Obtaining citizenship of any state is associated with a large number of formalities and conditions that must be met or fulfilled. Russian legislation on the status of a citizen is no exception. The law establishes a number of conditions for foreigners/stateless persons to obtain Russian citizenship.

Legal grounds

The legislator has established a number of grounds for obtaining a legal connection with the Russian Federation. These include the possibility of obtaining citizenship:

  • by birth (from certain parents or in a certain territory);
  • due to acceptance of Russian citizenship in the general manner;
  • due to the admission of foreigners/stateless persons under a simplified procedure;
  • during the restoration of legal status;
  • on other grounds provided for by the laws of the Russian Federation and international agreements with the participation of Russia.

The legislation does not provide for any advantages in matters of acquiring Russian citizenship on the basis of race, nationality, language or religion. There are also no quotas on the number of persons acquiring citizenship over a certain period of time.

General admission conditions

The legislator determines special conditions that must be met by the applicant in order to acquire Russian citizenship. The maximum list of them is established for naturalization in the general manner. In the case of going through a shortened procedure, some conditions may not be fulfilled; we will note which ones specifically are discussed below.

Today, in order to be granted Russian citizenship, a foreigner/stateless person must meet the following conditions:

  1. Reach adulthood. All issues relating to the legal status of minors and minors are resolved by their parents or legal representatives. As a general rule, the principle of minors following the citizenship of their parents applies. But from the age of 14, when the legal status of legal representatives changes, their consent is required to obtain new citizenship for minors.
  2. Have full legal capacity. This trait of an individual indicates the real possibility of an individual to consciously realize his rights and obligations, as well as independently bear legal responsibility. This ability is associated by law with the mental health and condition of an individual, and the existence of addictions. If an individual does not have full legal capacity (that is, limited in legal capacity or declared incompetent by a court), a guardian/trustee is assigned to him, who supplements it with his own, making important decisions instead, but in the interests of such an individual. Therefore, in order to obtain citizenship for such an individual, it is necessary for his representatives to apply.
  3. Continuously reside in the Russian Federation for five years. The period begins not from the moment of crossing the border, but from the moment the migrant acquires a residence permit. A foreigner’s/stateless person’s stay within the Russian Federation is considered continuous if he has traveled abroad for no more than three months in total during the year. It is the conditions regarding the duration of residence that are the most complex and difficult to fulfill. Some experts even call them impossible. However, the length of residence required to obtain citizenship may vary depending on the subjects’ grounds for doing so. Therefore, most applicants try to find every opportunity to undergo the procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship in a simplified form.
  4. Officially undertake to comply with the norms and rules established by the Constitution of the Russian Federation and other regulations. This obligation is specifically noted in the application submitted to . Experts note that this is. Apparently, this is the simplest condition, since formally it only requires a signature under the appropriate place on the form, and not collecting papers, waiting for a long time, or overcoming obstacles.
  5. Have a legal source of earnings, income or legal means of living in the Russian Federation. To confirm your employment and availability of means of subsistence, you must provide evidence. These can be considered a salary certificate from the official place of work, a certificate from the fiscal authorities on the amount of taxes paid, if a person is engaged in entrepreneurial activity independently or owns an enterprise, is engaged in investing, for persons of retirement age an appropriate certificate is suitable, bank documents on the availability of accounts can also be considered with funds, deposits, documents on property in the Russian Federation that generates income and others.
  6. Contact the competent government agency of the country of previous citizenship with an official letter of renunciation. In some cases provided by law, this procedure can be avoided. This is possible if the corresponding provision is provided for in international treaties, to which the Russian Federation is one of the parties, and also if it is not possible to make a refusal in the manner prescribed by law for objective reasons independent of the individual applying for Russian citizenship.
  7. Know the state language. The level should be sufficient for everyday communication and living in the Russian Federation. You need to confirm your knowledge with a special certificate, which is issued based on the results of passing the test, a certificate/diploma of the appropriate level of education, received in the Soviet Union, the Russian Federation or states where Russian has the status of an official language. Persons who have reached retirement age, are incapacitated, or disabled people of the first group may not take the tests.

The period of residence under a residence permit on the territory of the Russian Federation can be reduced to one year for persons who:

  • have significant achievements in the field of sports, science and technology, culture and other areas;
  • have a profession or specialty. Which is of great interest to the country;
  • received political asylum in Russia;
  • received refugee status from the competent government agencies of the Russian Federation in accordance with the established procedure.

Foreign contract military personnel who are citizens of countries that were formerly part of the USSR, who have served for at least 3 years in the armed forces or other legal formations of the Russian Federation, do not have to comply with the clause on residence in the territory of the Russian Federation with a residence permit.

For special services to the Russian Federation, according to the Presidential Decree, a person can receive Russian citizenship without meeting all of the above conditions.

Restrictions on naturalization

The restrictions that exist for persons undergoing naturalization can also be considered certain conditions. Individuals falling into one of the categories noted in the law cannot expect to receive Russian citizenship.

So, who can expect the application for admission (and restoration) to Russian citizenship to be rejected:

  • persons who publicly advocate violent actions to overthrow the existing constitutional order of Russia;
  • individuals who pose a threat to public safety;
  • individuals who took part in armed clashes and conflicts on the side that fought against the Russian Armed Forces;
  • people involved in committing terrorist acts and other extremist activities (provided that the interests of Russia are affected, that is, against citizens, institutions and other subjects of the Russian Federation);
  • foreigners/stateless persons who participated in carrying out or preparing acts of an extremist nature, for which criminal penalties are provided for under Russian legislation;
  • applicants who submitted false information or forged documents in the application or application;
  • applicants who are undergoing military service or service in law enforcement agencies, state security, unless otherwise provided (except for cases where the contrary is provided by international agreements, one of the parties to which is the Russian Federation, if they determine that such individuals can apply for citizenship) ;
  • individuals with unexpunged and outstanding convictions (regardless of whether such convictions were obtained in the Russian Federation or abroad);
  • foreigners/stateless persons against whom criminal prosecution is open on the territory of Russia or other states (such individuals must wait for the court verdict and, if it is acquitted, they can submit documents);
  • applicants serving a sentence of imprisonment/restriction of freedom (must wait until the end of the term).

Simplified procedure

Experts are inclined to believe that if there is even the slightest clue, you should strive to go through the procedure in a simplified form. What is needed for this? The law provides for a wide list of persons. Which can go through the process under a preferential scheme. What matters here is the presence of citizenship of the Russian Federation, the USSR or former union republics, the absence of civil ties in the present, the presence of ancestors who lived on the territory of the modern Russian Federation, the existence of relatives or family members who are residents of the Russian Federation, and other grounds. A complete list of them can be found in Article 14 of the Law “On Citizenship of the Russian Federation”.

To take advantage of the shortened procedure, you must comply with at least one of the specified points in the law. The easiest way is to be recognized as a native speaker of the Russian language or to get into the program for the return of “compatriots”. Obviously, these grounds also need to be confirmed, but this is much simpler than finding non-existent relatives. Experts say that almost anyone can use such grounds. By the way, there are even intermediary organizations that facilitate passage through a shortened procedure for precisely these reasons. It is necessary to contact them and find out whether it is possible to undergo such a procedure with their help. You also need to immediately find out the cost of services. But even if it is high, going through the accelerated route is worth it.

Conditions for naturalization for Russian speakers (native speakers)

Individuals recognized as native speakers of the Russian language must meet the following conditions to obtain the status of a citizen of the Russian Federation:

  1. Accept an official commitment to comply with the norms prescribed by the Constitution and legislation of the Russian Federation.
  2. Prove that you have a legal source of livelihood.
  3. Refuse in writing the citizenship of another country. The same rules apply here as in the general procedure, that is, there is no need to refuse if there is an international treaty that cancels such a requirement or this is impossible to do for objective reasons.

Foreigners/stateless persons are recognized as native speakers of the Russian language based on the results of an interview with a specially formed commission. To do this, it is necessary that these individuals, their direct blood relatives, live permanently in the Soviet Union or the Russian Empire within the modern state borders of the Russian Federation.

The main advantage of this status is the absence of the need to obtain a residence permit and long-term residence in the country (as well as all the associated problems and difficulties).

When obtaining the status of a native speaker, it is necessary to take into account that the restrictions established by law for persons undergoing the naturalization procedure also apply to such applicants.

Advantages of a simplified procedure

The abbreviated procedure for obtaining citizenship of the Russian Federation has a number of significant advantages relative to the standard general one. Firstly, some requirements for applicants have been reduced (for example, a long period of residence, obtaining a residence permit). For different cases, the law provides for screening out different conditions. This could include either a reduction in the length of stay or its cancellation altogether.

Secondly, the competence to make decisions regarding the issue of conferring the status of a citizen of the Russian Federation has been transferred, under a simplified procedure, to the heads of territorial departments of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the constituent entities of the federation. It is obvious that consideration of the issue and decision-making on applications from thousands of applicants occurs rather when several entities do this, and not just one President.

Thirdly, the period for reviewing documents has been reduced. According to the simplified procedure, the entire procedure takes no more than 6 months; it is during this period that competent entities need to make a decision. As a rule, the actual duration of such a process is 3-6 months from the moment the foreigner/stateless person applies.

Thus, the set of conditions set varies depending on the grounds and the chosen procedure for obtaining citizenship. When checking the requirements set for the applicant, do not forget about the restrictions established by law for those undergoing naturalization.

Attention! Due to recent changes in legislation, the legal information in this article may be out of date!

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