THIRD SECTION

DECISION

Application no. 44938/18 Novruz Ali ogly SHUKUROV against Russia

The European Court of Human Rights (Third Section), sitting on 8 February 2022 as a Committee composed of:

María Elósegui, President, Andreas Zünd, Frédéric Krenc, judges, and Olga Chernishova, Deputy Section Registrar,

Having regard to:

the application (no. 44938/18) against Russia lodged with the Court under Article 34 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (“the Convention”) on 12 September 2018 by an Azerbaijani national, Mr Novruz Ali ogly Shukurov, who was born in 1989 and lives in Sochi (“the applicant”) who was represented by Mr I.G. Vasilyev, a lawyer practising in Moscow;

the decision to give notice of the application to the Russian Government (“the Government”), initially represented by Mr G. Matyushkin and Mr M. Galperin, former Representatives of the Russian Federation to the European Court of Human Rights, and later by their successor in this office, Mr M. Vinogradov;

the decision of the Government of Azerbaijan not to exercise their right to intervene in the proceedings (Article 36 § 1 of the Convention);

the parties’ observations;

Having deliberated, decides as follows:

SUBJECT MATTER OF THE CASE

On 28 November 2017 the applicant, who is married to a Russian national and with whom he has a son, was found guilty of violating a provision of the Code of Administrative Offences on account of his failure to leave Russia after the expiry of his residence permit in March 2016. The Tsentralniy District Court in Sochi fined him and ordered his removal from Russia with automatic five-year re-entry ban. On 15 December 2017 that decision was upheld on appeal by the Krasnodar Regional Court. On 1 December 2019 the applicant informed the Court that on 21 December 2017 he had been subjected to removal from Russia to Azerbaijan.

The applicant complained under Article 8 of the Convention that his removal from Russia with the ensuing re-entry ban was a disproportionate sanction which adversely effected his family life.

THE COURT’S ASSESSMENT

Considering that the applicant lodged his complaint on 12 September 2018 that is in more than six-months since the final domestic decision and his removal from Russia, he failed to comply with the six-month time-limit (see Smadikov v. Russia (dec.), no. 10810/15, 31 January 2017).

Accordingly, the Court finds that the complaint must be rejected for the applicant’s failure to comply with the six-month time-limit set out in Article 35 §§ 1 of the Convention.

For these reasons, the Court, unanimously,

Declares the application inadmissible.

Done in English and notified in writing on 10 March 2022.

Olga Chernishova María Elósegui Deputy Registrar President