Controversial issues of the history of Russian migration legislation development

The research discusses a number of controversial issues of Russian migration legislation development: the identification of the starting point, the origin of migration legislation as well as the periods of historical development of laws and regulations concerning the migration processes. The concepts of migration law are critically analyzed. The legal regulation of migration processes is defined. The research substantiates that the Council Code of 1649 is the starting point for the domestic migration legislation development. The author distinguishes five historical periods of migration legislation based on the focal point of the policy prevailed at one stage or another: the first stage - from the second half of the 17th century to the end of the 17th century; the second stage - from the early 18th century to the late 18th century; the third stage - 18th-19th centuries; the fourth stage - 1917-1991; the fifth stage - since 1992 till present.