The State Duma obliged management companies to communicate with residents through the state messenger. What does this mean for Russians?

On December 16, the State Duma adopted a bill obliging management companies to transfer communication with residents to a single service, which means transferring household chats to the Max messenger. This is the first time its use has become mandatory by law. The new norms will affect all regions except Moscow. How this will affect Russians and how the authorities justify such an initiative - in the material of “New Europe”.

According to the new law, management companies and other services working with apartment buildings are required to communicate with residents through a “multifunctional information exchange service.”

Changes are being made to the Housing Code of the Russian Federation and the Law “On the Status of the Capital of the Russian Federation.” How exactly such communication will be arranged will be determined by the Ministry of Construction. The provision will come into force immediately upon publication of the law.

Changes were made to the old bill, which has nothing to do with the Max messenger at all: initially it only approved the rights of the chairman of apartment buildings. The amendments on house chats appeared for the second reading, noted journalist Farida Rustamova. This became known only the day before the adoption of the document, December 15.

Rustamova noted that this is a “traditional scheme for deputies” when they need to adopt “something urgent or unpopular.”

What does Max have to do with it?

The “multifunctional information exchange service”, created under Federal Law on June 24, is the “national messenger” that the authorities are developing on the Max platform from the VK Internet holding.

Thus, the State Duma obliged to transfer house chats of management companies to Max. However, this is not explicitly stated in the law - it only states that interaction must be carried out through the service being created.

Will this affect all regions?

No, the law provides an exception for Moscow. Organizations operating in the capital can, but are not required to transfer house chats to Mach, as follows from additional amendments to the law “On the Status of the Capital”.

They are also allowed to use regional information systems. In Moscow, the state platform “ Electronic House ” based on mos.ru is already used for communication between management companies and residents.

Will people be forced into house chats in Max?

No. The law does not oblige residents to install any instant messenger—at least not yet. It obliges organizations (management companies, homeowners associations, resource supply companies) to ensure interaction through a single service.

In addition, as noted in OVD-Info, the new law does not cancel other methods of information prescribed in the Housing Code. Thus, according to the law, the management company is obliged to post information for owners, first of all, on the portal of the State Information System for Housing and Communal Services, as well as on the official website and stands. Information should also be available via mail and upon request.

Is it even legal to transfer everyone to Max?

This bill is the first time that Russian authorities have legally mandated the use of the Max for any purpose.

However, according to the document, only management companies, contractors and operators are required to use Max. For residents - owners and tenants - there is no such requirement, notes Valeria Vetoshkina, a lawyer working with OVD-Info, in a conversation with Novaya-Europa.

“There can be no coercion for residents. Landlords and tenants have no obligation to register with Max or communicate through it. House chats for residents remain voluntary, and instant messengers are not a legally significant communication channel, the lawyer emphasizes.

The right to choose how to contact the management company remains, Vetoshkina points out. For example, through the GIS housing and communal services portal, written statements, email, or even other instant messengers or chats (if any).

“But any attempts to deny a resident communication or service under the pretext of “write only to Max” will be illegal,” summed up the interlocutor of “New-Europe.”

How do the authorities justify the new law?

The new system is designed to eliminate the “main problem”, due to which it is now “difficult to conduct general meetings of owners remotely” - this is “identification of participants,” Vladimir Koshelev, first deputy chairman of the Duma Committee on Housing and Communal Services, told RIA Novosti. According to him, the use of foreign messengers creates a threat of “taking over data,” including personal ones.

“The changes will improve the level of communication between residents of apartment buildings and management organizations. Chat administrators will have to approach their work responsibly, and not just for show: to respond promptly and efficiently to residents’ requests,” says Koshelev.

Why is Max dangerous?

As New Europe has written more than once, there are many questions about the security of the application. Thus, Max requests access to almost all functions and data of the device: geolocation, contacts, files, camera, microphone, Bluetooth, notifications, biometrics. While all major apps collect similar data, in Max's case it goes directly to the Russian government.

In addition, as cybersecurity experts warned , over time, using the “national messenger” could entail additional risks: data leaks, abuse by officials and even surveillance.

Are any other chats transferred to state messenger?

Yes, but not at the legislative level. As New Europe wrote , since the beginning of the 2025/2026 school year, in many Russian schools, students and parents are forced to communicate with teachers only in the Max messenger. And the refusal to go there results in problems for the families of schoolchildren and for teachers. Russian college and university students are also forced to communicate in Max. For refusal, they are threatened with expulsion.

However, this is illegal: even the Minister of Education Sergei Kravtsov noted that the use of Max in the educational process is a recommendation, not a requirement.

In addition, as Nest found out , relatives of Russian soldiers missing in the war with Ukraine are forced to register with the “national messenger” in order to identify the bodies and update the status of the results of DNA examinations.