From March 1, 2026, employers will be able to send their employees to a psychiatrist.

In Russia, from March 1, 2026, employers will be able to send employees for psychiatric examinations. This was announced on January 12 by Maria Solovyova, Associate Professor of the Department of Clinical Psychology at the Institute of Clinical Psychology and Social Work at Pirogov University, Candidate of Medical Sciences.

"The changes relate to a separate indication of the employer's ability to send an employee for an examination if the employee shows signs of a mental disorder based on the results of mandatory periodic medical examinations of employees," she said in an interview with RIA Novosti.

It is specified that this innovation will give employers more freedom to adapt to changes in the mental state of employees. According to the results of a mandatory psychiatric examination, a person may be temporarily suspended from certain types of work due to mental illness. The examination includes consulting a psychiatrist, collecting information about complaints and medical history (subjective and objective), as well as a psychopathological examination.

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The psychiatrist of the network of medical centers "Polyclinic.On December 22, 2025, Roman Ustinov explained the changes in the psychiatric examination procedure in 2026. According to the expert, the changes primarily affect technical aspects, such as improving the logistics of the process and simplifying documents.

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