The Government of the Russian Federation submitted it to the State Duma for consideration invoice On criminal penalties for illegal cryptocurrency mining.
The authors of the document proposed adding a new Article No. 171.6 “Illegal mining of digital currency and activities of the mining infrastructure operator” to the Criminal Code. This article includes penalizing those who are not included in the Register of Miners or the Register of Mining Infrastructure Operators.
If illegal mining causes significant damage (from 3.5 million rubles), the accused will face a fine of up to 1.5 million, compulsory labor for up to 480 hours, or forced labor for up to two years.
In the event of damage on a particularly large scale (from $13.5 million) or a crime committed by an organized group, the penalty will be more severe: a fine of up to $2.5 million, hard labor for up to five years, and imprisonment for up to five years.
In the case of compensation for damages, the accused may be exempted from punishment.
In the explanatory note, the authors of the initiative cited data from the Tax Service, according to which about 50 thousand individuals and legal entities can legally engage in mining in Russia, and the number of mining infrastructure operators includes 1,489 individuals and legal entities.
The authors of the bill believe that “the above statistics allow us to draw a conclusion about the importance of establishing criminal liability against people who illegally mine digital currency.”
In Russia, cryptocurrency mining activities were legalized in 2024. Then the State Duma adopted a law providing for the creation of registries of miners and mining infrastructure operators.