Patriotic Talks in Kindergartens, National Messenger on Every Phone, Paramedics Instead of Doctors

On September 1, many new laws and regulations will come into force in Russia, potentially affecting everyone’s life. IStories has compiled the main changes.

Internet and communications

Ban on the intentional search for “extremist” materials online, with fines for violations ranging from 3,000 to 5,000 rubles. The list of “extremist” materials is maintained by the Ministry of Justice, and currently contains about 5,500 items. The list includes many texts related to Nazi ideology, but also, for example, Alexei Navalny’s book Patriot, Marta Hillers’s memoirs about life in Berlin in 1945, and the rapper Oxxxymiron’s track “Last Bell.”

Digital Development Minister Maksut Shadayev assures that “ordinary users” will not be affected by the law. “We are talking about deliberate searches that bypass bans already established by Roskomnadzor, and the use of circumvention methods. It’s quite straightforward, there’s no room for imagination,” says one of the law’s authors, Ernest Valeev.

Experts, however, have questions about how the law will work in practice, and, most importantly, how “intent” to search will be proven. For example, it is unclear whether an accidental click on a link will be considered a violation, says digital security specialist and lawyer Stanislav Seleznev.

Along with fines for searching for “extremist” materials, the authorities have introduced fines for advertising VPNs: 50,000–80,000 rubles for individuals, 80,000–150,000 for officials, and 200,000–500,000 for legal entities.

Ban on transferring SIM cards to third parties. You can now only transfer a SIM card registered in your name to close relatives — spouses, children, parents, siblings, grandparents, and grandchildren. The fine for violations is 30,000–50,000 rubles for individuals, up to 200,000 for legal entities.

However, the law does not prohibit “gratuitous and short-term use of a number for personal needs.” That is, you can still let a friend or your mother-in-law make a call from your phone. There will also be no punishment for handing your phone to an employee of a government agency or emergency services.

The law separately prescribes punishment for organizing the transfer of SIM cards to third parties — up to three years in prison. Participation in such a crime is punishable by up to two years in prison.

Max messenger on all smartphones. The national messenger from VK, launched this year, must now be pre-installed on all devices sold in Russia. In the list of mandatory pre-installed apps, it will replace VK Messenger.

“The main competitive advantage of the platform will be deep integration with government services,” promise the relevant State Duma committee. To promote Max, the authorities plan to move parent chats for schoolchildren, teacher chats, and building group chats there.

Digital security experts note that the data collected by the messenger could leak or be used “to pressure dissenters.” “I wouldn’t conduct any correspondence there that I wouldn’t want to make public,” says one expert.

An interesting question: how will the authorities ensure Max is pre-installed on Apple products? Officially, the company has not operated in Russia since March 2022, and its goods are supplied via parallel imports. Currently, when activating, for example, an iPhone in Russia, you are offered to go to a page with available apps for download, which includes VK Messenger. But this screen can simply be closed. “The question is whether lawmakers will be satisfied with such a mechanism and whether they will be able to change this list. It seems they will. Or actual pre-installation will be required, but that is done manually. As a result, phones will be sold already activated, which probably won’t please the buyer,” says tech blogger Wylsacom (Valentin Petukhov).

With Android gadgets, it is simpler: there, apps are automatically loaded from internal memory or links to installation files appear.

Ban on advertising on Instagram and Facebook, with fines for violations ranging from 2,000–2,500 rubles for citizens, 4,000–20,000 for officials, and 100,000–500,000 for legal entities. Both advertisers and bloggers who post ads can be fined. “First and foremost, the ban concerns bloggers who touch on sensitive issues; we’re not expecting a targeted hunt for those advertising cake delivery or vacation packages just yet,” said a lawyer specializing in digital affairs.

It is unclear whether there will be fines for ads posted before the law comes into force. Last year, one of the law’s authors, Alexander Khinshtein, said: “If there is a contract, say, an annual advertising contract, it’s clear that in this case no one will be held responsible if the contract was concluded before the law appeared.” However, in June 2025, the deputy head of Roskomnadzor advised that all ads in banned social networks be deleted before September 1 to avoid fines.

According to one agency working with bloggers, due to the new law, bloggers will lose about 2 billion rubles a year. Meanwhile, the Bloggers and Agencies Association calculated that in 2026, taxes from Instagram advertising alone would have amounted to about 1.4 billion rubles.

Culture, science, and education

Ban on drug propaganda in literature, film, and online. Fines for violations for citizens are 2,000–4,000 rubles for distributing relevant literature and works of art, and 5,000–30,000 rubles for drug propaganda online. For repeat propaganda online within a year — up to two years in prison.

The law contains two exceptions for literature and film. First, works in which drugs “constitute an integral part of the artistic concept justified by the genre” do not fall under the ban. But such books and films must carry appropriate labeling. Second, the law does not apply to works published before August 1, 1990. “Conan Doyle, Leo Tolstoy, and so on, Bulgakov, they will not be affected,” promised deputy Fedor Krasheninnikov.

Musicians are already suffering from the law. Roskomnadzor bans songs for drug propaganda, and music labels and streaming services ask artists to delete tracks mentioning narcotic substances. Musicians are also asked to record new versions of songs where drugs are not mentioned or these lines are muted. Some agree.

“I think it’s a disgrace. And it will lead to young people eventually blowing up. <...> I think this is a manifestation of maximum incompetence, maximum desire to just not give a shit about people,” comments on music censorship rapper Ptaha (David Nuriev).

Complete ban on educational activities for “foreign agents.” Until September 1, the ban only applied to educating minors. The authorities consider “lectures, presentations, seminars, master classes, round tables, discussions” as educational activities. The ban on teaching for “foreign agents” remains unchanged: they cannot engage in it in state and municipal institutions.

A week before the law came into force, the Russian Book Union warned bookstores about the consequences of selling books by “foreign agents” after September 1. In particular, they will not receive support for rent and advertising and will not be able to supply books to schools and libraries. Many stores are selling off works by “foreign agents.”

Another consequence of the law — the Russian donation platform Boosty has banned “foreign agents” from publishing new posts.

Gosuslugi from the FSB for scientists. Scientific institutions planning international cooperation will now have to upload all plans to a unified information database and obtain approval from the security services. One of the goals is to control the transfer of scientific research results abroad.

The new law will complicate life for scientists, officials, and law enforcement, and could reduce international cooperation to the level of the Soviet era, writes T-Invariant. There could be even more criminal cases against scientists, believes a former university rector: “On the one hand, FSB officers will know more about current scientific projects. On the other hand, to justify their employment, they will try to cook up cases, thereby justifying the need to tighten legislation.”

For more on how and why scientists are persecuted in Russia, IStories reported previously.

Patriotic talks in kindergartens. A “pilot” of propaganda lessons named Conversations about Important Things for children aged 3–7 will begin in 19 Russian regions, including Moscow, as well as in the occupied Donetsk, Luhansk, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts. In some regions, the lessons are already underway.

A year ago, as Conversations About the Important Things were gaining momentum in schools, educator Dmitry Zitzer said that they would definitely affect younger students: “Imagine this situation: an eight-year-old goes to school, and at school they’re told to kiss a portrait of Putin on the threshold, and then say that in Ukraine live Ukronazis or Banderites. And that in Russia live the brightest people, and that’s why they have the right to kill others. And at home, they’re told: ‘Don’t listen to what’s happening at school.’ That’s not how it works. And except for early schizophrenia, a person won’t get anything out of it.”

Medicine

Paramedics and midwives instead of doctors. Mid-level medical staff can now replace doctors when providing primary and emergency medical care. They can take medical histories, conduct examinations, record electrocardiograms, perform rapid blood sugar tests, and other simple procedures. If a paramedic suspects a serious illness, they must refer the patient to a doctor.

Specialists with secondary medical education could handle certain medical tasks, but the workload on paramedics is already “off the charts,” which is why they are leaving the profession, believes the head of the Feldsher.ru union, Dmitry Belyakov.

In February 2025, the Minister of Health said that Russia lacks about 23,300 doctors and 63,600 mid-level medical personnel. The government wants to make all state-funded places in medical universities targeted: if this happens, graduates will be required to work for a certain period in state organizations.

Ban on driving for people with autism. The list of diseases that prohibit driving now includes, among others, autism, Rett syndrome, and Asperger’s syndrome.

Psychiatrist and professor at Kazan State Medical University Vladimir Mendelevich believes that it is wrong to strip every person diagnosed with autism of their license: “Within the [autistic] spectrum, there can be intellectual disability, motor disorders, or a completely adequate person. Therefore, the principle behind this list cannot be considered scientific. Clearer criteria are needed, or it will be left to the discretion of doctors who will issue driving permits.”

In addition, the traffic police will have new powers to revoke a person’s license if they are found to have a disease from the list. This can be done after a medical checkup or a visit to the clinic.

Increased fees

For drivers. The cost of obtaining a driver’s license will double — from 2,000 to 4,000 rubles, and for the new generation document — from 3,000 to 6,000 rubles. The fee for issuing a vehicle passport will rise from 800 to 1,200 rubles, a paper vehicle registration certificate will increase from 500 to 1,500 rubles, and a plastic one — from 1,500 to 4,500 rubles.

For migrants. For foreign workers new fees are being introduced: 4,200 rubles for issuing or renewing a work permit, the same for extending a work authorization, 2,100 rubles for duplicates of permits or work authorizations, 1,000 rubles for extending the period of temporary stay, and 500 rubles for registration at the place of stay.

In Moscow and the Moscow Oblast, the last fee can be avoided if you install the Amina app and notify the Interior Ministry of your place of residence. IStories reported on how this app (does not) work.