Russia | New Legislative Initiatives: Supporting Goods of Russian Origin and Encouraging the Hiring of Vocational School Graduates

Two significant bills have been submitted to the State Duma that reflect the current direction of government policy: strengthening the domestic economic cycle and providing targeted incentives for employment.
On the one hand, this concerns the regulation of the labels “Made in Russia” and “Russian Brand”; on the other hand, it involves amending Article 427 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation regarding reduced insurance contribution rates for employers who hire graduates of secondary vocational education programs.

“Made in Russia” Label

The first bill effectively moves the designations “Made in Russia” and “Russian Brand” from the realm of unrestricted marketing use to that of legislative regulation. It stipulates that such designations may be used only if established criteria regarding the origin of goods, works, services, and intellectual property are met.

A key element of the framework is the “guarantee of compliance”—a public declaration by an entity that the product meets the requirements of the law, including the absence of control by foreign entities and confirmed Russian origin. At the same time, there is an obligation to ensure public access to such information, including through websites, display boards, or digital platforms.

In effect, this creates an intermediate model between voluntary labeling and certification, where responsibility for the accuracy of the information is shifted to the declarant.

The Legal Burden on Businesses and New Risks

From a law enforcement perspective, liability for the misleading use of labels becomes the most sensitive issue. The bill explicitly links violations of labeling requirements to consequences under consumer protection, advertising, and competition law.

This means that using a label without complying with formal requirements will be classified not as a technical violation, but as a potentially unfair competitive practice. For businesses, this creates an additional layer of compliance.

Special attention should be paid to the requirement for the “guarantee of conformity” to be made public. Essentially, companies will be required to establish and maintain a transparent legal position regarding the origin of their products, which increases the importance of documented evidence of the supply chain and ownership structure.

Encouraging the Hiring of Secondary Vocational Education Graduates Through Insurance Contributions

The second bill proposes a targeted amendment to Article 427 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and introduces a reduced insurance contribution rate of 15% for employers who hire individuals entering the workforce for the first time in their chosen field within one year of completing their secondary vocational education.

The benefit is valid for a limited period—12 months from the date the employment contract is signed—and applies only to payments made to such employees.

From an economic perspective, the measure aims to reduce the cost of onboarding young professionals for employers by offsetting the costs of training, mentoring, and professional induction.

This regulatory model effectively institutionalizes an approach in which the government partially shares with businesses the risks associated with the initial employment of graduates. This may stimulate demand for young professionals in sectors that were previously dominated by a preference for experienced employees.