Driver Registration Bribery Schemes Reported Across Russia

The deputy chairman of the NAS, Anton Shaparin, sent a letter to Vladimir Kolokoltsev, the Russian interior minister, asking for action against artificial queues in the traffic police registration offices. The document is available from socialbites.ca.

According to a human rights activist, electronic queue tickets from the traffic police are often unavailable. Meanwhile, private individuals advertise services on public platforms that promise help with the interdistrict registration and examination departments (MREO) in exchange for money. Shaparin describes offers that guarantee services without waiting in line or showing up in person, including car registration, document replacements, expedited driver license issuance, passing exam results, and other tasks. He also notes promises of assistance in passing the theoretical driving test.

The deputy chairman stresses that the presence of such advertisements on public internet portals deserves special oversight by the leadership of the Main Directorate for Traffic Safety of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Main Directorate for Internal Security. He points out that the issue has not been thoroughly studied, despite the long existence of these sites and the thousands of comments from people claiming to be satisfied customers.

There is a call to verify whether ads for commercial traffic police services exist, to uncover such schemes, and to identify those responsible for this corruption.

“If one tries to obtain a traffic police registration ticket through the Civil Services, success is unlikely. The listings disappear as soon as they appear. I have heard of a case where a young woman’s car was towed for driving without a license plate because she could not sign up for registration, and no coupons were available. This seems to be a common scenario,” explains the NAS vice president.

The Ministry of Digital Development told socialbites.ca that users can submit two applications per day in State Services to the MREO of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate, a limit set by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia.

“The number of registration slots is determined by each MREO department based on its capacity. Public services only display the parameters set by the ministry.

The Ministry of Digital Development does not have information about why slots might be unavailable or about possible interference by MREO traffic police officials in the registration system, the ministry stated.

– the ministry added.

Proven scheme

Recent reports from St. Petersburg indicate an established pattern where scammers in the traffic police MREO offered car registration without waiting in line for a monetary payoff, with part of the funds going to MREO officials. While exact sums were not disclosed, estimates place the annual illicit revenue in tens of millions of rubles. A criminal case has been opened under Article 290 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for taking bribes.

“In St. Petersburg, officials are being arrested in clusters, and similar actions occur in other regions,” Shaparin notes. “If such a system exists in one city, it likely exists elsewhere as well.”

What’s the price

A socialbites.ca correspondent contacted the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate about the advertised services. An intermediary in Moscow claimed that same-day car registration could cost 5 thousand rubles, with separate fees for registration with design changes. Each case is evaluated individually.

A contact in Perm put the price at 3 thousand rubles, excluding state taxes, with other operators in Krasnodar, Tyumen, and additional large cities posting similar ads.

Shaparin asserts that the market price to register a car through the traffic police ranges from 5 to 8 thousand rubles, excluding state taxes. If inspection complications arise, such as issues with VIN numbers, extra payments may be required.

What threatens

Sergei Radko, a lawyer with the Freedom of Automobile Choice movement, describes these brokerage services as illegal and corrupt.

He warns that citizens who are caught offering or accepting bribes could face punishment. Radko emphasizes the need for an operation that controls negotiations and includes external oversight to bring those involved to justice, though he doubts a large-scale action will be carried out.

“Arresting a single traffic inspector isn’t enough; a broad operation is needed that targets all participants in the plan,” he argues. He also suggests that a certain traffic police chief likely knew of the scheme and where the money originated.

“This whole plan traces back to the nineties, when middlemen in traffic police queues promised to skip the line for a nominal fee,” he concludes.

The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs did not immediately respond to socialbites.ca’s request for comment on steps to eliminate corruption schemes at MREO.