Ministry of Defence clarifies list of documents to be submitted to the military enlistment office for IT specialists

On 23 September 2022, the Ministry of Defence published a document stating its support for the Ministry of Defence's decision to grant the right to defer partial mobilisation to employees of priority high-tech sectors of the economy, including IT specialists. The main reasons for granting the deferment are the following: the need to ensure sustainable functioning of critical information infrastructure facilities, stable and secure operation of digital services, prompt informing the population, as well as the creation of new domestic developments needed to replace foreign software, including at the enterprises of the military-industrial complex.

According to the document of the Ministry of Finance, the right to defer can be granted to employees of accredited IT companies with appropriate higher education and working full-time, involved in the design, development, implementation, maintenance and operation of IT solutions (software, software and hardware complexes) or involved in ensuring the functioning of information infrastructure.

On September 26, 2022, in addition to the previously issued document, the Ministry of Finance published a list of specialties and areas of higher education, which together with the work in an accredited IT company gives the right for exemption from partial mobilization. The list included 195 specialties, in particular, design, psychology and sociology. At the same time, the Ministry of Finance specified that for the exemption from partial mobilization it is not enough to be employed with the relevant education in an accredited IT company, it is also necessary to perform "critical functions" in the company. What functions are "critical" is difficult to say at this point, so we should wait for the relevant clarifications from the Ministry of Digital.

As for state accreditation for IT companies, the Russian government approved a new procedure for obtaining state accreditation for IT companies on 30 September 2022. The new rules provide for two accreditation options.

Option 1:

A) The average monthly salary of the company's employees is not lower than the average monthly salary in the Russian Federation or in a subject of the Russian Federation for the penultimate quarter preceding the date of application for state accreditation;
B) Main type of economic activity in the sphere of information technologies (List of activities in Appendix No. 1 to the Regulations);
C) The share of the company's income from information technology activities is more than 30% of the company's total income;
D) The company's website contains information on information technology activities. 

Option 2:

A) The company's income exceeds 1 million Rubles;
B) The share of the Company's income from IT-activities constitutes more than 30% of the total income of the Company;
C) The company is a copyright holder of software included in the unified register of Russian software for electronic computers and databases;
D) The main type of economic activity is information technologies (List of activities in Appendix No. 1 to the Regulation);
E) The company's website provides information on its IT activity. 

The right to choose a particular option is given to the company itself.

A company that has been included in the register of start-ups created less than 3 years prior to the date of application for state accreditation can now also receive state accreditation if its revenue since creation does not exceed $1 million.

In its Telegram channel, the Ministry of Digital recommended that employees of IT companies who have already received subpoenas should bring the following documents with them to the military enlistment office:

1. The original or a certified copy of the employment contract with the employer;
2. a diploma of professional higher education;
3. an extract from the registry of state accreditation of the employing company in the area of IT, certified by the general director of the company or a person authorised by him
4. certificate from workplace, signed by the director general or a person authorized by him/her, confirming that the employee is involved in the design, development, implementation, maintenance and operation of IT solutions or in ensuring the functioning of information infrastructure.

Employees of IT companies can obtain exemption from partial mobilisation by submitting an application via the State Service, among other things. For this purpose, an application must be prepared and accompanied by a form confirming that the employee meets the requirements for exemption from partial mobilisation, signed by the electronic signature of the CEO of the company. In the application, the employee must provide his or her personal data, military registration information, higher education and employment details.