The State Duma of the Russian Federation has increased the visa fee for citizens of Europe

The State Duma of the Russian Federation, in the third reading, adopted a law canceling preferential rates for obtaining Russian visas by citizens of the European Union, Denmark, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.

The new law entails an increase in fees for processing Russian visas for citizens of several European countries. According to the law, citizens of European countries will be charged visa fees in accordance with the rates established by the Russian government on November 11, 2010. This will lead to an increase in the cost of Russian visas depending on urgency and multiplicity, and the revenue from document issuance may increase by 2.8 times.

Additionally, the law introduces restrictions on visa-free entry for diplomats and cancels visa preferences for members of official delegations, national and regional governments and parliaments, constitutional and supreme courts, as well as foreign journalists.

However, according to the approach approved by the President of the Russian Federation to maintain contacts with citizens of European countries, certain categories of Europeans, such as entrepreneurs, scientists, cultural and creative workers, participants in sports events, and others, will retain the opportunity to obtain Russian visas without the need to provide invitations to the territorial authorities of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation.