April 9, 2015. Sverdlovsk Region’s number of migrant workers has plummeted by 50% since the start of the year compared with a year earlier, Deputy Head of Russia’s Federal Migration Service Sverdlovsk Region division Vadim Lysakov said at a press conference.

‘We issued 4,900 work patents this year against 9,400 patents in 2014. Most of the foreign workers arrive from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan,’ Lysakov said.

According to the official, the drop had to do with the recent legislative changes: for one, all foreign workers must now pass a Russian language test.