Russians whose activities fall or may fall under the law on foreign influence must voluntarily apply to the Ministry of Justice to be included in the register of foreign agents, the ministry's deputy head Oleg Sviridenko said, Interfax reported.

"A person who intends to act as a foreign agent must voluntarily apply to the Ministry of Justice for inclusion in the (foreign agents) register," he said. - "If the person does not fulfill this obligation and the Ministry of Justice has established the relevant facts, he is included in the register.

"If the person stops the corresponding activity, he can apply for exclusion from the register," added the deputy minister.

He reminded that since December 1, 2022, the federal law "On control over the activities of persons under foreign influence" came into force, "which entrusts the Russian Ministry of Justice with the authority to maintain the register of foreign agents."

"The registry includes persons carrying out certain types of activities while under foreign influence. Thus, the forms of political activity, the spheres and goals of its implementation are clearly formulated in the Federal Law "On Control of Activities of Persons under Foreign Influence" and allow to classify one or another activity as political," Sviridenko said. "All decisions (about inclusion in the register) are based on legally confirmed facts, and documentary evidence is contained in the materials of register cases.

"As part of the principle of information openness, the Ministry of Justice's website publishes information regarding the persons included. These reports in most cases contain information obtained from open sources," Sviridenko said, noting that the publication of this information became possible due to the adopted federal law, among other things.

"Recognition of a person as a foreign agent does not mean a ban on their activities. It is a status that characterizes the legal status of a person and gives rise to certain rights, obligations and restrictions," added the Deputy Minister.

Now there are 536 citizens and organizations in the registry of foreign agents.