Estonia stops issuing temporary residence permits and study visas to Russian citizens.
Also, the Estonian government has amended the already imposed sanctions. According to them, citizens of Russia and Belarus will be able to register short-term work in Estonia only if they have an Estonian visa. Thus, citizens of Russia and Belarus who have obtained the legal right to stay in another European Union (EU) country will not be able to register short-term work in Estonia and, therefore, will not be able to apply for a long-term work visa.
“This amendment will put an end to the situation when, in order to circumvent existing sanctions, they apply for a short-term Schengen visa in another EU country, for example, for the purpose of tourism,” said Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu.
Earlier, the director of the consular department of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Ivan Volynkin , said that Russia does not rule out the possibility of suspending the issuance of Schengen visas to its citizens amid worsening relations with Europe. According to him, calls have become more frequent in Europe to stop issuing Schengen visas to Russian citizens. He added that the consulates of Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic and Estonia have actually completely suspended the issuance of visas to Russians.
