Russian courts imposed fines of 25.8 million rubles on 'foreign agents' over a year and a half for non-compliance with mandatory requirements for their activities, writes TASS citing data from the Judicial Department.
In total, from the beginning of 2023 to mid-2024, 620 fines were imposed, 471 of them against individuals. Another 67 cases were fines against officials of organizations, and foreigners were fined five times.
Statistics show that the pace of sanctions against 'foreign agents' is accelerating. Throughout 2023, courts issued 368 fines for violating the order of 'foreign agent' activities totaling 15.2 million rubles. In 2024, only in the first half of the year, 252 fines were imposed for a total amount of more than 10 million rubles.
Meanwhile, voluntarily or forcibly, 'foreign agents' paid less than 20% of the imposed fines.
As calculated by 'Mediazona'*, by the end of 2024, 170 people received two fines each under the administrative article for violating the order of 'foreign agent' activities, which allows for a criminal case to be initiated against them. In January, only every second (47%) of the 400 people on the Ministry of Justice's list had at least one protocol, and by December, this was already two-thirds (69%), even though the number of 'foreign agents' increased by a hundred.
The unified register of 'foreign agents' has been maintained since December 1, 2022, and currently contains 906 entries. 'Foreign agents' must report their income, indicate labeling when publishing any material or post. If these requirements are not met, 'foreign agents' are held administratively liable, and repeated administrative fines may lead to criminal liability.
The State Duma passed a law prohibiting the placement of advertisements with 'foreign agents', and 'foreign agents' themselves were banned from participating in elections. A law was also passed according to which all income of 'foreign agents' in Russia, including the sale and rental of real estate, will be deposited into a special ruble account, which can only be accessed after the 'foreign agent' status is removed.
* Recognized as a 'foreign agent' in the Russian Federation.