforcement officers and is intended for official use.
- Information classified as “Top Secret” can be obtained by employees engaged in operational-search work and operational officers of the penal system.
- Data classified as "Special Importance" is provided exclusively to heads of departments and heads of departments.
The right to travel outside the country is limited in the event that a law enforcement officer had access to information related to information classified as “Top Secret” and “Of Special Importance”. He can be considered a travel ban for no more than 5 years or for a shorter period if it is stipulated in an employment agreement or contract.
The ban can be extended by decision of the interdepartmental commission for up to 10 years.
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Which countries are police officers allowed to travel to?
In the event that a police officer did not have access to state secrets, the ban on police officers from traveling abroad will be advisory in nature. There are certain situations in which a recommendation can be equated to an order, and vice versa - sometimes an exception can be made in relation to an employee of the security department. The strictest restrictions are set in relation to NATO countries and foreign states that have concluded an extradition treaty with the United States. The easiest way is to go abroad if the purpose of the trip is to visit a country friendly to Russia. 
A complete list of countries that are not recommended for police officers to visit is not currently published. However, there is a list of foreign states where prosecutors cannot go - it is contained in the order of the Prosecutor General's Office of 24.04. 2021 No. 201 “On Restricting Prosecutors of Bodies and Institutions of the Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation to Travel Abroad”: there are 166 such countries in total. There is reason to believe that the list of “prohibited” states for police officers will be similar. There are only 32 countries where police officers are allowed to travel abroad. Their list can be found in the appendix to the order of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation of 21.08. 2021 No. 360 "List of foreign countries to which it is possible for employees of the Main Directorate and subordinate units to travel on tourist trips, taking into account the emerging international situation."
What documents will be required to obtain a permit to travel abroad
In many divisions of law enforcement agencies, their passports were confiscated from employees.When new police officers are employed, they submit this document to the personnel department or the Main Directorate of Internal Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs within 5 days after the start of work. The procedure for obtaining permission to enter a country from the list of allowed states to visit is not difficult. But in order to achieve the opportunity to travel abroad to one of the prohibited foreign countries, the police must go through a difficult process of obtaining permission. For this you will need:
- Submit a report to the manager according to the established template indicating the country where it became necessary to go. It is necessary to inform the reason for which the trip is planned and describe the route in detail. A weighty reason for filing a petition can be:
- the need for urgent treatment abroad;
- departure on issues of inheritance;
- resolving issues of alienation of property that is registered on the territory of a foreign state;
- visiting seriously ill relatives or the grave of a deceased family member.
- Wait for a written response from the chief, put the date and signature on the paper as confirmation that the police officer was familiar with the decision. If the certificate says about the approval of the application to travel abroad, it will come in handy for getting your foreign passport back.
- Transfer the received permission (certificate) to the personnel department or department of the Main Directorate of Internal Affairs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, if the document was handed over there, and receive a foreign passport.
- Return your passport immediately upon returning from an overseas trip.
- Provide command with a detailed report on the trip.
The maximum possible stay of a police officer outside Russia is 15 days. If an employee of the law enforcement agency needs more time to resolve the issues that have arisen, it is also necessary to write about this in the report - in such a situation, his immediate superior will have to consult with the higher management. Failure to comply with the above requirements will be followed by a fine and dismissal of the police officer for traveling abroad.
Conclusion
An exact forecast as to when the police will be allowed to travel abroad is currently impossible to give. The list of foreign countries where law enforcement officers are not recommended to travel is constantly changing depending on the geopolitical situation in the world: countries with which Russia has strained relations immediately fall into the list of prohibited visits. In general, the government of the Russian Federation and the General Prosecutor's Office advise police officers to opt for holidays in resort areas within the Russian Federation.
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