The purpose of the study is to identify the problems of the effectiveness of the use of such a means of legal technique as fiction in the current criminal legislation and to offer recommendations for its improvement. The article briefly updates the essence and concept of fiction in criminal law, defines the definition of its effectiveness and examines the shortcomings of certain norms of criminal legislation formulated through fiction, namely: Part 4 of Article 18, Part 4 of Article 2041 and Part 4 of Article 2911 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Conclusions. The conducted research allowed us to formulate the wording of Part 4 of Article 18 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, taking into account the operational situation and trends in combating crime, as well as to prove the redundancy and legal and technical insolvency of Part 4 of Article 2041 and Part 4 of Article 2911 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The constructed proposals are aimed at increasing the effectiveness of fiction in the current criminal legislation. In addition, there is currently an urgent research need for the formulation of universal rules for the use of fiction, aimed at improving its effectiveness in criminal law.