From November 1, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine suspended the consideration of applications from Russians for obtaining or exchanging a residence permit (permit) and immigration for the entire duration of martial law and for a period of 30 days in case of its cancellation. Taras Melnychuk, a government representative in the Verkhovna Rada , said on his Telegram channel that the authorities have identified a number of categories of persons to whom these restrictions do not apply.
Innovations do not apply to spouses, children, parents and other close relatives of citizens of Ukraine, as well as persons who have legally arrived in Ukraine for employment. Also, the law does not prohibit Russians who have served in the Armed Forces of Ukraine for three years or more to receive documents.
“Citizens of the Russian Federation who arrived in Ukraine for the purpose of employment or for the purpose of family reunification must apply to the State Migration Service within 30 days for an exchange of a temporary residence permit.”
According to the State Migration Service, about 175 thousand people with Russian passports live in Ukraine, the data does not include the regions of the country temporarily occupied by Russia.
On July 1, Ukraine introduced a visa regime for Russians. In September, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced that they were considering the introduction of visas for Ukrainians.
A number of European countries, in particular Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland and Finland, have closed their borders to Russian tourists due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Exceptions are made for those who come to visit relatives and those who enter on humanitarian visas. Since October 25, Russians with a Schengen tourist visa issued by any EU state have been denied entry to the Czech Republic.
