Russia to curb income of 'foreign agents' and those who leave

7/11/2024 17:16

        Russia plans to significantly tighten the rules governing the income received by those deemed "foreign agents" and of those who speak negatively about Russia after leaving the country, the speaker of the Russian parliament said on Thursday.
        
        Russian law requires any person or organisation receiving support from outside Russia or who is under foreign influence to register as a "foreign agent", a label that has negative Soviet-era connotations and brings onerous bureaucratic requirements.
        
        Russia says the law is less strict than the 1938 U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act, though the Russian law has been applied to almost all of the leaders of the divided opposition and is considered by some dissidents to be a badge of honour.
        
        Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of the lower house of the Russian parliament, said that the Duma was working on tightening the rules over copyright and intellectual rights payments to foreign agents by forcing them to use special rouble accounts for such payments.
        
        The rules would cover all income from intellectual activity and brands, including works of science, literature and art, performances, broadcasting, inventions and trademarks.