Russian international passport что это
Why do Russians have 2 passports?
Few countries issue both “domestic” and “international travel” passports to their citizens. Russia, Ukraine and North Korea are among those few, and it’s easy to guess that if a person requires a specific document to cross the border, then the state thoroughly controls such movement, which was the case in the USSR.
‘Pass through the gate’
Historically, a passport (which derives from French, and means ‘to pass through the city gate/door’) was issued as a travel document that allowed a citizen of a certain duchy, kingdom, country, you name it, to pass through state borders, enter foreign cities, towns, and etc.
To exit the territory of Muscovy, for example, one had to apply for a “traveler’s scroll” that was issued by the Tsar, and it was available only to the most wealthy noblemen and merchants. This scroll was the only document to distinguish genuine travelers from vagrants, who were subjected to detention.
Traveler’s scroll of the 16th century, issued by Tsar Ivan the Terrible
Starting in the 18th century, Russia issued internal documents to control migration in the country. At this time, Russia had serfdom, and fugitive serfs were tracked down and returned to their owners. Traveling without an internal document was perilous.
Internal travel document of the 19th century, issued at the order of Emperor Alexander I
Not for everyone
After the industrial and transport revolution of the second half of the 19th century, the need for controlling internal migration was a priority. The tsarist government first came up against this problem, as did the Soviets later on, and a system of registration stamps appeared.
Soviet urban residents first received domestic passports in the 1930s, but rural residents only gained this right in the 1960s – the state didn’t want peasants to leave their villages, and hesitated to issue them passports. All Soviet citizens were given domestic passports in 1974.
Unlike contemporary Russian passports, those Soviet passports listed one’s nationality, which sometimes led to grief and discrimination. A registration stamp that ties a citizen to his/her place of residence remains in Russian passports.
Travel passports
Soviet tourists in Brussels, Belgium, 1958
The Soviet state closely watched each person going abroad. Official delegations, sports teams, orchestras and ballet troupes were supervised by KGB officers, who traveled with them, keeping watch so that there’d be no defections, or to prevent someone from giving away state secrets.
Those who traveled abroad on business trips or for vacation were given special international travel passports, known as “foreign passports” – and this has remained until today. Why? First, many Soviet citizens had foreign passports at the moment of the collapse of the USSR, and these passports had to stay valid in order not to destroy the entire state customs system. When their validity expired, they were exchanged for the new Russian international travel passports.
In Belarus, the Soviet system was done away with in the 1990s, and today the country’s citizens have a single passport as their domestic ID and international travel document.
What is a Russian national passport?
Russian internal passport
Lyubimov Andrey/Moskva Agency
As for the Russian national passport, its function is close to an ID card that most Westerners have. In the U.S., a driver’s license serves this function; while in most European countries a medical insurance card can serve as ID. So, most Westerners also have two IDs – an international travel passport and a domestic ID.
A Russian citizen is formally obliged to carry his passport with him/her at all times. However, the law on passports says the document should be “kept safe,” and this is why many Russians make photocopies of their passports to carry around. Even though reclaiming one’s lost passport has now become a lot easier with government websites offering access to state services, nobody wants to spend time without a passport. As we wrote, there are a lot of places in Russia where you suddenly might need to show an internal passport.
Employee of FSUE Goznak checks the quality of finished biometric passports for Russian citizens in the Reserve personalization Center at FSUE «Goznak» in Moscow
Only a minority of Russians, however, need an international travel document. According to a 2014 Levada Center survey (link in Russian), an astonishing 76 percent of Russians have never been outside the former Soviet Union. Only 7 percent travel abroad annually; 8 percent do it twice or thrice a year. Also, 67 percent of Russians older than 55 have never been abroad, and in total, only 30 percent have valid travel passports.
But before you get all teary-eyed over the fact that most Russians have never been abroad, you may wish to know that, for instance, 64 percent of Americans never left their home country either – for a similar reason: for people living in Siberia, the Russian North or the Far East, travelling the world on an extremely modest annual income is practically impossible. The distances are simply too great.
For more answers about Russian life, check out our explaining articles – learn about things in Moscow that have probably boggled your mind, or discuss weird things that Russians do to baffle foreigners. Some Russian notions are impossible to translate into English, but we’ve explained them for you – and if you want to improve your Russian, here are 8 movies that can help you do it.
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How to get a foreign passport in 2021: new rules for issuing passports
Россиянину необходим загранпаспорт, чтобы выехать за пределы России. МВД России принял новый регламент о выдаче загранпаспортов на территории страны. Рассказываем, что изменилось и как россиянину получить загранпаспорт за рубежом и в России.
A foreign passport is an official document that certifies the identity of a citizen outside of Russia. In 2021 a Russian citizen can get one of two types of foreign passports:
An old‑style passport without an electronic carrier of information. It is issued for a period of 5 years.
The new generation passport with an electronic medium, or biometric passport. It is issued for 10 years. A digital photo of a citizen and his personal data are imprinted into the chip of the passport.
Without a passport it is impossible to cross the border of a foreign country: the passport is checked at the border, when boarding an airplane or checking into a hotel.
A passport is issued for a limited period and cannot be extended. If the passport expires, it is necessary to obtain a new one. Since 2015, Russians have the right to have two valid passports. The second passport can only be a new passport. For example, the second passport is necessary to travel abroad, if the first is in the Consulate or Embassy.
How to get a foreign passport in 2021
Registration of foreign passports abroad is regulated by Federal Law dated No. 114‑FZ “On the procedure for exit from the Russian Federation and entry into the Russian Federation”. A Russian can get a passport in diplomatic representations or consular offices. Addresses and Internet addresses of foreign representations can be found on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia.
You can make an appointment online or by phone. The application form can also be downloaded from the websites of missions or the portal of the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and filled out in advance.
A Russian may need to obtain a passport abroad if he or she temporarily resides in another country. A residence permit or second citizenship is needed to legally stay in another country for more than six months.
The fastest way to become a citizen or resident is to participate in a government program. Investment programs differ in the amount of investment and conditions of participation.
How to get a foreign passport in Russia in 2021
A Russian can apply for a passport in three ways:
Basic documents for obtaining a foreign passport:
Application for passport issuance. The application form can be downloaded in advance from the website or can be picked up at the migration department or MFC.
The application must be filled out without errors or corrections. If you make a mistake or provide incomplete data, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will refuse to issue a passport. The website of the Consular Department provides detailed information on how to complete the application.
The number of application copies depends on the type of passport, for example, for a passport with an electronic medium one copy of the application is enough, and for an old‑style passport two copies are needed.
A foreign passport or other document certifying the identity of a Russian citizen. If the passport is issued for the first time, the Russian citizen can provide the Russian passport to the department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia.
Birth certificate if the applicant is under 14 years old. Parents or legal representatives of a minor applicant submit the Russian passport or Russian passport and documents that confirm their authority as a guardian.
A receipt for the payment of the consular fee. Also, the applicant fills out an application to declare the lost passport invalid and, if desired, an application to change the spelling of his name and surname in the passport in the Latin alphabet. A list of all documents is on the website of the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia.
According to the new regulations, the passport processing time should not exceed one month if a Russian applied for a residence permit, and three months if he/she applied at the place of stay. And the waiting time in a queue should not exceed 15 minutes. In the premises where passports are issued, there will be stands with samples of applications and list of documents.
It is quicker to get a new passport if you need urgent treatment abroad, or to visit your nearest relative diagnosed with a serious illness, or to go to a funeral abroad. In the above cases the processing time takes not more than 3 working days.
The cost of the passport is 2000 roubles for an old‑style passport and 5000 roubles for a biometric passport for adults. It costs 1400 and 2500 rubles for children under 14 years old respectively.
You can check the status of readiness of the passport on the website of the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia: the applicant must select the country, city and enter the number of his application.
Immigrant Invest is a licensed agent for European and Caribbean residency and citizenship programs by investment. If you want to relocate to another country or travel freely within the Schengen area, seek advice from investment programs experts.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a bill that eases existing requirements for those who seek to acquire Russian citizenship.
Starting from July 22, foreign nationals who apply for Russian citizenship will not need to prove to Russian authorities that they began the process of citizenship termination in their home country.
Although nationals of some states might still be required, by their home country’s legislation, to renounce their citizenship when applying for a new one, this requirement will be waived by the Russian side and leave the matter to the applicant’s discretion.
Roy Jones Jr. was one of the many foreign nationals who received a Russian passport in 2015.
Before this law was passed, foreign nationals had to submit a specific document that proved they began a procedure of citizenship renunciation in their home state.
Most of the applicants for Russian citizenship were required to live in Russia on legal grounds for five years before they could apply for Russian citizenship and had to prove they had legal income in the years preceding the application. However, the new law now exempts certain categories of individuals from these requirements.
In particular, these requirements are waived for:
Probably the most crucial change concerns foreign nationals who have a Russian spouse. Before the new law was adopted, they had to be married to a Russian citizen for at least three years before they could apply for Russian citizenship. However, as the new law comes into effect, those foreigners will be allowed to apply for citizenship after only one year of marriage to a Russian citizen.
Earlier, President Putin signed a law that extended the validity of all visas and migration cards up until June 15, 2020.
Earlier, President Putin signed a law that extended the validity of all visas and migration cards up until June 15, 2020, for foreigners who could not leave Russia in time, due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Click here to find out how you can get Russian citizenship.
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Decoding Information Hidden in Russian Passport Numbers
Home > Insights > Decoding Information Hidden in Russian Passport Numbers
Insights | 6 minutes read | 04/09/2019
What can a Russian passport number tell you about the passport holder?
When you delve into an open source investigation involving Russian individuals, you often need a birth date or an identification number to confirm the identity of an Aleksei Ivanov or Vladimir Petrov. Passport numbers can help distinguish between individuals of the same name, but they also contain hidden information that can tell you something more about the passport holder.
The first step to decoding a Russian passport number is determining the type of passport to which it corresponds. Unlike the United States, Russia uses a two-passport system left over from the Soviet era. Many Russian citizens hold both internal and international Russian passports.
Internal Russian Passport Number
But internal Russian passport numbers are more than just unique identifiers.
Given the passport number 45 12 970362, we can determine the following:
International Russian Passport Number
The international Russian passport (Заграничный паспорт) is used by Russian citizens to travel across national borders, more like an American passport.
During the time of the USSR, the Soviet state closely controlled people’s travel abroad. Diplomats and athletes typically were accompanied by KGB (Soviet State Security) officers to prevent treason and defection. Those who ventured outside the vast expanse of the Socialist Republics for business or pleasure were granted special “foreign passports.” Although the USSR no longer exists, this system that utilizes both internal and international passports does. Some post-Soviet states, such as Belarus, have moved to a one-passport system; others, such as Kyrgyzstan, have stayed with Russia in the two-passport system.
Interestingly, most Russians do not have an international passport, despite the increased freedom of travel since the collapse of the USSR. According to a 2016 survey conducted by the Levada Center, only 28% of Russians hold a valid foreign passport, and 72% of Russians have never been outside the borders of the former USSR.
An international passport number has 9 digits, unlike the 10-digit internal passport number. The first two digits can indicate that the passport holder (or a family member) is a government official (10) or a diplomat (20). However, overall, international passport numbers do not offer as much insight as internal passport numbers. Region and year of issue do not form part of the number, since that information is found elsewhere on that type of document.
International Russian passport numbers may contain less data, but they still can come in handy for open source investigations.
In a recently publicized example, the investigative reporting outlet Bellingcat used the international passport numbers of suspected GRU agents to substantiate links to the GRU. Bellingcat found that the two men involved in the Skripal poisoning held international passport numbers that differed by only 3 consecutive digits, suggesting their passports were acquired under the same top secret (but perhaps not highly sophisticated) circumstances. As the Bellingcat investigation team wrote, “it [is] implausible that they were civilians who obtained their passports through the regular, entropic passport application process available to Russian citizens.”
While entropic may be a perfect word to describe Russian systems and processes, strengthening your understanding of them can only help your investigations.
Put these tips to work on the public records data available through Sayari Search! If you’re curious how this data could drive insights for your team, please reach out here.
Russian citizenship: a guide to the application process
Make sure you’re ready to apply for Russian citizenship by getting an understanding of the country’s nationality law.
If you are relocating to Russia or looking to live their for a long period of time, you can choose between Russian permanent residency or full Russian citizenship. Both afford you the rights of Russian nationals, although there are differences between them.
There are different conditions and requirements depending on where you are travelling from, with those from Russian speaking former Soviet countries able to more easily settle in Russia. There are also benefits for refugees and those who enter on a Highly Skilled Professionals visa. Even more information on Russian entry visas is available in our article here.
This guide to Russian citizenship and Russian permanent residency includes information on topics such as:
Who can get a Russian passport or Russian permanent residency?
Foreign nationals in Russia can apply for Russian permanent residency after living in Russia for one year and for naturalization as a Russian citizen after five years of permanent residence. You can also do this sooner if you meet certain criteria.
In order to obtain Russian permanent residency, you must legally reside in Russia with a valid Russian temporary residence permit (other than nationals from Belarus, refugees from Turkmenistan, and those entering on a Highly Skilled Migrant visa, who are entitled to permanent residence upon entering Russia). This is normally for those in Russia on a long-stay visa such as a Russian work visa. Temporary residence permits have government quotas and certain categories of foreign residents receive preference. See our guide to Russian visas and residence permits for even more information.
The Russian General Directorate of Migratory Affairs (GUVM) issues residence permits and Russian passports.
Differences: Russian citizenship or Russian permanent residency?
The Russian permanent residence permit is a step towards taking on Russian citizenship. Many people are happy to settle in Russia on permanent residency alone. However, there are certain rights and benefits for both Russian citizens and permanent residents. Both may take up employment in Russia without a work permit. In addition to this, both are able to:
The following applies only to those with full Russian citizenship:
The Russian permanent residence permit is valid for five years but can be renewed an unlimited number of times. However, it has to be registered with the GUVM every year. If a Russian permanent residence permit expires, it cannot be renewed. It will also become invalid if you leave the country for an unbroken six month period.
If you take full Russian citizenship through naturalization, you will also need to renounce the citizenship of your home country. You will also have to pay the Russian citizenship fee and embark on a process that can take up to a year to complete.
Applying for Russian permanent residence
You can apply for Russian permanent residence after one year of legally residing in Russia. You should do this six months before your temporary residence permit expires. The Russian permanent residence permit is valid for five years, can be extended an unlimited number of times but it cannot be issued beyond the expiration date of your passport. Renewal of a Russian permanent residence permit must be done at least two months prior to its expiration. If your permit is revoked, however, you must leave Russia within 15 days.
Russian permanent residence applications need to be made at the GUVM office in your region. A list of local GUVM offices is available here. Exact documents required vary depending on whether you are from a CIS or non-CIS country, but will include the following:
If you are living in Russia, you can check your eligibility for a Russian permanent residence permit here.
Russian citizenship requirements
Current Russian citizenship requirements are according to the 2002 Russian Citizenship Act. You can acquire Russian citizenship through the following ways:
Russian citizenship by birth
A child can claim Russian citizenship through birth if any of the following applies:
Russian citizenship by naturalization (common process)
Foreign nationals living in Russia can apply for citizenship by naturalization if they meet the following requirements:
The Russian permanent residence requirement can lessen to one year for the following groups:
Russian citizenship by naturalization (simplified process)
Certain categories of foreign national can apply for Russian citizenship by naturalization as soon as they have become permanent residents. These are foreign nationals who:
Restoration of citizenship for former Russian citizens
Former Russian citizens who have given up their Russian citizenship voluntarily may have their Russian citizenship reinstated after three years of residence in Russia.
Russia also has a joint international treaty with Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan enabling citizens of those countries to apply for Russian citizenship using a simplified process.
Applying for Russian citizenship
The GUVM processes Russian citizenship applications. Before applying for Russian citizenship by naturalization, you need to submit a request to an authorized agency to renounce the citizenship you hold within your home country. This request will only be carried through upon being successfully granted Russian citizenship.
You will need to submit your Russian citizenship application through the GUVM, as well as documents including:
If your Russian citizenship application is successful, you will be issued with an internal Russian passport (to be replaced with a citizen’s identity card in 2018) and will also be eligible to apply for a Russian passport for international travel. Russian passports are valid for 10 years.
Decisions on Russian citizenship applications can take up to a year and are made by the Office of the President of the Russian Federation. Applications via the simplified process take up to six months and are made by the GUVM. If your application for Russian citizenship is rejected, however, you are entitled to appeal through the courts. You should contact your local GUVM office for information.
Russian citizenship costs
The Russian citizenship cost is R3500 for the application. Those from former USSR countries who haven’t taken up citizenship in these countries, as well as parent-less children, are exempt from this fee. The cost of a Russian passport is R3500 for adults and R1500 for children. It is possible to purchase a special shorter-term passport that lasts for five years for R2000.
Dual nationality in Russia
Russian dual citizenship is a complex issue. On the one hand, Russia officially allows dual citizenship and Russian citizens can acquire citizenship abroad without giving up their Russian citizenship. However, the Russian state sees dual citizens as Russians only. In fact, Russia has dual citizenship treaties with just two countries: Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Citizenships of these countries are equal. However, recent changes in the law mean that Russian citizens acquiring dual nationality abroad need to inform their local GUVM office within 60 days.
If you become a Russian citizen through naturalization, you must renounce the citizenship of your home country during the Russian citizenship application process. This may provide grounds for you permanently losing your citizenship of your home country, depending on what the rules are regarding citizenship. You will also need to enquire with the relevant authorities of your home country if you have concerns regarding this.