propiska

Definitions

noun a system of population control in the ex-USSR, (regional) residence permit, registration
noun the stamp in the Soviet internal passport (serving as a personal ID) with the registered address.
noun by extension domicile, place where one lives (as stated in the stamp)

From Russian прописка (propíska), from прописывать (propísyvat', "write into").

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For example, a valid propiska was necessary to receive higher education or medical treatment.

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Officially, propiska was introduced for statistical reasons: since in the planned economy of the Soviet Union the distribution of goods and services was centralized, the overall distribution of population was to be monitored.

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Also, since there was no private ownership of real estate, having a propiska for an address meant that you had the right to live there.

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In particular, passports were used to control and monitor the place of residence by means of propiska, a regulation in the Soviet Union designed to control internal population movement by binding a person to his or her permanent place of residence.

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