By Olga Makarova, Confidence Group lawyer
Not so long ago the procedure of obtaining Russian citizenship for residents of Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) and Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) has not been defined as for the citizens of the rest territory of Ukraine.
In this regard on April 24, 2019 Russian President has signed the Decree on the simplified procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship for residents of DPR and LPR, permanently living in these areas.
The procedure involves submission of application and a set of documents to the authorized territory departments of Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA). If the application is approved, a person should take the oath and then get the Russian passport.
The procedure for handling the relevant application specified by the Decree was established due to specifics of the difficult situation the citizens of Ukraine and stateless persons residing in the territories of the DPR and LPR face.
The simplified procedure proposes to shorten the time required to make a decision on the application. A citizen should not to send a waiver of Ukrainian citizenship to the Ukrainian consulate or to send an official notarial refusal. Moreover, it is not required to confirm Russian language knowledge and present the document showing the procession of required amount of money.
Applications should be carried out only through the authorized departments of MIA or at the place of citizen’s residence in DPR or LPR areas.
Starting from May 2019 the migration department of MIA in Rostov region has started to operate in a test mode.
Starting from May 03, 2019 it is possible to apply for a Russian citizenship at the migration office in Donetsk (Khodakovskogo str. 10), from May 07, 2019 – in all territory departments of migration service of Ukraine, after that the applications are transferred to Novoshakhtinsk, Rostov region. If the positive decision is made, a citizen should collect the passport in person, take an oath and undertake the fingerprints procedure. These citizens are coming to Rostov region on the special buses. It should be noted, that there are large queues at the migration offices in Ukraine, as a citizen could have only the passport and permanent registration in LPR or DPR areas in order to apply for the Russian citizenship.
If a person intends to apply for a citizenship in Russia, at Moscow Migration Centre in Sakharovo, it is obligatory to have a temporary residence permit or permanent residence permit along with the registration in Moscow. However, he is allowed to apply in Rostov region without any permits, he should only have a valid migration card and registration in this region.
After decision is made, it is not required to send a waiver of Ukrainian citizenship. The estimated time for application processing is up to 3 months.
Along with the internal Russian passport, a citizen has the right to obtain a passport for travelling abroad.
The unique feature of the simplified process is that a foreign citizen becomes Russian as soon as the positive decision on his application is made. It is stipulated by the Decree of the Russian President. However, the legislation implies that a person can become Russian just after taking the oath.
