Putin signs law on electronic summonses and restrictions on ‘dodgers’

President of Russia Vladimir Putin signed a law that makes electronic military summonses equivalent to those delivered on paper, creates a register of military-eligible people, and closes borders to “draft dodgers.” The document has been published on the official portal for legal information.

The law provides for the creation of a digital register of military records, which will be maintained by military enlistment offices. The register will include the personal information for people eligible for military service, including their official and unofficial residences, workplaces, health records, and other data. The Internal Affairs Ministry, the Federal Tax Service, courts, medical organizations, educational institutions, and various other departments and organizations will be required to supply information to the register.

Military enlistment offices will now be able to send summonses by registered mail or electronically, to a personal account on Russia’s federal state services website. A summons will be considered received as soon as it is posted to a state services account.

After a summons is considered delivered, the eligible party will be barred from leaving the country until they appear at a military enlistment office. A “dodger” may also lose the legal right to drive a car, register real estate, or take out loans.

On April 11, the State Duma passed the corresponding bill on second and third readings. The following day, the Federation Council approved it.

Lyudmila Narusova was the only senator to vote against the bill. She said that the bill’s amendments are aimed at restricting citizens’ rights and are not constitutional. “Let’s not be clever, we all understand what the law is aiming at,” she said.