The government has ordered the transfer of work correspondence of state and municipal employees, as well as employees of subordinate institutions and organizations, to the "Max" messenger. The corresponding document has been published on the portal of legal acts.
The order states that "the share of work communications of state and municipal employees, employees of subordinate institutions and organizations, carried out exclusively using a multifunctional information exchange service as an instant messaging tool," should reach 100% by 2030.
In the summer of 2025, the government reported that a multifunctional information exchange service was being created based on "Max". The company "Kommunikatsionnaya platforma" is responsible for the operation and development of the platform.
The beta version of the Russian messenger "Max" was released in March 2025. From September of the same year, the application was included in the list of mandatory pre-installed applications on new smartphones in Russia.
Currently, the messenger offers audio and video calls, chats, voice message sending, large file sharing, and money transfers.
In March 2026, the messenger's press service announced that 100 million users had registered on the platform. In April, Max changed its name to "Max".
In July, the EU imposed sanctions against VK, the company that owns VKontakte, and "Kommunikatsionnaya platforma" ("Max"). VK stated that the restrictions did not affect the operation of its services.
In June, "Max" disappeared from the Apple App Store, and yesterday, the messenger and VK applications were also removed from Google Play. Maksut Shadaev, the head of the Ministry of Digital Development, reported that the department was negotiating with Apple regarding the return of "Max" to the App Store.
VK subsequently stated that the services continue to operate as usual and are available for installation in RuStore, Huawei AppGallery, Samsung Galaxy Store, Xiaomi GetApps, and other app stores for Android.
Read more on the topic:
- Confirm in "Max": New Rules May Be Introduced for Important Online Actions
- Public services appeared in the Max messenger: a new digital catalog launched in Moscow Oblast
- Comments included in "Max": a long-awaited feature for users has appeared