“Important Foreign Agents” (“Important Stories”)

Since 2017, the register of “foreign agents” (media) includes those legal entities who, according to the Russian government: a) receive money or property from foreign sources, b) distribute printed, audio, audiovisual and other messages and materials intended for an unlimited range of persons. Distribution includes not only the publication of the original post but also the repost. Who recognizes: Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation in agreement with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Responsibilities: Media foreign agents must indicate in all their materials their status as a “foreign agent” using special marking, conduct a mandatory audit and submit its results to the Ministry of Justice along with data on the organization’s personnel and a report on its activities. Every six months, media outlets included in this register are obliged to publicly post this report on the Internet or provide it to Russian media for publication. If the media does not have a Russian legal entity, then it must register it in Russia, after which this legal entity receives the status of an NPO-foreign agent. Administrative liability: Spreading in the media and on the Internet information about a media-foreign agent or publication of materials produced by him without indicating his status-a fine of up to 50 thousand rubles (part 2.4 of article 13.15 of the Code of Administrative Offences). Violation of the procedure for the activities of a media foreign agent after entering it in the register of foreign agents-a fine of up to 500 thousand rubles (article 19.34.1. of the Code of Administrative Offences). An increase in the amount of the fine for a repeated violation is envisaged. A gross violation is punishable by a fine of up to five million rubles. Criminal liability: If the foreign media agent does not fulfill the obligations required by the law and has previously been held administratively liable because of this, a fine of up to 300 thousand rubles or imprisonment for up to two years (part 2 of article 330.1 of the Criminal Code).