“Starting a war and expecting to move freely in Europe is hard to justify.” Kaja Kallas, the EU’s top foreign policy official, wrote that on X when the bloc moved to stop issuing multiple-entry visas to Russians, in a decision DW reported on November 7, 2025.
Russian applicants now have to file for a new visa every time they want to travel. The European Commission said the aim was to protect public policy and security, pointing to concern over “sabotage and potential misuse of visas”. She tied the tightening to “continued drone disruptions and sabotage on European soil” and added that “travelling to the EU is a privilege, not a given.”
Who is still exempt
A few exceptions remain. Dissidents, independent reporters and defenders of human rights can still be considered.
The restriction landed on a system that had already shrunk. A Commission spokesperson told DW that around 500,000 visas had been issued to Russians in recent years, down from around 4 million. That drop had drawn criticism from eastern European countries, which argued that wealthy Russians were still holidaying in Europe despite the invasion of Ukraine. Commission spokesman Markus Lammert later gave European Interest a fuller comparison: about 4 million visas in 2022, against between 618,000 and 620,000 in 2025.
Diplomats had already been squeezed. DW said that from January 2026 Russian diplomats and consular officials, and their staff, have to log any trip between EU states a full 24 hours in advance, because of worries about espionage and disinformation.
What it did to travel
The effect shows up in the Russian travel trade. Mezha, citing the country’s tour operators’ association, reported that early 2026 saw 90% fewer multiple-entry Schengen visas issued to Russians than the same months of 2025. For tourist trips, such a visa is now close to impossible to get.
Some governments found a workaround. Individual applicants are getting two-entry visas with a long window from Italy, France, Spain and Greece. Demand has surged. PAC Group says Spanish and French applications have doubled, and Italian ones rose 30–40%. An Italian or French visa now takes over a month; Greece can often turn one around in about two weeks.
Several countries had already gone further on their own. Mezha said Poland, Denmark, the Czech Republic and some Baltic states no longer issue tourist visas to Russians at all, and 11 governments, among them Finland and Germany, refuse entry to Russians carrying non-biometric five-year passports.
Sources
- EU to stop issuing multiple-entry visas for Russians (DW)
- EU restricts multiple-entry Schengen visas for Russians, issuance falls 90% (Mezha)
- Commission further tightens visa policy towards Russians (European Interest)
