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Over 250,000 foreigners denied entry to Russia in 2019

In total, over 506,000 invitations to Russia and over 348,000 visas were issued last year

© Vitaly Nevar/TASS

MOSCOW, January 22. /TASS/. Over 250,000 foreigners and stateless persons were denied entry to Russia last year, the Russian Interior Ministry informed on its website on Wednesday.

Over 250,000 foreign and stateless persons have been denied entry to Russia in 2019, compared to 253,000 in 2018," the report published on the website informs.

According to the statistical data provided by the Interior Ministry, the number of people who were granted Russian citizenship in 2019 nearly doubled: from 269,000 in 2018 to 497,000 in 2019. The majority of new Russian citizens proceed from Ukraine (nearly 300,000 people), followed by Kazakhstan (50,000 people) and Tajikistan (44,000 people).

In total, over 506,000 invitations to Russia and over 348,000 visas were issued last year. Over 234,000 people received a permit for temporary stay and over 182,000 were granted a residence permit. Over 1.7 bln work patents (for citizens of select states that do not require a Russian visa) and nearly 127,000 work permits were issued in Russia in 2019, with over 34,000 permits granted to highly qualified specialists.

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