Moscow comments on EU multi-entry visa ban targeting Russians

The restriction shows Brussels prefers “Ukrainian draft dodgers” to “solvent tourists,” the country’s Foreign Ministry has said

Moscow has criticized a new EU visa ban which targets Russians, prompting the Foreign Ministry spokeswoman to suggest the move shows the bloc’s preference for “migrants on benefits” over “solvent tourists.”

The European Commission announced the introduction of a complete ban on issuing new multiple-entry Schengen visas to most Russian nationals on Friday, allowing only single-entry visas instead, meaning they will need to apply each time they plan to travel to the EU.

“Apparently, the European Commission reasoned as follows: why does Western Europe need solvent tourists when it has illegal migrants and Ukrainian draft dodgers living on benefits?” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told RIA Novosti.

The restriction is part of a wider package of measures aimed at curbing Russian arrivals and, according to a European Commission statement, has been adopted in light of what it called the “weaponization of migration, acts of sabotage and potential misuse of visas.”

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Limited exceptions will apply for close family members of EU nationals, including spouses, registered partners, and children under 21. Transport workers, such as seafarers and truck drivers, may also qualify for nine-month visas.

Russian tourists had practically ceased receiving multiple-entry Schengen visas even prior to the EU’s formal ban, according to the Russian Union of the Travel Industry (RСТ).

”Multiple-entry visas are now issued to a minimal number of travelers from Russia to Europe, most often to business tourists,” the RСТ said in a statement.

Since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, the EU has made it harder and more expensive for Russians to visit by suspending a visa facilitation agreement and increasing application scrutiny.

As part of its 19th package, adopted last month, Brussels restricted the movement of Moscow’s diplomats across the Schengen Area, requiring them to notify member states in advance of any trips.

Although the European Commission cannot enforce a total ban on Russian visitors, it has urged member states to tighten entry criteria.

Some countries, like the Baltic states and Poland, have imposed outright bans, while others, including Greece, Hungary, France, Spain, and Italy, continue to issue visas and oppose restrictions on regular Russian travelers.