Russia has enacted a law that ties maternity capital to citizenship status. The new rule states that this benefit will be paid only to parents who are citizens of the Russian Federation and only if their child is a Russian citizen by birth. The official document outlining the measure was published on the site that hosts the proceedings of legal acts.
Under the change, parents applying for maternity capital must hold Russian citizenship at the time of the child’s birth. Residence within Russia is not a determining factor, though there are exceptions for residents of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics, as well as the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions. In those areas, eligibility for maternity capital is preserved even if the parents were not Russian citizens at the child’s birth.
When both parents are Russian citizens, the child automatically acquires Russian citizenship at birth. This remains true even if one parent holds citizenship and the other does not, provided the child did not obtain foreign citizenship at birth or was not born abroad. The state is clear that citizenship by birth for the child follows the parents’ status at the moment of birth.
The law is scheduled to take effect on January 1 of the upcoming year. In 2024, the amount of maternity capital is projected to be about 631 thousand rubles for the first child and around 834 thousand rubles for the second child. Funds are earmarked for specific purposes, such as improving living conditions or supporting education for the child. The maternity capital is issued as a personal certificate and cannot be exchanged for cash.
If a couple had a first child before obtaining Russian citizenship and later became citizens before the birth of a second child, the payment for the second child will proceed in the same manner as for the first. This point was clarified by the Ministry of Labor. [Source: Ministry of Labor]
In a formal explanation, the ministry added that if citizenship is acquired at the birth of the second child, maternity capital will be awarded only for the child who was a Russian citizen at birth. In practical terms, priority is given to the child born on Russian soil whose mother held Russian citizenship at the time of birth. Consequently, funds on the certificate will be allocated first to firstborns when applicable. [Source: Ministry of Labor]
Why was a new law needed?
The aim behind the reform is to close a loophole that allowed some immigrants to obtain a Russian passport after giving birth in another country and then apply for maternity capital. Officials estimate that the number of applicants could fall by about 100,000, which would save tens of billions of rubles in public funds, according to Alexander Safonov, a professor at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation. [Source: Alexander Safonov, Financial University]
Traditionally, maternity capital was created to support population growth among ethnic Russians. Critics, including Mikhail Matveev, a deputy from the Communist Party, argued that the policy had become a channel for immigrant families. He has called for tightening the rules further, including removing maternity capital from parents who hold dual citizenship. He also noted that, under current interpretations, at least one parent must be a Russian citizen by birth for eligibility. Matveev has submitted amendments to the Duma to address these concerns. [Source: Mikhail Matveev, Deputy, Communist Party]
At the end of October, new citizenship provisions came into force in Russia. The law broadened the list of offenses that can lead to loss of citizenship not acquired by birth. Infractions include actions threatening national security and territorial integrity, calls for extremism, sabotage, desertion, spreading false information about the military, and discrediting the armed forces. Applicants for a Russian passport must now study not only the language but also the history of the country. [Source: Citizenship Legislation Update]