Visa history of Russia

From the 16th century to the first half of the 17th, foreigners settled among the Russian population. Under pressure from the Church, in accordance with the Decree of 1652, areas, or quarters, were allocated on the outskirts of cities—such as Moscow's German Quarter—where immigrants from Western Europe settled and they were allowed to live according to their own customs. Staying in the city center was only permitted for those foreigners who converted to Russian religious belief.^[3]

In the 17th century, the government sought to invite foreign manufacturers to Russia to establish sectors of important industries, and offered them favorable conditions for the activity, such as the donation of state-owned land for factories and plants, the right to the enterprises by inheritance, loans from the Treasury, and long term monopolies on the production of goods (15–20 years).

The Novotorgovyy Charter (Новоторговый Указ, or "New Trading Charter"), of 22 April 1667, was the first attempt at legislative regulation of the legal status of foreigners in the Russian state.^[4] This act was narrowly focused, regulating only questions of entry by foreign merchants. In Moscow and other cities, only those who had a "special charter of trade, with a red seal" could enter. Those foreigners who did not have such a charter could trade only in Arkhangelsk and Pskov.

The reign of Peter the Great (1682-1725) is characterised by the formation of state administration on a large scale, the transformation of the Tsardom of Russia into the Russian Empire.

Russian Empire

Under the Russian Empire, legislation was enacted, in phases and in sufficient detail, to regulate the order of entry, and the period of residence, of foreigners in Russia. The legislation specified the categories of foreigners who had the right of free entry to the country, who could stay and gain citizenship, as well those who did not have such a right. Foreigners arriving in Russia had to have a passport of their country, and have a form giving permission for a specified period of stay. Rules of admission were not the same for all, and depended on the category or specialization and on other factors (nationality, the purpose of travel, religion, etc.).

The expulsion of foreigners from Russia was also regulated by legislation.

From 1649 to 1866 there were international instruments on the extradition of deserters, fugitives, and political prisoners, including instigators of 1866 and other violators.^[5]

Large-scale changes began with Peter I's decrees of 13 December 1695 and 16 November 1696. According to the first decree—treating those foreigners who had "arrived for service"—"to pass all foreigners without detention", and to treat other visitors as "under former decrees". The second decree stated that "all foreigners, for whatever purpose they [came], having [been] asked, to pass without detention".^[6]

The first half of the 18th century (1702-1762)

The regulation of the legal status of foreigners in the Russian Empire was connected with Peter I's reforms. Peter I, seeking to make Russia more powerful and in every possible way to improve and expand trade with foreign states, issued the Manifesto of 16 April 1702. "About a call of foreigners to Russia, with the promise [of freedom] of worship" opened Russia to free access by foreigners, who were guaranteed a number of rights, privileges, and freedom of worship.

The Manifesto of 1702 was a powerful spur to drawing up legislation regulating the entrance and departure of foreigners, resulting in open borders for foreigners. The ban lodges of the German Quarter were rescinded.^{[clarification needed]}

Entry into Russia was allowed only to persons of "military rank", merchants, and master craftsmen. Originally, provisions of the Manifesto of 1702 touched only military persons, craftsmen, and merchants. Later, other categories of foreigners whose expertise was wanted—including scientists and foreign jurists—were covered.

The decree of 31 August 1719 empowered the Office of Police Affairs to keep an accounting of foreigners coming to

For their departure from Russia, foreigners received exit passports from the departments to which they were attached, the passports being stamped by the Collegium of Foreign Affairs with the mark of the chief of police showing the traveler was leaving no debts. Deadlines for departure were specified: from the capital, two days; from boundary provinces, three weeks; and from internal provinces, three months.

Thus, the freedom of movement across Russia for foreigners declared in the Manifesto of 1702 did not happen in practice. The continuing need for all foreigners to have "letters for journey", or "proezjaya gramota", and "passports", when traveling through the country or crossing its borders, was confirmed by further decrees—for example, the Decree of 30 October 1719. By the 1720s, a number of decrees of Peter I rigidly regulated the stay of foreigners in Russia, the issuance of such decrees being explained by internal and external factors.

From 1762 and until the end of the 18th century

This period can be characterized as the one where the most favored treatment was accorded foreigners in Russia. Extensive land allotments were given them; money and privileged tax status were provided. But such extensive privileges had negative side-effects, which consisted of isolation and the autonomy of foreigners from local laws. Foreigners lived and worked under their charters and lived as if they occupied a state within the state. During this period open access to the country was had even by Jews, who on pain of punishment had been forbidden to live in Russia.

On 4 December 1762, Catherine the Great, for practical reasons—increasing population, improving methods of agricultural cultivation and cattle-raising, and fostering improvements in housekeeping—published the Manifesto "[Concerning giving] permission to foreigners, except Jews, to arrive and settle in Russia and about free return for Russian people running abroad". This act resolved an issue of free entry of foreigners into Russia and granted them considerable rights and privileges, including the right of free settlement.

On 23 July 1763, there was the Imperial Manifesto of the empress "[Concerning giving] permission to all foreigners coming to Russia to settle in those provinces in which they will wish and [...] granted to them [by] right". This document in many respects defined immigration policy of Russia from 1760 to 1770.

The 1766 treaty of commerce between Great Britain and Russia provided, on the basis of reciprocity, "freedoms and benefits" for trade people.

During this period, a number of changes concerning entry into Russia and departure of foreign citizens were legislated, so that the admission of foreigners into Russian began to require only the presentation of a passport.^[7]

The legal status of foreigners was fixed in regulations of the period—the Police Ustav of 1782 and Charter to the Cities of 1785. Article 121 of the Police Ustav assigned police the duty of accounting for foreigners in each city.

The stay of foreigners who were not in public service became legally regulated. The Charter to the Cities prescribed that foreign merchants and craftsmen who settled in the country but did not accept Russian citizenship, be recorded with the guild, as well as pay the established taxes and fees. They were recorded at the city office, and had no right to leave a certain place of residence (Art. Art. 12, 60). Article 129 of the Charter regulated the departure of foreigners from Russian cities. Foreigners were allowed to travel with their family out of the city only after notifying the municipal magistrates, confirming the payment of all debts and the local tax for three years.

The end of the 18th century - 1860

This period was associated with a number of legislative acts, of the Russian emperors Paul I and Alexander I, which introduced restrictions on the privileged legal status of foreigners in Russia. Beginning with the French Revolution and during the Napoleonic wars, the Russian government became very cautious regarding foreigners, mainly for political reasons. This led to various constraints, particularly affecting citizens of France and the French dependent states. In the period 1789-1820, entry for foreigners was difficult, with special surveillance for arriving foreigners. Paul I ordered that foreigners arriving in both the capital and other areas of Russia be strictly observed. On 26 December 1796, two decrees were issued concerning the surveillance of foreigners. In the first decree, the Moscow authorities were given the right to expel from the city untrustworthy foreigners. In the second decree, local authorities were obliged to ensure monitoring of all visiting foreigners, paying particular attention to the French and Swiss; suspicious foreigners could be expelled.^[6]

In 1806, Alexander I issued a decree "On the expulsion from Russia of all French citizens and [those from] different German regions that will not want to receive citizenship; banning them entry into Russia without passports [from the] Minister of Foreign Affairs; the termination of the trade treaty with France".

The Manifesto of 1 January 1807 significantly restricted the rights of foreign merchants. However, nationals of those states with which Russia had concluded trade agreements, had prior rights over other foreigners.^[8]

Restrictions of the rights of foreign trade and other fields existed until 1860.

1860-1917

In 1860, reforms in Russia and expansion of international cooperation led to legislation relaxing restrictions on the rights of foreigners that had existed before 1860. Alexander II signed the decree "On the rights of foreigners residing in Russia", which ordered that foreigners staying in Russia for trade, agriculture, and industry were guaranteed such rights as were enjoyed by citizens of Russia.

Under a decree of 1894, foreigners visiting Russia were to be given special passports, which were issued at Russian diplomatic missions and consulates, or to have their foreign passports confirmed there, by official seal.

In 1903, a charter regarding passports specified that foreigners arriving in Russia would receive their entry passport for a period of one year with the place of residence specified. Foreigners living in large cities were required to hand over their passports to a police office. From there passports, after being checked, were sent to special boards as before.

Before leaving the country, it was, again, necessary to wait until the police office had checked the holder's indebtedness; and after coordination with the board of foreign affairs, the exit visa was given. Passports of those who would travel by sea or were using courts in Russian ports were registered with the Admiralty board.

The regulations were numerous, detailed, and systematic. Since a significant number of foreigners lived in Russia in the late 19th century (in 1897 there were 605,500 foreign nationals - 0.5% of the population), the question of their legal status was of great political as well as economic significance.^[9]

From the middle of 1914 till 1917 - there was a correction of the legal status of foreigners under the conditions of World War I, defined by a number of decrees issued during this period, especially noteworthy being the Decree "About Rules by Which Russia Will Be Guided during War of 1914" of 28 June 1914. These decrees limited the rights of all foreigners and practically deprived of all rights those foreign citizens of states hostile to Russia during war.

Soviet Union

Soviet Russia

After the October Revolution of 1917, the changed state ideology caused a corresponding change in the whole system as control of borders and their crossing points became paramount, which was gradually organized in such a way to prevent the penetration of external spies, counterrevolutionaries, politically harmful literature, or other agents of sabotage and terror.

On 2 December 1917,

In July 1919, the first registration of foreign citizens in the territory of the RSFSR was announced, within 7 days after the publication of the resolution of the Commissariat for Internal Affairs. Foreigners had to fill out a questionnaire where, in addition to standard data, they were required to specify the time of arrival and the purpose of their visit to Russia, occupation at home and in Russia, party affiliation, marital status, and attitudes toward military service. It was also necessary to call guarantors (the Party or government workers, the factory committee, or Soviet institution) who could confirm the person's "loyalty to the Soviet regime." However, in 1919 it was not possible to bring order to the entry and residence of foreigners, with an ongoing civil war.

Formation of the USSR

The main work on the elimination of the previous shortcomings and to develop modes of entry and residence of foreigners in Russia belongs to the 1921-1925 period.

In 1921, all the old rules and regulations were abolished, and the Soviet Government began to issue new rules that met the normal requirements of international law. For example, entry was allowed only on special permits issued by the Russian plenipotentiary representative abroad, after filling out a questionnaire, in the form of a visa stamped in their passports, with the obligatory pictures attached thereto, if such were not already with the passport.

In 1923, the right to issue entry visas was granted Soviet consuls in countries where there were no plenipotentiaries (1925 - all consulates). Various types of visas allowed for entry, transit with the right of entry and exit, and temporary residence allowing multiple border crossings. The visa was issued by applying mastic stamp on the document that served as a residence passport, with the traveler put on a visa list that followed to the destination. An entry visa of any kind was valid for 14 days, with a visa granting the right of re-entry good for 1 month.^[11]

After World War II

After the World War II, the Soviet Union began arriving foreigners to train highly qualified specialists to create cadres of the communist asset of the new Europe that can ensure the implementation of the program of socialist construction. Since 1946 in the Soviet Union began to study students from Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, from 1947 - North Korea, since 1949 - China, since 1951 - from East Germany and Vietnam, since 1960 - Cuba.

For some military armies, primarily taking place in the USSR training was introduced a simplified procedure of exit and entry into the country. From 1945 – 1946 years of visa obtained in a simplified manner by officers of Army of Poland, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria and Mongolia. Only after the Yugoslav crisis in 1948 a simplified visa procedure for them has been canceled.^[12]

All work with the foreigners was based on obsolete regulatory legal acts, departmental instructions 1925-1935. Non-compliance of certain provisions of these documents to new conditions created numerous difficulties. Students were required to obtain a visa to enter and leave every time, execution and coordination of different departments of visas takes time. To optimize this line of work in 1950 adopted a special instruction in 1953 pleased the decision on visa facilitation for foreign students.^[13]

The liberalization of the visa regime

19 July 1959 the Council of Ministers approved the "Regulation on the entry into the USSR and exit from the USSR".^[14] The entry of foreign citizens in the USSR permitted for foreign passports and other documents replacing them, in the presence of Soviet entry visas.^[15] For the first time entry into the USSR became possible not only according to the international passport.

Treaty regulatory documents, terms and conditions for obtaining visas or the abolition of visas for certain categories of citizens of the socialist countries in Europe have been concluded the Government of the USSR with Bulgaria (1965, 1969), Czechoslovakia (before 1969, 1969), Hungary (1969), Poland (before 1970, 1970), Romania (1956, 1963, 1966 1969), Yugoslavia (1965, 1967).

24 June 1981 the Supreme Soviet of the USSR adopted a law "On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the USSR» №5152-x. Foreign nationals arriving in the USSR are obliged to register their foreign passports or equivalent documents in place to stop and get out of the Soviet Union after a certain period of stay.^[16]

Since 70s years with socialist countries were signed standard visa-free agreement, which replaced all previously existing arrangements. For entry to the USSR for tourist trips was needed a voucher, for private trips - invitation, transit without a visa. With Bulgaria in 1978, Cuba in 1985, Czechoslovakia in 1981, Hungary in 1978, North Korea in 1986, Poland in 1979, Romania in 1991, Yugoslavia in 1989.

Russian Federation

General Rules

The law "On the legal status of foreign citizens in the USSR" was adopted by the Russian Federation. The law took effect 1 January 1993.

Chapter III of the law, "entry into the USSR and exit from the USSR Foreign citizens", was replaced by Federal Law No.114-FZ 1996, "On the Order of Exit from the Russian Federation", which itself was repealed with the adoption of Federal Law 115-FZ on 25 Jul 2002, "On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the Russian Federation".

The laws establish that, as a general rule, all foreign citizens and stateless persons need visas for entry and exit from the territory of Russia and the period of temporary stay is 90 days within a 180-day period. It also establishes a number of exceptions for certain groups of travelers.

The basis of the legal status of foreign citizens and stateless persons are secured primarily by the Constitution of the Russian Federation 1993, articles 62 and 63.^[17]

According to the Russian Constitution, international treaties of Russia override domestic legislation. Russia has concluded a number of bilateral or multilateral treaties on visa abolishment or simplification and is seeking to negotiate new such treaties. The visa policy of Russia is based on the principle of reciprocity.

Crimea

In April 2014, Crimea's tourism minister proposed a visa-free regime for foreign tourists staying at Crimean resorts, for up to 12 days, and a 72-hour visa-free stay for cruise passengers.^{[citation needed]} Visa-free access for Chinese citizens was proposed in June 2014.^[18] Visa-free entrance to Sevastopol began from September 2015.^[19] Other parts of the proposals have been not realized.

Visa-free travel

The citizens of 45 countries and territories are eligible to visit Russia with a valid passport, without obtaining a visa in advance.^[20] These rules generally apply to holders of ordinary passports; rules for holders of diplomatic passports and other travel documents may differ.

From 2014, citizens of the countries—except Belarus, who have the right to a visa-free entry to Russia—must not stay longer than 90 days within any 180 day period. Resetting the allotted period by leaving and re-entering the country is no longer allowed.

Visa-free 72-hour transit

In September 2013, the president of Russia sent to parliament a bill introducing 72-hour visa-free transit. A list of airports and a list of countries whose citizens would be able to use visa-free transit for tourist purposes, was to be approved by the Government of the Russian Federation after ratification. In 2014, the parliament had suspended ratification of the bill for an indefinite term.^[21]

72-hour stay for Kaliningrad visit

From 1 February 2002, citizens of

The Russian Government was planning to cancel this service in 2015, but after appeals by officials of the Kaliningrad region, and the MFA of Russia, the service was extended through 2015.[22] Addressing parliament, the Minister of Foreign Affairs reported on extension of the service until 2016.^[23] The service was cancelled from 1 January 2017.^[24]

E-visa to visit certain regions of the Far East

In 2015, Vladivostok again received, 106 years after it was cancelled, the status of "porto franco" (free port) by Federal Law №212-FZ, "On the free port of Vladivostok",^[25] signed by the President of the Russian Federation on 13 July 2015 and taking effect 12 October 2015.

A simplified visa scheme was supposed to be made effective on July 1, 2016, but was postponed due to the lack of regulations passed by the State Duma.^[26]

On 29 December 2016 the law was submitted for consideration to Parliament.^[27]

Among other simplifications of government procedures, a visa-free regime was to be implemented, but a draft decree wasn't agreed to by government departments.

Starting August 2017, citizens of 18 countries can get an e-visa to visit regions in the Russian Far East. Eligible countries:

Eligible ports of entry

International events

Art events
Participants and members of delegations coming to participate in musical events are either provided with a simplified visa regime (e.g. Eurovision Song Contest 2009) or the right of visa-free entry (e.g. International Tchaikovsky Competition 2015).^[28]

As of September 2015^[update] a law permanently abolishing visa requirements for participants and jury members of art competitions is being planned by the Government of Russia. The focus of this regulation will be the International Tchaikovsky Competition.^[29]

Economic events
Participants in the 1st Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok did not require visas. Entrance was allowed with passport and an accreditation certificate only.^[30]

Sporting events
Prior to the adoption of a special law, participants and members of delegations arriving for sporting events, couldn't count on visa-free entry or visa facilitation unless determined by law for each event. On 13 May 2013, a presidential decree on the abolition of visas for athletes, coaches, team leaders, members of foreign official delegations, and judges of international sports competitions came into effect. The law allowed entry on the basis of passport and accreditation certificate.^[31] An order of the President of Russia is sufficient for abolishing or simplifying visa requirements.

Visas were abolished for participants of the

The right to enter Russia without a visa was also given to visitors during the 2014 Winter Olympics and 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, if they were in a possession of tickets for the event.^[35]

Teams participating in the 2016 IIHF World Championship were able to obtain visas on arrival. For the fans there was a simplified procedure for being issued visas.^[36]

2018 FIFA World Cup

2018 FIFA World Cup holders of tickets for matches of the championship will be able to enter Russia without a visa with personalized card of viewer (also known as the passport of a fan or fan-ID) and national passport from 4 June to 15 July 2018.

Transit through the Republic of Belarus

FAN ID holders entering the Russian Federation territory in the period from 4 June to 15 July and exiting the Russian Federation territory from 4 June to 25 July 2018 have the right of visa-free transit through the territory of the Republic of Belarus with FAN ID both on a laminated form and in electronic form and a valid identity document (passport) in the period from 4 June to 25 July 2018.^[37][38] Holders of a fan passports or FAN IDs can cross the Russia-Belarus border if they travel via the motor road and railway routes through checkpoints that are not international.

Similarly eased restrictions are planned for visitors to the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup and to the 2018 FIFA World Cup.^[39] From 4 June to 25 July 2018, visas won't be required for those attending matches of the 2018 FIFA World Cup championship, who will be able to enter Russia with an ID and passport. Foreigners participating in events and FIFA athletes, will have to obtain visas, but with a simplified procedure. In particular, such visas will be issued within 3 working days from the date of filing and without payment of consular fees. This procedure will last until 31 December 2018.

Foreigners involved in activities and not participating in sporting events, will travel to and from Russia on ordinary multiple-entry work visas that will be issued for a period of 1 year. Foreigners entering to work for FIFA events, its subsidiaries and contractors, confederations, national football associations, the Russian football Union, or the "Russia-2018" organizing committee will be entitled to work in Russia without obtaining a work permit.^[40]

ex-USSR

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union gave way to 15 separate states, visa, consular, customs, and border issues were concluded by unilateral and multilateral agreements within a few years.

Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania

From 1 July 1992, Estonia has required visas for visiting Russian citizens; the visa issued in Moscow cost 10 dollars, at the border it cost 30 dollars.^[41] The government of Pskov Oblast, in response, required that similar fees be collected from citizens of Estonia coming to Russia; but that was repealed as violating Russian law. On 1 June 1993, Estonia stopped issuing visas at the border; the visa could be issued only in Moscow or St. Petersburg.^[42][43]

At the end of 1996, Russia and Estonia agreed on simplified border crossings by residents of border areas, affecting 10,000 residents of Ivangorod and Narva. On 11 September 2000, Estonia unilaterally abolished the simplified border regime.^[44]

Since 22 March 1993, Latvia has required visas for citizens of Russia.

In December 1994, Russia and Latvia signed an agreement allowing simplified border crossing for residents of border areas on special lists. On 10 October 2000, Latvia unilaterally denounced the agreement.[48]

Holders of an alien passport of Estonia and holders of a non-citizen passport of Latvia who were citizens of the Soviet Union (meaning born on or before 6 February 1992) are visa-exempt for 90 days within any 180 day period.

On 17 June 2008, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree "On the order of entry into the Russian Federation and exit from the Russian Federation, stateless persons, citizens of the USSR living in the Republic of Latvia and the Republic of Estonia",^[49] which allowed holders of Estonian or Latvian passports to stay in Russia for up to 90 days within any 180-day period.

As of November 2016, a draft law that will allow visa-free entry to non-citizens of Estonia and Latvia born after 6 February 1992 is in the process of being adopted.^[50]

from 1 October 1993, Lithuania banned the entry of those with internal documents, and, from 1 November 1993, introduced a visa regime.

After joining the EU in 2004, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania introduced a full visa regime with Russia in harmony with those of the Schengen Agreement, where visa issues are decided by the European Commission.

Commonwealth of Independent States

On 9 October 1992, Russia signed a multilateral agreement on visa-free movement of citizens of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).^[54] Under the agreement, citizens of Armenia, Belarus, Georgia (from 1 July 1995), Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan might be on each other's territory without visas, for unlimited periods bearing all types of identity cards.

On 16 June 1999, Turkmenistan withdrew from the agreement. Turkmenistan and Russia signed an agreement regarding mutual trips of citizens on 17 July 1999. Under the agreement, holders of ordinary passports had to obtain a visa in advance, holders of diplomatic and service passports are exempted for stays of 30 days.^[55]

After the election of President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin there was a revised visa agreement. On 3 December 2000, Russia withdrew from the CIS multilateral visa agreement.

Since then, the citizens of Georgia must obtain a visa in advance, under an agreement renegotiated due to a terrorist threat.^[56]

Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Russia recognized the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia in 2008. There have been agreements on visa-free trips for those on all types of passports. Citizens of Abkhazia and South Ossetia can be in Russia without visas for 90 days. In March 2015 Russia and South Ossetia signed a Treaty on Alliance and Integration, which in article 6, paragraph 4, "abolished restrictions on the length of stay of citizens[...] on mutual visa-free trips of citizens[...]". The Treaty entered into force on 30 July 2015.^[57]

Azerbaijan and Ukraine refused to sign the multilateral agreement on travel. In 1997, under individual agreements, citizens of these countries have the right to enter the territory of Russia's without visas for unlimited periods of time.

Azerbaijan. Until 1997, the entry regime between Azerbaijan and Russia wasn't established legally. Azerbaijani citizens could stay in Russia, without visas, with all types of documents indefinitely, subject to the rules of internal migration. These conditions were legally enshrined in the agreement on visa-free trips of citizens of 3 July 1997.^[58] The unlimited period was canceled 1 November 2002, and replaced by a 90-day limit. A protocol to the agreement of 2 February 2005 adjusted the list of accepted documents. Entry with internal passports was prohibited. Starting from 1 January 2014, for all foreigners, a limit of 90 days within any 180 day period was introduced.

Armenia. Russia and Armenia signed an agreement on visa-free trips of citizens on 25 September 2000.^[59] Citizens of Armenia can be located on the territory of Russia without a visa for 90 days from November 1, 2000. Starting from 1 December 2014, for all foreigners, a limit of 90 days within any 180 day period was introduced.

Uzbekistan and Russia signed an agreement regarding mutual trips of citizens on November 30, 2000. In 2005, an amendment reduced the number of documents needed for entry. Citizens of Uzbekistan can stay in Russia without a visa for 90 days within a 180 period.^[60]

Eurasian Economic Union

On 30 November 2000, an agreement was signed allowing visa-free travel between the members of Eurasian Economic Community: Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.^[61] Terms and conditions were to be regulated by internal migration laws. Citizens could reside indefinitely in Russia, without visas. On 1 November 2002, a 90-day time limit was imposed. In 2005, changes were made to the agreement, transferring the mode of entry on internal passports to the competence of bilateral agreements. Russia has signed such agreements with all countries. In practice, nationals have not noticed the changes. In 2015, the Eurasian Economic Community was transformed into the Eurasian Economic Union. As of 1 January 2015, entry into Russia with internal passports is possible only for members of the EEU.^{[citation needed]}

Belarus. Pursuant to paragraph 9 of Article 14 of the treaty establishing the Union State of Russia and Belarus, entry is possible on internal passports. There is a plan to introduce a common visa with Belarus, the first step being an agreement on mutual recognition of visas.^[62] As of 30 November 2015, there are grounds for refusing a foreign citizen or stateless person entry, a visa, or reducing the period of temporary stay.^[63][64]

Kazakhstan. Visas are issued according to Government Decree 341, "On mutual trips of citizens of the Russian Federation and citizens of the Republic of Kazakhstan", of 31 May 2005.^[65]

Kyrgyzstan. Visas are issued according to Decree 575, "On mutual trips of citizens of the Russian Federation and citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic", dated 21 September 2005.^[66]

Tajikistan. Visas were issued according to Decree 574, "On mutual trips of citizens of the Russian Federation and citizens of the Republic of Tajikistan", dated 21 September 2005, but which was later canceled.^[67]

Europe

As the state successor to the Soviet Union, the Russian Federation respected visa agreements concluded with socialist countries by the Soviet Union.

Bulgaria. Until 7 May 2002, entry was allowed, without a visa, on travel vouchers or private invitations. In March 2002, an agreement was reached on the abolition of visas for holders of diplomatic and service passports, for 90-day stays.^[68]

Czech Republic. Citizens of Czechoslovakia had the opportunity to be in Russia, without visas, on vouchers or invitations. After the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, visa-free entry to Russia was allowed for Czech citizens. On 7 December 1995, a new agreement was signed allowing, without a visa, stays of 30 days on all types of passports. In May 2000, the agreement was terminated.^[69]

Slovakia. After the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, visa-free entry to Russia remained for Slovakia citizens. In 1994 and 1995, agreements were signed that allowed citizens of Slovakia visa-less, 30-day stays on all types of passports. The agreement was terminated in 2001. On 29 December 2000, an agreement allowed, without visas, stays of 90 days to holders of diplomatic and service passports.^[70]

Hungary. Until 14 June 2001, the citizens of Hungary could be in Russia, without visas, with the presentation of a voucher or invitation, when a new agreement took effect that provided for visa-less stays of 90 days for holders of diplomatic and service passports.^[71]

Poland. Until 1 October 2003, for private visits, holders of all types of Polish passports might be in Russia without visas, with invitation or travel voucher. On 1 October 2003, an agreement was signed allowing visa-free, 90-day stays for holders of diplomatic and service passports.^[72]

Romania. Until 1 March 2004, citizens of Romania could be in Russia without a visa, then there was visa-free entry, of up to 90 days, to holders of diplomatic and service passports.^[73]

Agreements between the

An agreement between the European Community and Russia on the facilitation of the issuance of visas[74] has been in force since June 1, 2007. It has meant uniform costs of visas; has made it easier to obtain visas for close relatives, journalists, official delegations, transport crew members and some other groups of visitors; and abolished visas for holders of diplomatic passports. Similar agreements were signed and ratified between Russia and Denmark on 1 October 2009, as well as between Russia and Norway on 19 October 2011.^[75]

In 2008, Silvio Berlusconi, the former Prime Minister of Italy, and, later, Alexander Stubb, the Foreign Minister of Finland, started public discussions on the future possibility of visa-free travel between EU countries and Russia.^[76] On 4 May 2010, the EU and the Russian Federation raised the prospect of beginning negotiations on a visa-free regime between their territories.^[77]

However it was announced by the Council of Ministers of the EU that the EU is not completely ready to open its borders, due to a high risk of increase in human trafficking and drug imports into Europe, and because of open borders between Russia and Kazakhstan. They will instead work towards providing Russia with a "roadmap for visa-free travel". While this does not bind the EU to providing visa-free access to the Schengen zone for Russian citizens at any specific date in the future, it does greatly improve the chances of a new regime being established and obliges the EU to actively consider the notion, should the terms of the roadmap be met. Russia on the other hand has said that, should such a roadmap be established, it will ease access for EU citizens for whom access is not visa-free at this point, largely as a result of Russian foreign policy stating that "visa free travel must be reciprocal between states". Both the EU and Russia acknowledge, however, that there are many problems to be solved before visa-free travel is introduced.

Talks were suspended by the EU in March 2014 during the

Visa facilitation talks with the United Kingdom, at the time an EU member state that did not belong to the Schengen zone and thus determined its visa policy independently, were suspended by the British government in 2007, following the poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko.^[79]

In 2013, Russia and the European Union agreed on the issue of biometric service passports.^[80]

In 2015, Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov said that Russia had fulfilled all the conditions for transition to a visa-free regime with the EU, but that Brussels had taken a negative stance, under pressure from some member countries.^[81]

Local border traffic zones. Schengen regulations allow for the establishment of local border traffic zones within 30 kilometres (19 mi), and in exceptional cases 50 kilometres (31 mi), from the border. Russia has signed such agreements with Latvia, Poland, and Norway. The agreement between Russia and Poland was suspended indefinitely from 4 July 2016.^[82]

Latvia. On 6 June 2013, such a local border zone agreement took effect. Residents of border areas must obtain a special permit. The total period of stay in the border area of the state can not exceed 90 days within any 6-month period.^[83]

Poland. An agreement was signed on 14 December 2011, and took effect on 27 July 2012. It is necessary to issue the permit in advance for residents of border areas, with a duration of stay of 30 days, but not more than 90 days, within any 180-day period.^[84]

Norway. The Intergovernmental Agreement on the Facilitation of Mutual Travel for Border Area Residents of Russia and Norway was signed in November 2010 and took effect on 1 November 2011. A permit entitles the holder to multiple border crossings and stay up to 15 days in the 30-kilometre (19 mi)-wide border area.^[85] Entry into the border area and exit from it is through the Borisoglebsk [ru]–Storskog border crossing. On 20 January 2016, Russia and Norway signed a protocol on amendments to the agreement, to include the Norwegian village of Neiden.^[86]

Moldova. An agreement between Russia and Moldova on mutual visa-free travel was signed on 30 November 2000.^[87] Terms and conditions are to be regulated by internal Russian migration laws. The limit of 90 days, for visa-free stays, was introduced on November 1, 2002. By amendments to the agreement, entered into force on 17 July 2006, entry with internal documents would be denied. A rule limiting such stays to 90 days within a 180-day period took effect from 1 January 2014.^[88]

Ukraine. Until 1997, the entry regime between Russia and Ukraine wasn't legally established, but Ukrainian citizens could locate on the territory of Russia without visas for all types of documents indefinitely, subject to the rules of internal migration in Russia. These conditions were legally enshrined in the agreement on visa-free trips of citizens of 16 January 1997.^[89] The provision for unlimited stays was lifted 1 November 2002 for all foreigners, and replaced by 90-day stays.^[90] Amendments to the agreement were adopted on 1 November 2004. Further amendments to the agreement, adopted in 2007, changed the list of documents for entry, the possibility of entry on internal passports being kept.

Starting from 1 January 2014, for all foreigners, a limit of 90 days within 180-day periods applied. This was abolished from July 2014 to 1 August 2015, due to the difficult internal political situation in Ukrain. From 1 November to 1 December 2015 citizens of Ukraine have been identified as to their status as visitor - refugee, migrant worker, tourist, a private visit – and required to obtain permits.^[91]

On 1 March 2015, Ukraine banned citizens from entering Russian on internal passports.^[92] Russia did not respond similarly.

Asia

Most Asian countries have a mutual agreements on visa-free entry to Russia on diplomatic and official passports.

Russia conducted negotiations on the conclusion of a visa-free agreement for owners of ordinary passports with Brunei.^[93] and Papua New Guinea.^[94]

China. Russia is striving to ease visa requirements for Chinese citizens. Holders of diplomatic and service passports can enter Russia without a visa. First, on the basis of an agreement concluded between the USSR and China, after several agreements were renegotiated, from 26 April 2014 stays without a visa are allowed for up to 30 days.

There have been agreements on visa-free travel to Hong Kong - 14 days, and Macao - 30 days.

Since 2000, there has been an agreement for visa-free travel for groups. Initially, the rules of entry allowed groups of 5 people or more to stay in Russia for 30 days. In 2006, the period was reduced to 15 days.^[95] Tourist agencies of Russia and China approved the change of visa-free group tours, and there were plans to increase the visa-free stay to up to 21 days, with a minimum number of people in the "visa-free" group reduced to 3.^[96]

Israel. On 20 March 2008, an agreement was signed allowing visa-free trips for citizens on ordinary passports. Israel has refused to sign a similar agreement for diplomatic and official passports.

India. There has been a visa-free regime for diplomatic and official passports from 2005. An agreement is being prepared to facilitate visas for group travel and for certain categories of citizens (businessmen and tourists). On 21 December 2010, an agreement was signed mutually simplifying trips by citizens of both countries. On 24 December 2015 a protocol was signed to the agreement. Businessmen need only have an invitation for receipt of a visa.^[97] On 5 March 2016, an arrangement providing visas for six-month stays to tourists, took effect.^[98][99]

Iran. In 2015, Russia signed an agreement with Iran on simplification of visa-granting procedures.^[100] The agreement came into force on 6 February 2016.^[101] Getting a visa was simplified and terms of consideration of the visa statement were reduced. Negotiations on the abolition of visas for tourist groups were being conducted.^[102]

South Korea. In 2004, the liberalization of visa requirements began. In 2004, the need for visas was canceled for diplomats, and, in 2006, for service passports. In 2013, an agreement on the abolition of visas for holders of ordinary passports was signed. Citizens of South Korea may be in Russia without visas for 60 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period, from 1 January 2014.

North Korea. Until 1997, North Korea's citizens had been able to travel to Russia without a visa by presenting a tourist voucher. After the agreement was renegotiated, the visa waiver applied only to diplomatic and service trips.

Laos and Russia signed an agreement allowing visa-free stays for 30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180 day period, on 7 September 2016.^[103]

An agreement on visa-free trips to Mongolia was concluded under the Soviet Union; Mongolia renounced the agreement in 1995. Visa-free entry was renewed in 2014. The agreement on a visa-free regime was made possible when the Mongolian side agreed to sign a readmission agreement.

Thailand and Russia signed an agreement on abolishing visas for diplomats in 2002. On 26 March 2007, an agreement took effect that abolished visas. Thai citizens traveling to Russia can stay without a visa for up to 30 days.

Japan. There is an agreement on the abolition of visa for certain categories of citizens: for residents of the central and southern

On 24 November 2015, there was an incident with Russian military aircraft. In response, the Russian president signed a decree "On measures to ensure the national security of the Russian Federation[...] and the use of special economic measures against the Republic of Turkey". Paragraph 2 of the decree suspended the visa-free regime for holders of ordinary passports from 1 January 2016. The head of the State Duma's international affairs committee said the suspension would remain in effect, "until Turkey stops helping ISIS".^{[citation needed]} Russia's ambassador to Turkey said that conditions for normalizing relations would include "an apology from the Turkish authorities[, a] search for the perpetrators and [to] bring them to justice, [and that] Turkey [would pay] compensation for damages".^[108]

On April 15, 2016 Turkey suspended the agreement with regard to service passports. Russia replied by similarly restricting entry by Turkish citizens on service passports.^[109]

Africa

Holders of diplomatic and service passports of the following 18 countries can travel in Russia without a visa from the date specified in parentheses: Zimbabwe (January 1991), Cape Verde (September 1995), Guinea (March 1998), Burkina Faso (March 2000), Benin (August 2001), Morocco (October 2002), Ethiopia (January 2003), Egypt (July 2003 ), Botswana (April 2005), Angola (June 2006), Mali (May 2009), Mozambique (May 2010), South Africa (December 2010), Gabon (September 2011), Tunisia (February 2013), Seychelles (December 2015), Mauritius (April 2016), and Congo (January 2016).

The Republic of Seychelles was the first African state where holders of ordinary passports could travel to Russia without a visa for 30 days.^[110]

An agreement waiving visa requirements for stays of up to 60 days was signed with Mauritius on 23 December 2015, and entered into force on 10 April 2016.

A visa waiver agreement with South Africa, for stays of 90 days for holders of ordinary passports, was concluded by an exchange of diplomatic notes in January and February 2017 and comes into force on 30 March 2017.

Community of Latin American and Caribbean States

Most countries belonging to the CLACS have bilateral agreements on visa-free travel with Russia.

In the 1990s, visa requirements were liberalized for holders of diplomatic and service passports, in the 2000s for holders of ordinary passports. The Russian foreign minister, at a meeting with ambassadors of countries of South America and the Caribbean, once again made clear Russia's intention to create a visa-free regime with all countries.^[111] At bilateral meetings with the Dominican Republic^[112] and Costa Rica,^[113] this attitude was confirmed by the signing of visa-free agreements.

Canada

A Canadian visa is one of the most difficult to obtain for citizens of Russia. Granting such a visa requires submitting a large number of documents, with an examination period of weeks, and a high percentage of refusals. Reciprocating, Russia has the same requirements for obtaining its visas by Canadian citizens. Canada has refused to simplify their procedures.

United States

An agreement on mutual visa-free trips by citizens near the Bering Strait was signed on 23 September 1989 at Jackson Hole, Wyoming. From 1996, the visa-free application fee was abolished. Crossing the border takes place on the basis of passport and insert, which can be obtained on the basis of an invitation.^[114]

From 6 April 2001, the United States required transit visas for flights through US airspace to third countries. In response, Russia introduced similar transit-visa requirements for citizens of the United States who transit Russia to third countries, from 6 May 2001.^[115] On 19 June 2001, after a meeting between presidents Putin and Bush, the transit visa requirements were mutually canceled.^{[116][117][118][119]} In 2003, the United States Secretary of Homeland Security suspended two programs, Transit Without Visa (TWOV) and International-To-International (ITI), that allowed entry without a visa. Visa-free transit through the territory of the United States was denied, including through airports – there is no transit zone. For US citizens in transit through Russia, it is also necessary to have a 72-hour transit visa, in case they intend to leave the transit area of an airport.

In March 2009, US Consul General Kurt Amend stated that the US and Russia were having talks on abolishing the visa regime between the two countries.^[120]

During a meeting in Moscow on 10 March 2011, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin proposed the introduction of reciprocal visa-free travel to US Vice President Joe Biden, saying, "it would be a historical step in the development of Russian-US relations "and would create" an absolutely new atmosphere between our countries."^[121] The Vice President's immediate reaction was cordial, but non-committal. According to Biden's national security advisor Antony Blinken, visa liberalization had been discussed prior to the meeting, but he added, "The Russians know full well, as do the Americans, that there are legal requirements set by Congress to be met for visa liberalization that the Russians have not yet achieved." Among the requirements was that the refusal rate for Russians seeking visas to the United States fall below 3 percent.^[122] Blinken said visa free travel could happen "... next year, [or] it could be in 10 years." However Dimitri V. Trenin, director of the Carnegie Moscow Center, considered Putin's proposal to be merely a political tactic in his public exchange with Biden, calling it, "... a way to attract attention ... as a way to knock someone off course, maybe it also worked."^[122]

An agreement on simplification of the visa regime between Russia and the United States entered into force in 2011. The agreement provides, inter alia, the issuance, to citizens of the two countries, of multi-entry visas for stays of up to six months from the date of entry and valid for 36 months from the date of issue. Under the agreement, the Russian Federation will issue business, private, humanitarian, and tourist visas when there is a direct invitation from the host side.^[123]

Oceania

Fiji became the first Pacific country whose citizens may visit Russia without a visa for all types of passports. Cancellation of the visa regime took place on 29 July 2014.

Since 2015, the citizens of Nauru may stay in Russia without a visa for 14 days.^[124]

An agreement allowing visa-free stays for 90 days within any 180 day period was signed with Vanuatu on 20 September 2016, and entered into force on 21 October 2016.

E-visa to visit certain regions (was effective from 8 August 2017 to 31 December 2020)

From 8 August 2017, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia started to implement the

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia has imposed temporary travel restrictions on issuing electronic visas for China from 30 January 2020,[132] for Iran from 28 February 2020,^[133] for Italy from 13 March 2020,^[134] from 18 March 2020 for all other countries. The regional evisa program will be valid until 1 January 2021.^[135]

Citizens of the following 54 countries can apply for a single-entry eVisa to visit regions in the

There are currently no railway border-crossing points where the visa could be used for travel from Europe into Leningrad oblast.[142] It is planned that the electronic visa could be used when travelling with a train to Vyborg and taking another train between Vyborg and Saint Petersburg would be allowed. This is because the border control for passengers exiting the train at Vyborg takes place in the station due to the station being close to the border, while the other border controls take place on trains.^[143] The train between Riga and Saint Petersburg travels outside the Leningrad Oblast in Russia. Therefore, electronic visas will be allowed for passengers only when the target area expands to other oblasts.

Statistics

According to the

Total visitors by year
2019	32,866,265
2018	32,550,677
2017	32,035,443
2016	31,466,538
2015	33,729,187
2014	32,421,490
2013	30,792,091
2012	28,176,502
2011	24,932,061
2010	22,281,217
2009	21,338,650
2008	23,676,140
2007	22,908,625

Nationality	Total (includes all types of purposes of visits)
	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016
Ukraine	3,648,972	8,646,295	9,177,272	9,817,008	9,737,405
Kazakhstan	1,426,727	4,324,856	4,241,244	4,137,613	4,686,059
Uzbekistan	720,041	2,588,922	2,354,642	2,350,007	2,116,480
Abkhazia	414,927	600,399	492,310	436,368	415,606
Tajikistan	401,888	1,557,148	1,340,975	1,350,356	1,293,270
Kyrgyzstan	299,611	959,130	859,735	836,946	792,042
Azerbaijan	269,807	1,175,045	1,145,327	1,143,243	1,156,703
Armenia	209,812	816,454	825,200	857,212	833,577
Finland	180,110	938,693	994,098	1,063,348	1,376,646
Belarus	176,601	440,438	403,597	382,022	320,372
China	155,594	2,257,039	2,030,319	1,780,200	1,565,524
Moldova	154,766	614,043	698,027	803,916	699,112
Philippines	133,414	193,031	179,672	172,278	160,734
Poland	133,014	680,382	728,546	765,544	1,056,013
Turkey	132,372	187,612	196,061	181,285	120,035
Estonia	105,584	540,062	496,582	432,803	433,926
Latvia	93,865	365,783	355,641	330,266	360,603
Stateless persons	74,215	303,851	327,613	318,393	321,383
South Ossetia	70,470	147,355	143,501	137,427	115,382
Germany	69,456	744,473	701,576	629,082	613,370
Lithuania	57,883	253,950	243,190	256,009	281,168
Mongolia	56,625	394,994	401,485	416,293	542,196
Georgia	56,266	120,086	123,732	117,204	65,378
India	46,025	180,567	159,865	130,400	108,498
South Korea	42,297	453,796	386,413	276,560	181,024
France	38,391	249,410	236,583	211,673	201,260
Israel	32,402	260,472	228,530	185,426	182,438
Italy	28,432	251,751	225,776	206,860	208,689
Serbia	26,731	84,852	96,730	87,899	79,575
United Kingdom	22,471	194,956	216,029	193,522	190,278
Turkmenistan	21,680	92,616	82,675	65,749	56,258
Vietnam	19,477	90,565	84,612	77,391	66,939
United States	19,306	300,933	337,395	293,011	248,990
Japan	16,048	127,696	119,240	114,207	95,675
Netherlands	14,663	84,651	80,540	73,729	68,017
Egypt	13,481	28,039	39,402
Iran	12,725	54,469	61,007	91,862	75,203
Thailand	12,183	72,031	64,898	52,697	32,222
Greece	11,732	44,784	42,967	41,205	46,730
Bulgaria	10,255	41,083	40,836	39,191	41,290
Austria	9,977	67,429	64,500	59,501	56,663
Czech Republic	9,874	57,835	53,739	49,232	47,288
Indonesia	9,671	40,284	31,695	25,425	20,211
Spain	9,565	140,181	123,652	118,642	116,032
Romania	9,335	32,779	29,920	26,330	23,684
Norway	8,506	52,022	51,003	53,197	46,631
Sweden	8,308	43,198	55,329	32,095	39,153
Belgium	7,534	42,473	48,270	38,868	37,492
Croatia	7,480	19,243	36,045
Switzerland	7,407	55,747	59,828	53,167	52,656
Cuba	6,631	29,169	27,882	30,711	26,667
Hungary	5,680	35,541	32,998	25,659	25,313
Denmark	5,016	24,662	31,308
Total	n/a	32,866,265	32,550,677	32,035,443	31,466,538

Nationality	Total (includes all types of purposes of visits)
	2015	2014	2013	2012	2011	2010
Ukraine	10,314,757	9,842,990	7,080,991	6,502,543	6,072,775	4,198,030
Kazakhstan	5,180,246	4,215,161	3,848,899	3,630,342	3,049,406	2,747,358
Uzbekistan	2,163,256	2,353,140	2,967444	2,677,322	2,086,359	1,584,086
Poland	1,766,612	1,823,143	1,644,657	1,190,003	704,610	394,872
Finland	1,476,412	1,446,169	1,388,036	1,375,614	1,211,520	1,012,621
China	1,353,051	1,125,098	1,071,515	978,988	845,588	747,640
Tajikistan	1,200,972	1,202,260	1,348,868	1,134,150	955,455	830,160
Azerbaijan	1,071,324	1,021,204	1,196,759	1,116,238	1,045,525	979,778
Armenia	850,137	794,098	882,864	700,332	550,349	459,040
Kyrgyzstan	842,396	725,664	763,418	623,970	592,960	552,909
Moldova	770,965	923,625	1,374,690	1,194,291	1,073,637	988,084
Germany	595,200	635,153	686,557	671,676	629,391	611,367
Mongolia	505,429	225,972	226,673	365,236	212,117	157,367
Belarus	424,531	495,999	418,207	372,942	267,233	259,191
Abkhazia	422,130	362,811	293,429	273,964	202,440	52,289
Estonia	382,031	363,942	430,164	494,282	519,402	474,949
Latvia	348,338	374,701	391,304	461,162	571,374	569,300
Stateless persons	326,841	349,400	463,640	523,333	618,705	679,757
Turkey	323,039	361,416	385,147	305,429	249,109	196,704
Lithuania	270,600	487,206	539,308	553,896	622,740	760,728
United States	242,104	257,070	305,954	286,551	275,239	262,060
Italy	204,710	219,976	225,933	212,411	207,476	198,002
France	191,643	219,210	225,860	225,343	213,473	194,248
United Kingdom	190,775	228,346	259,676	231,670	221,418	212,847
Israel	165,003	152,853	136,827	123,974	114,380	100,291
Philippines	163,010	162,990	149,213	130,541	99,405	81,385
South Korea	153,189	135,676	107,942	94,922	91,335	90,622
South Ossetia	125,444	117,283	94,159	73,863	47,739	33,409
Spain	110,247	100,206	109,089	101,536	129,730	110,601
India	95,527	94,259	95,542	80,127	60,191	53,364
Japan	93,550	105,220	102,408	86,806	76,204	78,188
Serbia	79,406	87,048	107,601	70,371	57,177	47,939
Georgia	69,095	58,264	48,440	35,511	30,415	24,568
Netherlands	63,469	80,543	86,402	81,212	87,549	80,720
Vietnam	60,882	75,840	81,073	62,961	53,529	50,823
Austria	57,242	67,392	74,277	71,863	70,388	67,606
Turkmenistan	51,170	47,002	40,238	43,720	39,579	35,017
Norway	49,535	57,423	54,433	50,115	48,614	45,340
Iran.	46,760	29,743	20,657	23,085	21,575	20,576
Czech Republic	46,432	68,875	76,530	62,980	46,776	40,565
Switzerland	46,200	50,838	54,898	52,852	47,978	44,964
Canada	43,663	53,370	61,234	54,730	52,238	48,559
Greece	41,210	46,450	48,280	36,474	33,569	33,396
Sweden	40,424	49,908	53,340	58,900	60,840	54,253
Australia	39,613	46,072	46,861	43,105	34,868	30,583
Bulgaria	37,035	42,230	47,154	45,312	42,031	38,446
Brazil	35,531	33,301	37,386	33,647	29,840	21,950
Belgium	33,714	37,441	40,316	37,025	36,430	33,571
Thailand	29,482	25,585	23,919	19,375	17,023	15,192
Romania	25,970	28,391	30,886	24,792	21,993	17,884
Hungary	24,849	28,421	27,155	23,047	23,241	20,736
Mexico	22,922	18,223	21,527	16,431	16,759	13,767
North Korea	20,893	23,902	23,604	22,071	18,901	21,167
Slovakia	19,876	24,962	27,554	24,161	20,445	18,512
Indonesia	18,100	20,330	21,088	18,572	18,313	14,448
Argentina	17,322	13,614	15,944	13,976	12,316	9,044
Portugal	15,475	15,181	14,952	15,398	15,814	18,434
Cuba	12,349	11,609	9,625	5,293	4,099	4,053
Total	33,729,187	32,421,490	30,792,091	28,176,502	24,932,016	22,281,217

Visa statistics

Most visas were issued in the following countries:

Location	Number of visas issued in
	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015
Germany	58,953	410,780	360,582	336,423	324,959	299,791
China	41,280	453,338	406,831	371,489	339,030	357,040
Turkey	34,162	83,169	81,177	79,898	45,209	33,698
France	27,059	172,870	146,491	145,576	131,229	119,314
United Kingdom	20,770	92,573	88,290	96,246	93,169	87,863
Italy	18,272	162,529	139,797	129,124	129,038	117,123
United States	16,736	106,250	98,936	95,630	94,682	85,974
Finland	14,271	110,480	105,157	108,792	116,462	112,655
Latvia	11,295	78,727	79,082	74,382	77,574	70,328
Poland	10,535	67,666	62,840	59,187	54,885	43,038
Total	452 161	3,090,538	2,758,893	2,687,146	2,505,457	2,283,850

Agreements

The Russian Federation has visa waiver agreements with 150 jurisdictions. In the table, red indicates agreements signed but not ratified or temporarily not applied, fully or partially suspended agreements are indicated in yellow.

Valid bilateral and multilateral visa waiver agreements

Country or territory	Duration of stay by type of passport			Date of signing	Effective date	Citation
	Diplomatic	Service Official Special Consular	Ordinary
Abkhazia	90 days			2 Oct 2009	26 Apr 2011	[145]
Albania	90 days			7 Apr 1993	6 Aug 1993	[146]
Algeria	90 days within any 180-day period			19 Feb 2018	6 Feb 2019	[147]
Andorra	90 days within any 365-day period			5 Dec 2019	25 Nov 2020	[148]
Angola	90 days			26 Feb 1999	16 Jun 2006	[149]
Antigua and Barbuda	90 days within any 180-day period			7 Jun 2019	22 Oct 2019	[150]
Argentina	3 months			16 May 1994	29 Sep 1994	[151]
			90 days within any 180-day period	11 Mar 2009 18 Mar 2009	29 Jun 2009	[152]
Armenia	Unspecified  period			25 Sep 2000	25 Sep 2000[153]	[154][155]
Azerbaijan	Unspecified  period			3 Jul 1997	4 May 1998	[156]
Bahrain	90 days within any 180 day-period			16 Dec 2015	26 Jun 2016	[157]
Bangladesh	30 days			22 Sep 2016	12 Feb 2017	[158]
Belarus	Unspecified  period			30 Nov 2000	30 Nov 2000[159]	[160]
Belize	90 days within any 180-day period			23 Sep 2021	12 Jan 2022	[161]
Benin	90 days			21 Jun 2001	20 Aug 2001	[162]
Bolivia	3 month			11 Apr 1995	24 Apr 1997	[163]
			90 days within any 180-day period	12 Apr 2016	3 Oct 2016	[164]
Bosnia and Herzegovina	90 days		30 days within any 60-day period	31 May 2013	20 Oct 2013	[165]
Botswana	90 days			10 Feb 2005	11 Apr 2005	[166]
			30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period	6 Jun 2019	8 Oct 2019	[167]
Brazil	90 days			16 Apr 19912	16 May 1991	[168]
			90 days within any 180-day period	26 Nov 2008	7 Jun 2010	[169]
Brunei	14 days			7 Oct 2009 12 Oct 20092	11 Nov 2009	[170]
			14 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period	8 Nov 2017	8 Jan 2018	[171]
Bulgaria	90 days within any 180-day period	90 days within any 180-day period		5 Mar 2002	7 May 2002	[172]
Burkina Faso	90 days			2 Mar 2000	2 Mar 2000	[173]
Burundi	90 days within any 180-day period			6 Feb 2018	30 Jun 2018	[174]
Cabo Verde	90 days			14 Jul 1995	12 Sep 1995	[175]
			60 days1	30 Apr 2019	4 Jul 2020	[176]
Cambodia	90 days			17 Mar 1988	28 May 1988	[177]
Cameroon	90 days within any 180-day period			27 Jul 2023		[178]
Chile	3 months			14 Feb 1995	1 Oct 1996	[179]
		3 months		4 Oct 2002	12 Feb 2004	[180]
			90 days within any 180-day period	24 Sep 2010	18 Jan 2011	[181]
China	30 days			22 Mar 2013	26 Apr 2014	[182]
			15 days for tourist groups4	29 Feb 2000	9 Nov 2000	[183]
Colombia	90 days			26 Nov 1997	28 Mar 1998	[184]
			90 days within any 180-day period	24 Sep 2010	13 Mar 2011	[185]
Democratic Republic of the Congo	90 days within any 180-day period			27 Jul 2023		[186]
Congo	90 days			18 Dec 2014	1 Jan 2016	[187]
Costa Rica	3 month			16 Oct 1997	1 May 1998	[188]
			90 days within any 180-day period	3 May 2018 28 May 2018	25 May 2019	[189]
Croatia	90 days within any 180-day period	90 days within any 180-day period		2 Mar 2010	31 Mar 2013	[190][191][192]
Cuba	90 days within any 180 day period			22 May 2018	21 Dec 2018	[193]
Cyprus	90 days within any half-year period			8 Jun 2005	20 Jan 2006[194]	[195]
Denmark	90 days within any 180-day period			27 May 2008	1 Oct 2009[196]	[197]
Djibouti	90 days within any 180-day period			6 Feb 2022	1 May 2022	[198]
Dominica	90 days within any 180-day period			28 Sep 2018	14 Jan 2019	[199]
Dominican Republic	90 days			9 Sep 2009	9 Apr 2010	[200]
			60 days within any 180-day period	26 Nov 2018	15 Dec 2020	[201]
Ecuador	90 days within any year period			18 Feb 1999	15 May 1999	[202]
			90 days within any 180-day period	24 Sep 2010	24 Nov 2012	[203]
Egypt	90 days			17 Jul 2003	17 Jul 2003	[204]
El Salvador	90 days			25 Jan 1999 29 Jan 19992	30 Mar 1999
			90 days within any 180-day period	26 Mar 2015	27 Aug 2016	[205]
Eswatini	90 days within any 180-day period			24 Jan 2023	12 Jun 2023	[206]
Equatorial Guinea	90 days within any 180-day period			7 Apr 2017	8 Nov 2019	[207]
Ethiopia	90 days			11 Dec 2002	11 Jan 2003	[208]
European Union countries (excluding Denmark and Ireland) 25 states  Austria  Belgium  Bulgaria  Croatia  Cyprus  Czech Republic  Estonia  Finland  France  Germany  Greece  Hungary  Italy  Latvia  Lithuania  Luxembourg  Malta  Netherlands  Poland  Portugal  Romania  Slovakia  Slovenia  Spain  Sweden	90 days within any 180-day period			25 May 2006	1 Jun 2007; for Croatia from 1 Jul 2013
Fiji	90 days1			28 Jun 2013	29 Jul 2013	[209]
Gabon	90 days			5 Apr 2011	25 Sep 2011	[210]
Gambia	90 days			4 May 2017	15 Aug 2018	[211]
Grenada	90 days within any 180-day period			20 Sep 2017	24 Dec 2017	[212]
Guatemala	3 months			24 May 1999	24 Jul 1999	[213]
			90 days within any 180-day period	22 Sep 2011	29 Feb 2012	[214]
Guinea	90 days			7 Jan 1998	8 Mar 1998	[215]
Guinea-Bissau	90 days			23 Oct 2019	9 Feb 2022	[216]
Guyana	90 days			3 Nov 2005	12 Feb 2006	[217][218]
		90 days		7 Jun 2017 24 Jul 20172	17 Nov 2017
			90 days within any 180-day period	27 Sep 2015	27 Nov 2015	[219]
Honduras	90 days			21 Sep 19992	20 Nov 1999	[220]
			90 days within any 180-day period	26 Sep 2014	11 Jul 2015	[221]
Hong Kong	14 days1			23 Apr 2009	1 Jul 2009	[222]
Hungary	90 days within any 180-day period	90 days within any 180-day period		14 Jun 2001	14 Jun 2001	[223]
Iceland	90 days within any 180-day period			24 Sep 2008	1 Mar 2010[224]	[225]
India	90 days			3 Dec 2004	28 Mar 2006	[226][227]
Indonesia	14 days			1 Dec 2006	22 Mar 2008	[228]
Iran	30 days			29 Mar 1993	29 Apr 1993	[229]
			15 days for tourist groups4	28 Mar 2017	1 Jul 2021	[230]
Iraq	90 days within any 180-day period			2 Apr 2023	23 Jan 2024	[231]
Israel			90 days within any 180-day period	20 Mar 2008	20 Sep 2008	[232]
Jamaica	90 days			23 Jun 2000	1 Sep 2000	[233]
			90 days within any year period	27 Sep 2018	27 Nov 2018	[234]
Jordan	90 days within any 180-day period			11 Sep 2017	25 Jan 2018	[235]
Kazakhstan	Unspecified  period			30 Nov 2000	30 Nov 2000[159]	[160]
Kuwait	90 days within any 180-day period			10 Nov 2015	10 Apr 2016	[236]
Kyrgyzstan	Unspecified  period			30 Nov 2000	30 Nov 2000[159]	[160]
Laos	30 days			29 Nov 2004	30 Dec 2004	[237]
			30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period	8 Sep 2016	2 Dec 2017	[238]
Liechtenstein	90 days within any 180-day period			12 Nov 2013	1 Apr 2015[239]	[240]
Macao	30 days1			19 Jun 2012	30 Sep 2012	[241]
Maldives	90 days1			25 Jun 2019	25 Jul 2019	[242]
Mali	90 days			27 May 2009	27 May 2009	[243]
Mauritius	60 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period			23 Dec 2015	10 Apr 2016	[244]
Mexico	90 days			28 Jan 1997	5 Jul 1997	[245]
Micronesia	30 days1			21 Sep 2017		[246]
Moldova	Unspecified period			30 Nov 2000	30 Nov 2000[247]	[248]
Mongolia	30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period			3 Sep 2014	14 Nov 2014	[249]
Montenegro	90 days		30 days	24 Sep 2008	21 Nov 2008	[250]
Morocco	90 days			15 Oct 2002	15 Oct 2002	[251]
Mozambique	30 days			30 Dec 2009	30 May 2010	[252]
Myanmar	90 days			3 Jul 2000	3 Aug 2000	[253]
Namibia	90 days within any 180-day period			14 Apr 2021	2 Aug 2021	[254]
Nauru	14 days1			24 Sep 2014	14 May 2015	[255]
Nepal	90 days			16 Apr 2002	16 May 2002	[256]
		90 days[257]		27 Apr 2022 13 Jun 20222	15 Aug 2022	[258]
Nicaragua	90 days			28 Nov 19972	13 Jan 1998	[259]
			90 days within any 180-day period	28 Jul 2009	3 Jul 2010	[260]
Niger	90 days within any 180-day period			15 Feb 2022	22 Feb 2023	[261]
North Korea	90 days			24 Jan 1997	23 May 1997	[262]
North Macedonia	90 days		30 days	19 Jun 2008	31 Oct 2008	[263]
Norway	90 days within any 180-day period			8 Jun 2007	1 Dec 2008[264]	[265]
Oman	90 days			3 Feb 2016	27 Oct 2016	[266]
Pakistan	90 days			4 Jul 1994	3 Aug 1994	[267]
Palau	30 days1			28 Sep 2018	27 Dec 2018	[268]
Palestine	90 days within any 180-day period			23 Jan 2020	21 May 2020	[269]
Panama	90 days			16 Jun 1995 22 Jun 19952	20 Aug 1995	[270]
			90 days within any 180-day period	3 Dec 2014 9 Dec 20142	8 Feb 2015	[271]
Paraguay	3 months			20 Nov 1995	2 Feb 1997	[272]
			90 days within any 180-day period	25 Sep 2013	20 Oct 2014	[273]
Peru	90 days			14 Jul 1999	26 Nov 1999	[274]
			90 days within any 180-day period	13 Nov 2010	21 Jun 2011	[275]
Philippines	90 days			3 Aug 2007	22 Dec 2008	[276]
Poland	90 days			18 Sep 2003	1 Oct 2003	[277]
Qatar	90 days within any 180-day period			27 Dec 2019	23 Feb 2020	[278]
Romania	90 days			26 Aug 2002	1 Mar 2004[279]	[280]
Saint Kitts and Nevis	90 days within any 180-day period			21 Sep 2017	21 Nov 2017	[281]
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	90 days within any 180-day period			27 Sep 2018	7 Jan 2019	[282]
Samoa	60 days1			4 Apr 2017	9 July 2017	[283]
San Marino	90 days within any 180-day period			2 Dec 2021		[284]
Senegal	90 days			2 Jul 2015	6 Feb 2017	[285]
Serbia	90 days		30 days	20 Feb 2009	10 Jun 2009	[286]
Seychelles	30 days1			2 Sep 2015	14 Dec 2015	[287]
Sierra Leone	90 days within any 180-day period			17 May 2021	14 Mar 2022	[288]
Singapore	90 days			17 Nov 2015	2 Jan 2016	[289]
Slovakia	90 days			29 Dec 2000	29 Dec 2000[290]	[291]
South Africa	90 days			5 Aug 2010	15 Dec 2010	[292]
			90 days1	24 Jan 2017 27 Feb 20172	30 Mar 2017	[293]
South Korea	90 days			21 Sep 2004	21 Nov 2004	[294]
		90 days		17 Oct 2006	31 Dec 2006	[295]
			60 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period	13 Nov 2013	1 Jan 2014	[296]
South Ossetia	Unspecified  period[297]			1 Feb 2010	25 Apr 2011	[298]
Sri Lanka	30 days			13 Aug 2015	24 Oct 2015	[299]
Sudan	90 days within any 180-day period			24 Nov 2017	4 Sep 2022	[300]
Suriname	90 days within any 180 day-period			26 Sep 2018	13 May 2019	[301]
Syria	90 days[302]			19 Mar 2008	2 Jul 2008	[303][304]
Switzerland	90 days within any 180-day period			21 Sep 2009	1 Feb 2011[305]	[306]
Tajikistan	Unspecified  period			30 Nov 2000	30 Nov 2000[159]	[160]
Thailand	90 days			17 Oct 2002	6 Mar 2003	[307]
			30 days	13 Dec 2005	24 Mar 2007	[308]
Togo	90 days within any 180-day period			16 Feb 2021	19 Aug 2021	[309]
Tunisia	90 days within any 180-day period			28 Jun 2012	13 Feb 2013	[310]
Turkey	90 days			5 Nov 1999	6 Jan 2000	[311]
		30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period	30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period	12 May 2010	16 Apr 2011[312]	[313]
Turkmenistan	30 days			17 Jul 1999	17 Jul 1999	[314]
United Arab Emirates	90 days within any 180-day period			6 Jul 2018	17 Feb 2019	[315]
Uruguay	3 months			13 Jul 1999	3 Oct 1999	[316]
			90 days within any 180-day period	26 Sep 2011	27 Dec 2011	[317]
Uzbekistan	Unspecified period			30 Nov 2000	30 Nov 2000[318]	[319]
Vanuatu	90 days1			20 Sep 2016	21 Oct 2016	[320]
Vatican City	90 days within any 180-day period			22 Aug 2017	29 Dec 2017	[321]
Venezuela	90 days			28 Jun 1993 1 Nov 19932	1 Nov 1993	[322]
			90 days within any 180-day period	26 Nov 2008	6 Mar 2009	[323]
Vietnam	90 days			28 Oct 1993	20 Feb 1994	[324][325]
Zambia	90 days within any 180-day period			23 Oct 2019	1 Jul 2020	[326]
Zimbabwe	90 days			23 Jan 1991 31 Jan 19912	31 Jan 1991	[327]
Notes: ^ Agreement include the item "Total period of permitted stay in the territory of the state for a certain period of time is set in accordance with the laws of the state." From 2014, it is 90 days within any 180-day period. ^ Agreement concluded through an exchange of diplomatic notes. ^ Agreement between Russia and EU. Article 14 " ...the provisions <of the agreement> shall prevail over the provisions of any bilateral or multilateral agreements or arrangements between the Russian Federation and the Member States..." ^ Only for group tourism (from 5 to 50 persons) organized by accredited travel agencies in both countries.