In Russia, it has been proposed to deport migrant children who do not attend school

The Council for Human Rights in Russia believes that children who are unable to receive an education pose a threat to the country’s security.

The Council under the President of the Russian Federation for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights (HRC) is considering the possibility of deporting migrant families whose children do not attend school.

According to the press service of the HRC, the head of the council, Valery Fadeev, emphasized that in Russia, parents are obligated to ensure that their children receive basic general education, and in case of non-compliance, such parents may lose their parental rights or have them restricted.

He noted that although Tajikistan has tightened administrative and criminal liability for obstructing access to general secondary education, citizens of that country come to Russia and do not consider it necessary to send their children to school. He pointed out that this way, the rights of hundreds of thousands of children on the territory of Russia are being violated.

“If foreign citizens are not willing to comply with the laws of the host country, they should go back, and their children’s right to education should be ensured by their country of origin. We cannot afford a careless attitude towards the future of children, even if they are not citizens of Russia and came here with labor migrants,” Fadeev stated.

The head of the HRC also stated that the presence of abandoned children and teenagers on the streets and in public places threatens to become a serious criminogenic factor.

Earlier, a similar statement was made by State Duma deputy from the “New People” party, Sardana Avksentieva.

After the terrorist attack at “Crocus City Hall” in the spring of 2024, Russian authorities implemented a series of measures against migrants. In particular, starting from April 2025, migrant children will only be able to enroll in school if they pass a Russian language exam. However, authorities have rejected 81% of applications, citing insufficient documentation, inaccurate information, or lack of available spots in schools.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, there are more than 785,000 minors who are citizens of foreign countries in the country, but only 192,200 of them (24.5%) attend school.