Criminal case

Draft. Compiled from human rights groups' guides but not yet reviewed by a lawyer. This is not legal advice — check the linked sources and consult a lawyer.

• Ask to see the court order. In urgent cases a search can go ahead without one, with the court notified later (art. 165 pt 5 CPC).
• The law requires two attesting witnesses (arts 170, 182 CPC). You can ask for neighbours to be called; any refusal should go into the record.
• Call a lawyer straight away: you have the right to one, but the investigator does not have to wait for them to arrive.
• By law you do not have to give passwords (art. 51 of the Constitution). In practice a refusal is sometimes met with pressure, so decide with your lawyer how to handle it. Turn on encryption and a passcode lock in advance. During a search, do not hide or switch off devices in front of officers: it can make your situation worse.
• Human rights groups advise putting every violation into the comments on the record, asking for a full copy and watching that nothing is planted.

current as of September 25. More: First Department: what to do during a search (foreign agent); OVD-Info: my home is being searched (extremist)

Draft. Compiled from human rights groups' guides but not yet reviewed by a lawyer. This is not legal advice — check the linked sources and consult a lawyer.

• Now: a suspect can be held for up to 48 hours before a court decides on pre-trial measures. Human rights groups usually advise asking for your own lawyer at once and giving no statement before meeting them (art. 51 of the Constitution).
• Pre-trial measures range from a written undertaking not to leave and bans on certain actions to house arrest or a pre-trial detention centre (SIZO). The court's ruling can be appealed within 3 days.
• Next: the investigation usually takes months. Plea deals and confessions are often offered; discuss with a lawyer what a deal would actually give you before agreeing — a lighter sentence is not guaranteed.
• A verdict can be appealed within 15 days, then in cassation. To complain to the UN Human Rights Committee later you must go through every instance — see the note on international complaints.
• Where to turn: First Department, Memorial, the Institute for Law and Public Policy; about life in SIZO — Prison Lawyer; letters and parcels — Solidarity Zone. OVD-Info advises but no longer refers lawyers inside Russia.

Designations of organisations in this guide: OVD-Info (foreign agent, extremist, on Rosfinmonitoring list); Memorial Human Rights Defence Centre (extremist, on Rosfinmonitoring list); Memorial Political Prisoners Support (extremist, on Rosfinmonitoring list). Contacting them carries a risk: do not write from a phone that may be seized, and do not repost their materials.

current as of September 25. More: First Department: how to estimate a possible sentence (foreign agent); First Department: plea deals (foreign agent); OVD-Info: how to find and choose a lawyer (extremist)

Draft. Compiled from human rights groups' guides but not yet reviewed by a lawyer. This is not legal advice — check the linked sources and consult a lawyer.

• The ECHR only accepts complaints about violations before 16 September 2022. Russia doesn't currently comply with its judgments, but they put violations on record.
• For later violations there's the UN Human Rights Committee: you must go through four instances (first, appeal, two cassations), the filing deadline is 5 years, and registration takes about a year.
• In February 2026 the Supreme Court called the UN Committee's interim measures non-binding — but not its final decisions. Human rights groups say complaints are still worth filing.
• It's best to prepare with a lawyer from the start: violations must be raised in Russian courts first, or the UN may not consider them.
• Where to turn: Memorial, the Institute for Law and Public Policy, First Department.

Designations of organisations in this guide: Memorial Human Rights Defence Centre (extremist, on Rosfinmonitoring list); Memorial Political Prisoners Support (extremist, on Rosfinmonitoring list). Contacting them carries a risk: do not write from a phone that may be seized, and do not repost their materials.

current as of September 25. More: OVD-Info: the ECHR now and the alternatives (extremist); First Department: the Supreme Court and UN Committee decisions (foreign agent)

Draft. Compiled from human rights groups' guides but not yet reviewed by a lawyer. This is not legal advice — check the linked sources and consult a lawyer.

• Questioning is part of a criminal case. You may be summoned on paper, by phone or otherwise (art. 188 CPC); check through a lawyer what it is. Ignoring a proper summons can mean being brought in by force.
• By law a 'chat' or 'interview' without a criminal case is voluntary. In practice a refusal sometimes leads to a report for disobeying the police, so agree with a lawyer how to decline. The conversation may be recorded and used.
• The law requires a witness to testify, but art. 51 of the Constitution lets you refuse to testify against yourself or close relatives. Human rights groups advise going with a lawyer.
• People are usually advised to leave their phone at home, tell someone close where they are going, and note the officer's full name and rank.
• Special cases — recruitment attempts, being called in over a visa, scammers posing as the FSB — are covered in First Department guides.

current as of September 25. More: First Department: if someone tries to recruit you (foreign agent); First Department: FSB summons over a visa (foreign agent); OVD-Info: questioning, interviews and 'chats' (extremist)

Draft. Compiled from human rights groups' guides but not yet reviewed by a lawyer. This is not legal advice — check the linked sources and consult a lawyer.

• Now: ask through the door for ID, which agency they're from and why they've come, and call a lawyer. Art. 51 of the Constitution lets you refuse to testify against yourself, your spouse and close relatives.
• You can decline a 'chat' or an informal interview — it isn't an interrogation. Interrogations require a formal summons; human rights groups advise asking for it in writing and going with a lawyer.
• If a relative was taken after a search: they may be at a police station (up to 48 hours), a temporary holding facility, then in SIZO by court order. Check district court websites, call duty desks, bring in a lawyer and the prison monitoring commission (ONK).
• If you can't find them: send written inquiries to holding facilities and SIZOs in the region and neighbouring ones via FSIN-pismo or Zonatelecom. The case may be run from another city, such as Moscow.
• Shared chats: human rights groups advise leaving sensitive group chats and not keeping other people's devices or papers at home. Whether to delete specific messages — ask a lawyer.

current as of September 25. More: First Department: police at the door — guide for relatives (foreign agent); First Department: a relative disappeared after a search (foreign agent); First Department: what to do about shared chats (foreign agent)

Draft. Compiled from human rights groups' guides but not yet reviewed by a lawyer. This is not legal advice — check the linked sources and consult a lawyer.

• Parole is possible after serving 1/3 of the term for minor and medium offences, 1/2 for grave, 2/3 for especially grave; later for some articles.
• The prisoner or lawyer applies, usually via the administration. The court looks at the colony's assessment, penalties and compensation paid. Political prisoners are often given penalties that block parole.
• Other routes: replacing the remaining term with a lighter sentence (art. 80 CC); release on serious illness under art. 81 CC (see the note on medical care).
• Pardon: the prisoner writes the petition to the president; the law does not require admitting guilt. A commission reviews it within 30 days; refusal can't be appealed, and you can reapply after a year.
• Where to turn: Prison Lawyer, Solidarity Zone, Memorial.

Designations of organisations in this guide: Memorial Human Rights Defence Centre (extremist, on Rosfinmonitoring list); Memorial Political Prisoners Support (extremist, on Rosfinmonitoring list). Contacting them carries a risk: do not write from a phone that may be seized, and do not repost their materials.

current as of September 25. More: First Department: parole (foreign agent); First Department: how pardons work (foreign agent)