| Key Takeaways |
|---|
| 1 Russia offers a large and diverse market with opportunities for businesses, supported by strategic economic modernization initiatives. |
| 2 Employers must comply with payroll, tax, and contribution rules, including progressive personal income tax rates from 13%–22% and mandatory employer contributions for social security. |
| 3 Wages are paid semi-monthly at minimum, following internal work rules, collective agreements, or individual contracts. |
| 4 The federal minimum wage is RUB 22,440 per month, with some regions setting higher rates. There are no statutory bonuses. |
| 5 Employment termination requires notice periods: typically 2 weeks for resignations and up to 2–3 months for redundancy. Severance pay may be applicable. |
| 6 Standard working hours are 40 hours per week with regulated overtime pay. Breaks, weekly rest, and special conditions for hazardous work are enforced. |
| 7 Employees are entitled to 28 days of paid annual leave plus 14 public holidays, with compensation for work on holidays through pay or time-off. |
| 8 Russia provides structured family leave, including maternity leave, paternity leave, parental leave, and adoption leave, with allowances from the Social Fund of Russia. |
| 9 Probation periods are up to 6 months for executives and 3 months for other employees. Employment can be terminated during probation with proper notice. |
| 10 Slasify provides end-to-end HR solutions across 150+ countries, including payroll, EOR, and compliance support, ensuring smooth operations when hiring in Russia. |
Discover the global hiring and employment landscape in Russia – a country with a diverse economy and abundant natural resources. Russia offers significant opportunities for businesses with its large market and strategic initiatives aimed at economic modernization.
| Taxable Income (RUB) | Progressive Tax Rate (%) |
|---|---|
| Up to 2,400,000 | 13 |
| 2,400,001–5,000,000 | 15 |
| 5,000,001–20,000,000 | 18 |
| 20,000,001–50,000,000 | 20 |
| Over 50,000,000 | 22 |
There are no local taxes on employment income in Russia.
| Contribution Rate | Notes | |
|---|---|---|
| Social Fund of Russia | 30% (calculated based on an annual income of up to RUB 2,759,000) |
A contribution rate of 15.1% will be levied on the portion of income above RUB 2,759,000. The rates may be reduced for certain categories of organizations. The list for 2023–2027 can be accessed here. |
| Additional contribution | 0%–8% | This rate is determined by the risks involved in theperformance of the employee's work |
There are no required employee contributions in Russia.
Wages shall be paid at least once every half-month on the date established by the internal work rules, collective agreements or individual employment contracts.
The federal minimum wage in Russia is set at RUB 22,440 per month, with some subjects of the Russian Federation having their own respective minimum wages.
There are no statutory bonuses in Russia.
Termination of an employment relationship can be conducted by mutual agreement, on the expiry of the contract, or on the unilateral decision of either the employer or employee.
An employee intending to resign shall notify their employers of their decision in writing at least 2 weeks in advance, and the employer is obligated to terminate the employment contract on the employee's terms if they resign due to events that prevent them from continuing their work or the employer's violation of any labor laws or other legislative standard acts, collective agreements or other agreements.
On the other hand, employers can dismiss an employee on the following grounds:
| Reasons justifying dismissal | Violation of job duties that warrants dismissal |
|---|---|
| Dissolving of an organization or the termination of the employer's activities | Truancy, or unexplained absences for more than 4 consecutive hours in a workday |
| Repeated non-fulfillment of job functions by an employee without reasonable excuse, provided that the employee has been disciplined before | Appearing to work intoxicated |
| Serious violation of job duties by the employee | Unauthorized disclosure of company secret that was learned by the employee due to their job function |
| Redundancy, provided that the transition of the employee to a different job position with their consent is impossible | Theft, embezzlement, misappropriation, intentional damage or destruction of property, as established by a valid court sentence or a resolution of an official authority |
| Employee not being fit for their position or job function due to their state of health or insufficient qualifications according to the results of professional attestation, provided that the transition of the employee to a different job position with their consent is impossible | Violation of labor protection regulations if this violation leads to disastrous consequences or could certainly lead to these consequences |
| Committing of culpable actions by an employee directly handling money or valuables if these actions provide grounds for the employer to lose confidence in them | |
| Employee engaged in educational functions committing an immoral deed that is incompatible with the given work | |
| Presentation of faked documents by the employee to an employer at the conclusion of the employment contract |
Regardless, employment relationships may be terminated for reasons not attributed to either the employee or the employer in certain circumstances, and also if the initial conclusion of the employment contract is deemed to have violated the law.
Employees who are resigning are subjected to a notice period of 2 weeks.
In the event of dismissals initiated by the employer, the notice period will vary depending on the cause of termination. In general, it shall be as follows:
| Cause of dismissal | Notice period |
|---|---|
| Redundancy | 2 months (3 months in the case of mass redundancy) |
| Serious violation of job duties | No notice period |
Employees may be entitled to receive severance pay amounting to up to 3 months' average monthly earnings if their contracts are terminated due to the dissolving of the organization, the termination of the employer's activities or redundancy.
On the other hand, they shall be entitled to a severance amounting to 2 weeks' average earnings if they are terminated for the following reasons:
| Termination resulting in a severance pay of 2 weeks' average earnings | Other cases |
|---|---|
| Employee's refusal to be transferred to another job as required by a medical certificate or with the employer's lacking the appropriate replacement job | Severance pay for all other causes of termination are to be regulated by the individual employment contract or collective agreements. |
| Employee being drafted to undergo military service or alternative civil service | |
| Reinstatement of another employee who did the terminated employee's job before | |
| Employee's refusal to be transferred to a job in another area together with the employer | |
| Employee declared as fully incapable of working in accordance with a medical certificate | |
| Employee's refusal to continue working in connection with a change in employment contract terms |
Any probationary period that is required must be stated in the employment contract, and they are subject to the following maximum durations:
| Maximum duration | |
|---|---|
| Top-level executives (e.g., head of the organization or its branch offices, head accountants, and their deputies) | 6 months |
| Other employees | 3 months |
Employees can terminate the employment relationship if they decide that the job is not suitable, provided that the employer is notified 3 days in advance.
At the same time, employers can also terminate the employment relationship if they are not satisfied with the employee's performance without considering the opinion of the trade union authority and without severance. In these cases, a 3-day notice and justification must be produced to the employee in question.
Note: Probationary period does not include any periods of absences due to temporary disability and other periods when the employee is not physically present at work.
Standard working hours in Russia is subject to a maximum of 40 hours per week, though they may be reduced for certain categories of workers, as follows:
| Worker category | Maximum standard working hours | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Under the 16 years old | 24 hours per week or 5 hours per day | For students working during the academic year, the maximum standard working hours is halved. |
| Between 16 and 18 years old | 35 hours per week or 7 hours per day | |
| Disabled under Disability Group I and II | 35 hours per week | - |
| Working in harmful and/or hazardous conditions | 36 hours per week or 8 hours per day | Employees who are working 30-hour workweek in harmful and/or hazardous conditions shall not work more than 6 hours per day. |
Standard working hours the day immediately before a public holiday shall be reduced by an hour. If this reduction of work is not possible, the overtime shall be compensated by additional time of rest or, with the employee's consent, overtime pay.
In any case, standard working hours the day immediately before a weekly day off shall not exceed 5 hours for employees working a 6-day workweek.
Employees are entitled to a break period of at least 30 minutes up to 2 hours during the working day.
Break periods are generally not counted as working time, and is unpaid. If the break period cannot be afforded under the terms of production, the employer must provide the employee with the opportunity to rest and eat during working hours.
Furthermore, female employees with children under 18 months of age are also entitled to a 30-minute breastfeeding break every 3 hours of work. This break shall be calculated as part of the employee's working hours, and is paid in accordance with the employee's average earnings.
Note: The duration of breastfeeding break is increased to an hour for women with multiple children under 18 months of age.
Overtime work is only allowed under certain circumstances, and can be done either with or without the employee's consent.
| Overtime requiring employees' consent | Overtime not requiring employees' consent |
|---|---|
| When there is a need to complete work which, due to an unforeseen delay relating to production or technical conditions, could not be completed within the standard working hours, provided that the non-completion of the work can lead to the damage or peril of the employer's property, state or municipal property, or can endanger human lives and health | When the work is needed due to the declaration of a state of emergency or martial law, and also when necessary works are performed in emergency situations and in other cases when the lives or normal living conditions of the whole population or of a part thereof are endangered |
| When temporary works are carried out in terms of repair and restoration of mechanisms and structures in cases when their inoperability can cause termination of work for a significant number of employees | When the work is performed for the public benefit to eliminate unforeseen circumstances that disrupt the normal operation of water-supply, gas-supply, heating, lighting, sewerage, transport and communication systems |
| For the purpose of continuing work when the employee that was to work the next shift did not report for work, provided that the work cannot tolerate a break | When the work is required to prevent a catastrophe, an industrial disaster or to eliminate the aftermath of a catastrophe, industrial disaster or a natural calamity |
Overtime work for reasons not covered above can only be executed with the employees' written consent and after having taken into account the opinion of the elected body of the primary trade union organization.
In any case, overtime work is subject to a maximum of 4 hours in every 2 consecutive days and 120 hours per year, and the employee must be compensated with the following overtime pay or, if requested by the employee, a compensatory rest period that is no less than the overtime worked:
| Overtime hours | Overtime pay |
|---|---|
| First 2 hours | 150% of regular rate of pay |
| Subsequent hours | 200% of regular rate of pay |
Note: Overtime work is not permitted for pregnant employees and those under 18 years old. Moreover, women with children under 3 years old and disabled employees can only work overtime if there is a written consent and the work is not prohibited by a medical certificate.
Employees are entitled to a weekly rest period of at least 42 continuous hours. Regardless of whether the employee is having a 5-day or 6-day workweek arrangement, Sunday shall be the common day off, with the other day off being provided in succession.
For employers whose suspension of work on weekends is not possible due to production, technical and organizational conditions, days off can be provided on other days of the week.
Employees may be required to work during their days off, either with or without their consent. Employers shall make the request for employees to work during their days off in writing, and they shall be paid at least double their regular rate of pay or, when requested, compensatory days off in lieu of payment.
Note: The conditions for the performance of work during days off are similar to those of overtime work.
Except for those with fixed salaries, employees are entitled to receive additional compensation for public holidays, even if they are not engaged in any work. There are 14 days of public holidays in Russia for 2025.
| Holiday | Date |
|---|---|
| New Year and Orthodox Christmas Holidays | January 1–8 |
| Defender of Fatherland Day | February 23 |
| International Women's Day | March 8 |
| Spring and Labor Day | May 1 |
| Victory Day | May 9 |
| Day of Russia | June 12 |
| National Unity Day | November 4 |
If the employee's day off and a public holiday coincide, the day off is transferred to the next working day after the holiday, in accordance with this established schedule.
Employees may be required to work during public holidays, either with or without their consent. Employers shall make the request for employees to work during their days off in writing, and they shall be paid at least double their regular rate of pay or, when requested, compensatory days off in lieu of payment.
Note: The conditions for the performance of work during public holidays is similar to those of overtime work.
Employees who have completed 6 months of continuous service in their first year of employment are entitled to 28 days of paid annual leave. The length of annual leave is calculated in calendar days, and public holidays that fall during the period of annual leave shall not be counted as part thereof.
Annual leave schedule shall be determined by the employer, taking into account the opinion of the elective body of the primary trade union organization no later than 2 weeks before the relevant calendar year.
| Annual leave arrangement | Employer's obligations |
|---|---|
| Male employees may request to have their annual leave coincide with their spouses' maternity leave. | Employers must notify, against their employees' signatures, of the beginning of their leave no later than 2 weeks in advance. |
| The employer and employee may agree to divide annual leave into parts, provided that one of these parts is at least 14 days long. |
Annual leave may be extended or shifted to another term determined by the employer without considerations of the employee's wishes in the following cases:
| Reasons concerning the employee | Reasons concerning the employer |
|---|---|
| Temporary disability |
If the granting of leave to the employee in the current year may affect the normal flow of operations. In this case, the leave must be used within 12 months after the end of the working year it was granted for, and it shall be prohibited to avoid the granting of the annual leave for 2 consecutive years. This cannot be exercised on employees under 18 years old and those working in harmful and/or hazardous working conditions. |
| Execution of state duties by the employee during the annual leave if the labor legislation envisages this being done outside work | Failure to provide adequate notice of annual leave arrangement, provided that the employee submits a written request to have their leave postponed to a different period agreed upon with the employer |
| Annual leave pay not given in a timely manner, provided that the employee submits a written request to have their leave postponed to a different period agreed upon with the employer |
Except for those who are pregnant, under 18 years old or working in harmful and/or hazardous conditions, employees may submit a written request to receive a payment in lieu of their annual leave that exceeds the minimum requirements of 28 days.
Moreover, employees working in harmful and/or hazardous conditions, working a job of special nature or have irregular working hours may be entitled to additional paid annual leave.
Note: Length of service requirement shall be waived for employees taking the leave before or directly after their maternity leave, employees under 18 years old and employees adopting children up to 3 months old.
Employees are entitled to take paid sick leave in the event of their illness and injury until they have fully recovered. Those on sick leave will have their sickness allowance paid by the Social Fund of Russia.
The calculation base for sickness allowance varies by the duration under which the employee has been covered by social security, as follows:
| Duration covered under social security | Calculation base |
|---|---|
| Less than 6 months | Minimum wage |
| 6 months–5 years | 60% of average earnings |
| 5–8 years | 80% of average earnings |
| More than 8 years | 100% of average earnings |
Employees shall be entitled to 70 days of pre-natal leave and 70 days of post-natal leave, with those on maternity leave being entitled to receive maternity allowances paid by the Social Fund of Russia.
Maternity leave can be extended under the following circumstances:
| Extended maternity leave | |
|---|---|
| Multiple births | 84 days pre-natal and 110 days post-natal |
| Labor complications | 70 days pre-natal and 86 days post-natal |
For cases of adoption, the employee may be entitled to an adoption leave of 70 days from the birth of the adopted child. This duration can be extended to 110 days in cases of multiple adoptions. Employees on adoption leave are paid adoption allowances by the Social Fund of Russia.
It is important to note that adoption leave is only afforded to one parent. To allow their spouse to enjoy adoption leave, adopting mothers have the option to take a 70-day leave, or a 110-day leave for multiple adoptions, from their maternity leave entitlement, calculated from the date of adoption, instead.
Note: Maternity leave benefits shall be transferred to the male spouse if they are raising their children without their mothers
In addition to the 5-day unpaid leave for childbirth, employees who have become new fathers are also entitled to take the leave as stipulated in the Parental Leave section or use their annual leave entitlements to match their spouses' maternity leave.
For cases of adoption, the employee may be entitled to an adoption leave of 70 days, or 110 days in cases of multiple adoptions, from the birth of the adopted child. Those on adoption leave are paid adoption allowances by the Social Fund of Russia.
Note: This leave is only applicable to male employees whose spouse has chosen not to opt for adoption leave.
Parental leave for the purpose of caring for a child under 3 years of age is granted per child. This leave may be used, in full or in parts, by the child's mother, father, grandmother, grandfather or other relatives caring for the child. However, for an adopted child, this leave shall only be applicable to one parent.
At the request of those taking parental leave, they can work part-time or at home while retaining the right to receive benefits from state social insurance. In any case, those on parental leave are paid allowances by the Social Fund of Russia.
Note: The provisions for additional paid and unpaid leave for the care of children can be accessed here.
Employers are obligated to grant unpaid leave upon the written request of certain categories of employees, as follows:
| Categories of employees | Duration of unpaid leave |
|---|---|
| Participants of the Great Patriotic War | up to 35 calendar days per year |
| Working old-age pensioner (by age) | up to 14 calendar days per year |
| Parents and spouses of military personnel who has been killed or died of injuries sustained while on duty | up to 14 calendar days per year |
| Disabled | up to 60 calendar days per year |
| Employees in cases of childbirth, marriage registration, or death of close relatives | up to 5 calendar days per event |
Furthermore, the following categories of employees are also entitled to the following leave with the retention of their average earnings:
| Circumstances | Leave entitlements |
|---|---|
| Employees combining work with study | As stipulated in Chapter 26 of the Labor Code. |
| Employees required to undergo a medical checkup | For the duration of the checkup. |
| Employees donating their blood and its components |
For each day of donation, the employee is entitled to leave for the day of donation, the day of any medical tests related to said donation and an additional day to be taken at the employee's discretion. A compensatory day of rest shall be granted for employees who work on the day of their blood donation and when the day of blood donation overlaps with any public holidays, annual leave days or weekly rest days. |
| Employees sent by employers for skill enhancement | For the duration of the skill enhancement. Those sent to another locale for this purpose shall be paid travel expenses. |
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