Based on the analysis of foreign legal norms, decisions of the criminal justice authorities of the Council of Europe countries, the legal content of international legal standards in the field of the administration of justice for minors who have committed crimes of small or medium gravity is revealed. It is noted that the set of international legal norms in the field of juvenile justice contains recommendations that regulate the parameters of the administration of juvenile justice. The author considers the grounds for the release of persons under the age of 18 from criminal liability in the event that they commit illegal acts that do not carry serious consequences for the injured party. For this, the norms contained in Art. 25, 28, 427 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation and their relationship with the norms of international law as a basis for changing the punitive measure to measures of educational influence. It is established that a juvenile offender should be considered by the criminal justice not as an object of repression, but as a subject of resocialization. The need for a comprehensive approach on the part of executive authorities to preventive work with minors is noted. For this purpose, the current programs for the development of the system for the prevention of neglect and juvenile delinquency in the Russian Federation are analyzed. The need to use the positive experience of individual subjects of our country, in which such programs have led to a positive result, namely, a decrease in juvenile delinquency, is substantiated. Proposals are being made on amendments and additions to the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation for the modernization of criminal proceedings against minors. The importance of international norms for the further modernization of Russian legislation is determined, taking into account the proposed changes.