Thousands of Russians have been banned from travelling after the Kremlin activated a nationwide system of electronic military draft notices. This marks another stage in Moscow’s efforts to prevent potential military recruits from fleeing the country.
The electric notices are being distributed just as the Kremlin launches its autumn conscription campaign, that runs for three months from the beginning of October through to the end of December. Russia’s Defence Ministry plans to call up 135,000 men aged 18 to 30, making it the largest draft since 2016. The names of those eligible for the draft are automatically added to a government database, once a call up has been issued.
As soon as the name appears in the digital registry, the individual is barred from crossing Russia’s borders, according to the Baza Telegram channel.
The system was initially intended to be rolled out only in Moscow, the Mari El Republic, and the Ryazan and Sakhalin regions.
However, the digital call up notices are already being distributed in at least 15 additional regions.
These include Tver, Pskov, Nizhny Novgorod, Chelyabinsk and several others across central and eastern Russia – according to the Schools for Conscripts group.
Rights advocates fear that the public is being deliberately misled and lured into a trap by the electronic notices.
“People are summoned supposedly to verify their personal data, but in reality, they’re immediately drafted,” said Timofey Vaskin, a lawyer with the School for Conscripts. “This practice is especially common in Moscow.”
Vladimir Putin ordered the implementation of a digital draft scheme, following a mass exodus of Russians fleeing mobilisation in 2022.
The unpopular September military draft prompted up to a million people to head for the borders.
Putin has since avoided another large-scale draft, but high Russian casualties on the battlefield are forcing the Kremlin to turn the screws.
Leaked Russian data on military casualties from January to August 2025 show that Putin’s forces suffered a staggering total of 281,550 casualties in just eight months.
86,744 were killed in action (KIA), including 1,583 officers and 8,633 penal recruits, 33,996 are missing in action (MIA) and 158,529 were wounded in action (WIA).
