New requirements for foreign citizens: Russia will start collecting biometric data from December 1, 2024

According to the Russian Government's Resolution No. 1510 of November 7, 2024, Russia will start collecting biometric data of foreign citizens in order to strengthen national security and improve the management of migration flows.

From December 1, 2024, all citizens entering the country will be required to provide their biometric data, namely facial images and fingerprints. Russian citizens will not be affected by the changes.

The experimental stage of data collection will apply to all foreign citizens and stateless persons who cross the border of Russia, except for citizens of the Republic of Belarus, diplomats and their families who have diplomatic or service visas, as well as children under 6 years of age.

The collection of biometric data will take place in two stages:

First stage: from December 1, 2024 and until June 30, 2026. During this period, data will be collected at the main Moscow airports (Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, Vnukovo and Zhukovsky) and at the Mashtakovo border crossing in the Orenburg region.

Second stage: from June 30, 2025 to June 30, 2026, the experiment will be extended to all Russian border crossing points.

Citizens who are eligible for visa-free entry to Russia will be able to provide their biometric data and other necessary information in advance using a special mobile application. In situations where a visa is required, information about the foreign citizen will be automatically entered into the relevant databases.

Information on the new procedure will be available on the national portal of public services in languages such as Arabic, English, Chinese, French, Spanish, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Tajik and Uzbek.

The new rules could be established on a permanent basis if the pilot phase of data collection proves successful. The main objective of this initiative is to create a digital profile for collecting data on foreign nationals, which in turn will help to improve the level of security in the country and increase the effectiveness of control over migration flows.

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