Russia quietly introduces exit visas for certain foreigners (RETRACTED)

Retraction: This story, originally reported by Moskovsky Komsomolets, contains inaccurate information. Meduza sincerely apologizes for the mistake. For our in-depth review of Russia's policies on visas and exiting the country, click here.

Russian officials have quietly introduced exit visas for certain foreigners with Russian residency status and work permits. In a Facebook post this Thursday, TV anchor Anna Mongait said airport officials demanded exit visa documents for her family’s nanny, a Georgian citizen. Human rights worker Bakhrom Ismailov later confirmed to the newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets that foreigners living in Russia with residence and work permits are now required to obtain exit visas before leaving the country.

Mongait says she intentionally hired a nanny with Georgian citizenship, because Georgian citizens can now travel visa-free within the European Union. The woman was unable to board an international flight leaving from Domodedovo airport, however, because she lacked the proper exit documentation. “It turns out that all foreigners who have received residence permits in Russia or long-term work permits are now required to obtain ‘exit visas’ before traveling abroad,” Mongait wrote.

Not only was the nanny forbidden to fly to Spain with Mongait’s family, but she was reportedly fined 2,000 rubles ($35) for entering the airport’s passport control area without the necessary documents.

Human rights worker Bakhrom Ismailov says the new rules went into effect on June 7, and they apply to citizens from countries with which Russia has not signed special travel agreements, including Georgia, Turkmenistan, the United States, countries in the European Common Market, and stateless persons. 

Ismailov says the sudden policy change has led to a massive number of people being removed from international flights and trains.