Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree requiring most applicants for Russian citizenship to submit a criminal record certificate as part of the naturalization process.
According to state-controlled news agency RIA Novosti on Tuesday, foreign nationals and stateless persons applying for Russian citizenship must provide a document confirming the absence of a criminal record or detailing any crimes for which they were convicted.
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The decree specifies that the certificate must be issued by a competent authority in the applicant’s country of citizenship or, in the case of stateless persons, the country that issued their identity documents. The certificate must be issued no more than three months before the application is submitted.
The requirement is part of amendments to Russia’s citizenship regulations and follows broader efforts by Moscow to tighten immigration controls.
However, the new provision does not apply to Ukrainian citizens eligible for Russia’s simplified citizenship procedures, including residents of Ukrainian territories occupied by Russian forces.
The decree comes weeks after Russia’s State Duma approved in its first reading legislation that would prevent foreigners with outstanding or unexpunged criminal convictions from obtaining Russian citizenship or legal residency, regardless of the severity of the offense.
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Since the start of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has simplified citizenship procedures for residents of occupied Ukrainian territories as part of efforts to consolidate control over areas it claims to have annexed.
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Ukrainian authorities and Western governments have repeatedly condemned the mass distribution of Russian passports in occupied territories, describing the practice as a violation of international law and an attempt to forcibly integrate Ukrainian citizens into Russia’s political and legal system.
According to British defense intelligence estimates, Moscow has issued around 3.5 million passports to Ukrainians living in occupied territories.
Ukrainian officials say residents have faced pressure, including threats of property confiscation and deportation, if they refuse Russian citizenship.
In mid-May, Putin also signed a decree to simplify the process for those in Moldova’s breakaway Transnistrian enclave to obtain Russian citizenship.
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