Russia to Drop Strict Dual Citizenship Restrictions
Russia’s new dual citizenship laws make it easier for non-natives to gain Russian citizenship. (Wikimedia Commons)
The Kremlin is poised to ditch its restrictive dual citizenship requirement as Russian lawmakers prepare to vote on a citizenship bill this month.
These revolutionary measures come after President Vladimir Putin’s repeated emphasis on curtailing Russia’s depopulation problem. Russia’s dramatically declining population prompted Putin to call the country’s exodus "the most acute problem of contemporary Russia” in 2006.
14 years later, the Russian government is tackling its demographic disaster with a revision in its citizenship bill that would allow foreigners to easily acquire dual citizenship. Under current law, one must first renounce their existing citizenship in order to acquire Russian citizenship.
This unwavering rule has proved quite off-putting to those who have considered moving to Russia but do not like the idea of never being able to return home. Experts acknowledge that the introduction of dual citizenship would make the decision to obtain Russian citizenship much easier for many considering this move.
Leonid Kalashnikov, the Deputy of the Communist Party, appealed to President Putin last April to relax the citizenship rules. “It was about extending this to everyone in the world without exception. The President promised to look… It was decided to prepare a bill that allows you to get Russian citizenship without giving up the one that is,” the Deputy told Kommersant.
The primary target of dual citizenship is Russian compatriots, or nationals of what Moscow considers “fraternal states” such as Belarus, Ukraine, and other former Soviet republics. People living in the post-Soviet space could provide Russia with migrant labor, tackling not just its population issue but its need to maintain economic growth as well.
Dual citizenship would not be limited to individuals from these countries, however, as authors of this bill expect the relaxation of dual citizenship to attract between five million and 10 million new Russian citizens from all around the world. “We want this matter to be settled in the spring session of Parliament so that everyone can become Russian citizens,” reported Vice Speaker of the State Duma Peter Tolstoy told Kommersant. Member of Parliament Konstantin Zatulin added that “millions of Russians live abroad and would like to become Russian citizens.”
The change is anticipated to be passed within the next few months. After passing through the legislative branch of the Russian parliament, the bill would only need President Putin’s signature. Starting last May, Putin started to introduce reforms, which allow inhabitants of Ukraine’s war-torn Donetsk and Lugansk regions to obtain Russian passports in an expedited three-month process. This precedent, coupled with Putin’s emphasis on regaining Russia’s population, makes it very likely that he would sign the revolutionary dual citizenship law.
Other changes to the citizenship law would nullify the requirement for five years of continuous residence in Russia and abolish the need to exhibit a legitimate source of income.