Sobyanin announced a reduction in crime among foreigners in Moscow by 39%

MOSCOW, September 30 - RIA Novosti. The number of crimes committed by foreign citizens in Moscow decreased by 39% in the first half of 2026, reported the mayor of the capital Sergei Sobyanin.

Sobyanin on Tuesday took part in the work of the Security Council commission on migration policy. There he presented the results of the accounting and control system in the migration sphere to the Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev and the Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Tatyana Golikova.

“Based on the results of the first half of 2026, the number of incidents (crimes committed by foreign citizens - ed.) decreased by 39% compared to the same period last year,” Sobyanin wrote in a channel on the Max platform.

He noted that this result was achieved thanks to the introduction in 2024 of a number of new accounting and control mechanisms in the migration sphere.

“The experiment has fully justified itself. The measures help ensure stability in the labor market and at the same time have a positive impact on reducing crime,” the head of the city emphasized.

Thus, according to Sobyanin’s message, at checkpoints across the state border of the Russian Federation there is equipment for collecting personal biometric data of foreign citizens. The procedure takes a few minutes, and the interface is available in different languages.

“Biometrics are checked against information from information systems in real time. If it turns out that a person is wanted or has committed crimes that require his detention, law enforcement officers will be able to respond quickly,” the mayor said.

Moscow medical institutions receive genomic information of foreigners during medical examinations. This information is also used by law enforcement officers in operational search activities throughout the country, Sobyanin said.

“Migrant workers and a number of other categories issue electronic cards of foreign citizens, using which police officers can quickly check information about their status and the presence of offenses,” the mayor said.

In addition, in 2025, an experimental regime for registering citizens from visa-free countries (with the exception of Belarus) using the Amina application was launched, Sobyanin added.