Russians in the EU: the closer to the front line, the tighter the rules
Voxeurop
The closer an EU country is to Russia, and the more bitter its history with Moscow, the harder it has become for Russians to enter, live or buy property there. Lithuania, Poland and Bulgaria show how far apart the rules have drifted.
Vladimir Putin’s full-scale war on Ukraine has changed how Europe sees Russians. Lithuania, which like the other Baltic states is considered among the most exposed to Russian aggression, keeps tightening the rules for them – on visas, border crossings, property purchases and public activity – while consistently backing Ukraine.
On 30 September, the Lithuanian government approved a proposal to bar Russian and Belarusian activists who support the war against Ukraine from public activity in the country.
According to LRT, Lithuania’s public broadcaster, under the proposed amendments to Lithuania's Law on Restrictive Measures Regarding Military Aggression Against Ukraine, Russian and Belarusian individuals and organisations would be denied entry to participate in public activities in education, science, culture, sports, the arts and entertainment if they have operated in Russia-occupied Ukrainian territories or directly or indirectly support the war.
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To find out where people stand, Lithuania plans to require Russians and Belarusians to sign public declarations condemning Russia’s aggression. Those who refuse will be barred from public activity in the country.
If the Seimas, Lithuania’s parliament, approves the amendments, they will take effect on 1 January 2027, adding to the restrictions Lithuania has introduced since 2022.
Russians under scrutiny
Since then, Lithuania has treated visas for Russians not as a matter of tourism or ordinary migration but as one of national security and foreign policy. After the invasion, Lithuania stopped accepting Schengen visa applications from Russians. They can no longer apply for Lithuanian national or Schengen visas at visa centres abroad, as they once could, except through the Lithuanian foreign ministry.
At the same time, the foreign ministry says it is ready to help with visas for some relatives of Lithuanian citizens, for people of Lithuanian descent or entitled to have their citizenship restored, and their families, as well as “in certain urgent humanitarian cases, such as serious illness or the death of a close relative”. These exceptions stem from Lithuania’s international and EU obligations.
The number of Russians living in Lithuania is falling. According to the Migration Department, 13,414 Russian citizens held residence rights on 1 June 2026, just over 300 fewer than in January and 1,564 fewer than at the start of 2025.
These figures are only part of the picture. In Lithuania’s 2021 census, 141,100 residents identified themselves as “persons of Russian origin”; 70 % of them also said that Lithuanian was “a language other than their mother tongue”. The online daily Delfi observed that estimating the size of the Russian diaspora in Lithuania is not without its difficulties, as it depends on whether the term refers to persons of Russian origin or to citizens of the Russian Federation – which are very different groups.
Dissidents welcome, scrutiny for the rest
Lithuania is well aware of this diversity. In recent years it has taken in Russian opposition figures, anti-war activists and independent journalists – like Dmitry Elovsky, the deputy editor-in chief of the independent TV channel Dozhd, or Anastasia Shevchenko, a civil rights activist, or Alexei Navalny’s aide Leonid Volkov – while keeping a close eye on every Russian who comes to the country.
The law reflects this. Russians who travel to Russia or Belarus more than once every three months, for example, lose their temporary residence permits.
Russian citizens are also restricted in buying property. Those without a permanent or temporary residence permit cannot buy at all. Those who do have one may not “acquire property within 10 kilometres of military training areas, classified sites and critical infrastructure”.
Poland: shut doors, open flats
Poland, too, has strict rules for Russians, though unlike Lithuania’s, they do not affect Russian citizens who already have the right to live in the country.
Since March 2022, Poland has limited the number and types of visa applications it accepts from Russians, with exceptions for humanitarian reasons, some professions and people with close ties to Poland. In September 2022, together with Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, it barred Russians from entering through the EU’s external border for tourism, business, sport or culture.
In 2023, Polish consulates in Russia stopped accepting most Schengen and national visa applications under the standard procedure. Applications are now accepted mainly “on humanitarian grounds, in urgent cases, where there are particularly compelling reasons or where it is in Poland’s interest”, according to official guidance.
Since 1 April 2026, Poland has also refused entry to holders of non-biometric passports, which Russia still issues alongside biometric ones. Similar rules apply in other European countries.
Property is a different story. Russians in Poland on tourist or short-term visas can, under the letter of the law, buy an “ordinary flat” outside the border zone, but not a house or land without permission from the interior ministry. Those with permanent residence or EU long-term resident status who have lived legally in Poland for at least five years can buy a house or land without the ministry’s permission. The threshold drops to two years for those married to a Polish citizen.
Things are also easier for those married to a Polish citizen who have been living in Poland for at least two years on the basis of permanent residence or EU long-term resident status. According to the regulations, such people may buy property without the ministry’s consent.
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Poland’s Russian community also differs from Lithuania’s, above all in size and language.
According to the Office for Foreigners, some 15,000–16,000 Russian citizens held valid residence documents in Poland in 2026. Several thousand more people declare Russian identity but already hold Polish citizenship, the office adds. Poland is also home to students, and temporary workers and their families.
The 2021 census by Statistics Poland shows that among people declaring Russian identity, 40–50% speak only Polish at home, around 40% speak both Polish and Russian, and fewer than 10% only Russian.
Bulgaria: the bare minimum
Bulgaria takes a different line. Because of its government’s choices, deep historical and economic ties, and its property market, it has applied only the minimum required under Schengen rules. Experts note that Bulgaria does not treat Russians’ presence as a direct hybrid threat (sabotage, espionage or influence operations short of open war).
Unlike Lithuania or Poland, Bulgaria still admits Russian tourists, provided they obtain a short-stay Schengen visa (type C), which comes with strict conditions. Russians can also still apply for Schengen visas at visa centres in Russia.
How many Russians live in Bulgaria is hard to say. The latest official figures, from the National Statistical Institute (2021), show 17,300 Russians with permanent residence, the largest group of non-EU citizens in the country.
Other figures suggest the Russian presence remains strong. Russian citizens own more than 10,000 properties in Bulgaria, 60% of them bought after the invasion of Ukraine. They can buy flats without restriction, and houses and land by registering a Bulgarian company. Many have used these rules to buy on the Black Sea coast.