New Laws to Attract People to Live in Russia Create New Opportunities to Get Russian Citizenship
New Citizenship Laws
The Russian parliament has just made it easier to get a Russian passport. Russia, like most European countries is suffering from a demographic crisis. Without new citizens Russia’s population will be in steady decline.
Previously, if you wanted Russian citizenship you had to renounce any other citizenships. They have now waived this requirement.
The new law also abolishes the requirement of 3 years residency for former Soviet citizens. This opens the door to instant Russian citizenship for citizens of former Soviet countries. Even if you’ve obtained a passport by descent from a previous Soviet Union country you’ll be able to get Russian citizenship without too much difficulty
Why Would Anyone Want to Get Russian Citizenship?
Russia gets such a bad press in the western media that some readers may be wondering why we’re even discussing Russian citizenship here. But there are some great advantages to having Russian citizenship. The visa free travel options with a Russian passport are actually pretty good. If you have a western passport it’s likely to be complimentary, offering visa free access to countries like China or Iran where visas are required for almost all wester countries.
Russia also benefits from much lower tax rates than western countries. Russia has a flat tax of only 13%. It also has wonderful cities like Moscow and St Petersburg.
In any case, our philosophy of life is that you should have as many options as possible to live life with the optimum amount of freedom. In that sense a Russian passport could be ideal as a Plan B or even a Plan C.
Foreigners who live in Russia and are married to a Russian can become Russian citizens after 3 years of marriage. The parents of a child born in Russia are entitled to Russian citizenship after only 1 year.
Easy Citizenship for Former Soviet Union Citizens
The Russian government has made it easier for citizens of Moldova, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan to get Russian citizenship.
Citizens of these countries will be able to get a Russian passport with no length of stay requirements provided they have a valid residence permit.
Anyone who graduates from a Russian university only has to complete one year of employment down from three years previously.
The team at Liberty Mundo will be looking at this new law closely with our Russian legal partners to see exactly what opportunities this creates to add a Russian passport to your portfolio of passports.
While marrying a Russian to get instant citizenship may seem extreme to some, attending a Russian university to learn Russian for a year might be an interesting adventure for those so inclined.
There are also provisions for permanent residents of Estonia and Latvia to be fast tracked to Russian citizenship, but it’s not clear whether that applies only to former citizens of the Soviet Union.
The Russian language requirement remains for those seeking Russian citizenship.
A Russian passport is a reasonable travel document, allowing visa free or visa on arrival travel to 121 countries. There are now more options than before to get Russian citizenship, after these new laws were put into effect last year. It’s amore adventurous option than a Caribbean citizenship by investment but spending time in a metropolis like Moscow might be more fun than a quiet Caribbean island.
Further information (In Russian) is available by clicking here.
