EU Further Restricts Multiple-Entry Schengen Visas for Russian Citizens
The EU ends multiple-entry Schengen visas for Russian citizens, citing security risks tied to espionage and disinformation.
TheInterviewTimes.com | November 10, 2025 — The European Commission has officially adopted new rules that end the issuance of multiple-entry Schengen visas to Russian passport holders applying from within the Russian Federation. The decision, effective November 9, 2025, marks another tightening of EU travel policies since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The implementing decision — C(2025) 7874, published in the Official Journal of the European Union — mandates that Russian nationals residing in Russia will now receive only single-entry short-stay visas, valid for the duration of their visit plus a 15-day grace period. Each new trip to the Schengen Area will require a fresh visa application and interview.
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EU’s Justification for Multiple-Entry Schengen Visas Restrictions
According to the Commission, the stricter rules are intended to ensure “more frequent and thorough security assessments” amid mounting risks of sabotage, espionage, and disinformation campaigns linked to Russian state activities.
Officials emphasized that multiple-entry Schengen visas had been exploited in the past by individuals acting under state directives. The Commission cited Russia’s ongoing military aggression against Ukraine as the principal rationale behind the new restrictions.
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Limited Exceptions to the Rule
The EU’s decision outlines narrow exceptions for certain categories of applicants:
- Family members of EU citizens or legal residents: may receive multiple-entry visas valid for up to one year.
- Crew members of international transport (air, sea, rail, or road): eligible for visas valid up to nine months.
- Independent journalists, human rights defenders, and dissidents with proven reliability: case-by-case approval for visas of up to one year, subject to enhanced vetting.
Importantly, the decision does not apply retroactively. Russian citizens who already hold valid multiple-entry Schengen visas may continue to use them until expiration.
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Background and Decline in Russian Visa Issuance
This move extends a series of EU restrictions since September 2022, when Brussels suspended the EU-Russia Visa Facilitation Agreement of 2007. The suspension ended reduced visa fees (€35), introduced full documentation requirements, and extended processing times to 45 days.
By 2024, Schengen countries issued only 552,000 short-stay visas to Russian citizens, down from over 4 million annually before 2022. Refusal rates have risen sharply — from 1–2% before 2022 to 7.5% in 2025, according to European Commission data.
Member States Back the Commission’s Move
The decision was immediately endorsed by frontline states including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Finland, which had already banned most Russian tourist entries since late 2022.
Major Schengen countries — Germany, France, and Spain — also confirmed that they would implement the Commission’s guidelines “without delay,” reflecting a unified EU stance on travel restrictions for Russian citizens.
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Russia’s Response
The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs denounced the new visa restrictions as “discriminatory” and warned of reciprocal measures targeting EU citizens.
However, as of November 10, Russia continues to maintain its simplified electronic visa regime for most EU nationals, introduced in August 2023. No retaliatory changes have yet been announced.
Looking Ahead
The European Commission has stated that the policy will be reviewed by November 2026, allowing member states to assess its impact on both security and people-to-people exchanges.
As the geopolitical divide between Moscow and Brussels deepens, the EU’s decision to end multiple-entry Schengen visas for Russians signals a further dismantling of pre-war mobility norms across Europe.