In Russia every citizen is issued with an internal passport, which contains details of their place of abode, any changes should be reported to the local authorities.
Under a Russian federal law now under amendment, there are three types of land plots depending on the size and the owner's ability to register the building as a permanent residence.
The smallest plots are called vegetable gardens and are for growing food and vegetation only; allotments, which are bigger and can have living facilities are not authorized for registration; dachas or summer retreats are bigger still and owners are permitted to register there if the building is "fit for permanent living."
The court ruled that the long-disputed ban on registering at allotments "breached the principle of equality," and regional authorities will now be obliged to register owners if they can prove their building is suitable as a permanent place of residence.
The majority of Russians live in urban apartments, but also have a summer retreat or dacha. As the economy has boomed more and more people have extended or rebuilt their second homes and carried out home improvements allowing them to live in their dachas all year round.
