LUGANSK, November 13. /TASS/. Almost 40,000 residents of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) already received Russian passports, Deputy Head of the Migration Control Directorate of the LPR Interior Ministry Ruslan Naida said at the opening ceremony for a new migration service department in Lugansk on Wednesday.
"About 40,000 [LPR residents] already became proud owners of passports of the Russian Federation," he said. Naida specified that more than 60,000 residents of the republic applied for Russian citizenship through a fast-track procedure.
LPR Interior Minister Igor Kornet earlier reported that more than 36,000 LPR residents have already received Russian citizenship through the fast-track procedure.
Under a joint project with the Ministry of Communications and Mass Media of the republic, the LPR Interior Ministry launched a queue management system for registering passports of the republic and the Russian Federation. Registration in the system is accessible to all LPR residents. A call center for informing residents on the completion of their Russian passports is also operating.
On April 24, 2019, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order enabling LPR and DPR residents to receive Russian citizenship in a simplified procedure. The first registration center for those wishing to get Russian citizenship opened in Lugansk on May 6. On June 14, the first group of LPR residents received Russian passports.