Alyona is one of those tens of thousands of Russian citizens who left Russia after the war started in Ukraine and chose Georgia as their new home. While in Russia, she used to work in marketing. However, she says that after the war started, she lost her means of livelihood and the hope that the Russian political regime would change. That was one of the reasons why she and her family moved to Georgia in May.
“We are going to stay in Georgia. My wife and I can exercise a visa-free regime for 365 days. Then we will think of something. My husband wants to apply for citizenship. I also moved my mother here, she got the status of a sole entrepreneur, and we will develop her business here,” Alyona told us. She did not want to disclose her surname out of fear of publicity.
The numbers show that Russian citizens intend to stay in Georgia, establish themselves and start businesses. From the beginning of the war in Ukraine until June, 5,990 Russian citizens registered as sole entrepreneurs, and 429 founded companies. According to Transparency International Georgia, there are a total of 13,500 Russian companies in Georgia and 6,419 of which were registered after the war started in Ukraine.
According to the official statistics of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, from February 24 through August, 796,638 Russian citizens crossed the Georgian border. According to IDFI data, 49,505 Russian citizens stayed in Georgia in March-June of 2022 (the difference between the number of incoming and outgoing citizens).
We conducted a small survey and interviewed 106 Russian citizens. We asked them how long are they planning to stay here, what they do, and what do they know about Georgian territories occupied by Russia and the 2008 war. The results are not promising. A detailed analysis of the research is presented below.
How did Georgia become a country with a liberal visa policy?
According to the decree of February 28, 2012, issued by Mikheil Saakashvili, citizens of the Russian Federation didn’t need a visa to enter Georgia and stay for 90 days.
In June 2015, Prime Minister Gharibashvili signed a resolution according to which a foreign citizen is entitled to stay in Georgia without a visa for 365 days. Similar terms apply to citizens of 94 other countries besides the Russian Federation.
However, this does not necessarily mean that in one year they must return to their country. There is a simple solution to this as before 1-year visa-free period expires all they need to do is cross the Georgian border in any direction, to Turkey or Armenia, and immediately return. This way the one-year visa-free period automatically restarts and this can go on endlessly.
The Russian citizens residing in Georgia themselves told iFact about this method and that they are aware of it and they use it.
“I am not even considering the option of returning to Russia. If I need to leave Georgia to extend my stay here, then I’ll go to another country. This is possible, as the only thing you need to do is cross the border in any country, be it Turkey, Armenia, or any other with available tickets,” said Maya Guseva.
She arrived in Georgia in April, and she says she is not going back to Russia, as the Prosecutor’s Office has opened a case against her and her husband. Both of them are being persecuted by the Russian political regime as Maya was outspoken against the war, while her husband was a supporter of Sergei Navalny.
Even the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is aware of the border crossing trick people resort to, to extend the validity of visas. When asked how many times citizens of foreign countries can do this, the hotline of the Ministry responded: “It is not limited, as many times as they wish. The countdown of the one year starts over with the new entry.”
It seems that neither the steps by the opposition parties nor the activity of the civil sector can force the government to change the existing visa policy. State security and hybrid warfare experts see many problems in the excessive influx of Russians.
With the ongoing war in Ukraine, the civil society in Georgia actively demands the government tighten the visa policy toward Russia. Several petitions were issued and mass protests were organized with the same demand. According to the NDI survey published in April, 66% of respondents supported the introduction of a visa regime with Russia.
However, the government of Georgia refuses to hear the people’s voices. The members of the ruling party openly declared that tightening the visa policy with Russia is not on their agenda, and they called the people’s protest a provocation and an attempt to drag the country into a war.
“There is no uncontrolled entry, and no risks are being proved. The stir is artificially provoked. They have the specific interest of causing disorder in the country and launch war propaganda” – Irakli Kobakhidze said on the 1st of September.
This is happening amid Vladimir Putin’s announcement that, if need be, the “rights” of Russian citizens will be protected in Georgia. The Russian president issued an official order on this on the 5th of September. We have been continuously eye-witnessing the consequences of “protecting such rights” in Ukraine for over 6 months. The Georgian Government refuses to take into account this bitter experience. While, at the same time, they call the public’s reaction to Russian citizens a discrimination, xenophobia, and exacerbating hatred.
On September 9, the head of the State Security Service, Grigol Liluashvili, also advised not to panic reassuring the public that Russian citizens would not commit crimes here. He also reminded us that in 2019 we had twice as many Russian tourists without any excesses. The issue is that at the time Georgia had direct flights with Russian cities. Travel was easier and cheaper. Therefore, this number is not surprising. Now there are many barriers to coming to Georgia, they have to spend more money and time because they have to cross the airspace of several countries to reach their destination. Nevertheless, they still come.
iFact Survey – When do the Russian citizens leave Georgia?
We have prepared a questionnaire with 16 questions, which covered the topics such as the reasons for arrival, employment, estimated time of departure, and the attitude toward the occupation.
We randomly surveyed 106 Russian citizens who’ve come to Georgia. 76% of the respondents were within the age group of 16 to 35. Some interviews were conducted face-to-face with a printed-out questionnaire, while others filled out an online questionnaire shared in the Telegram group, which is a group established for supporting Russian citizens who have just arrived or are planning to arrive in Georgia.
For our journalists, the process of the survey appeared to be more difficult than expected. The Russian citizens who were visiting the House of Justice refused to tell us where they were from. Even though we could see the Russian passports in their hands. Some simply avoided us. Some claimed to be Georgians born and raised here, though they could not speak the Georgian language.
39% (41 people) left the questions about the recognition of the independence of the occupied territories of Georgia unanswered, or they responded that they don’t know much or don’t care about it. Some laughed about the question on the Russian aggression in 2008 and called it provocative. One of the interviewees also noted that Russia did not attack Georgia, but Georgia attacked South Ossetia. Another ironically told us: “Yes, yes. Of course, Russia attacked. Everyone is being attacked by Russia.
The survey showed that 90% of the surveyed Russian citizens (95 people) came to Georgia after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Half of them, 53 out of 106 are going to permanently live in Georgia.
32% of respondents (34 people) came to Georgia as a tourist and 2.8 percent (3 people) for work. Our respondents said that they escaped the Russian regime, war, sanctions, and unemployment in Georgia. One of them also told us that because of the sanctions, his company moved to Georgia, and that’s why he also had to change his residence.
We tried to find out what those respondents who intend to stay in Georgia know about the 2008 war and occupation. 53 people fit the above-mentioned criteria. 50 of them had information about the occupation. Three did not answer this question. In general, 77 out of 106 respondents knew that Russia attacked us and occupied our territory.
15 out of 106 people recognize the independence of Samachablo and Abkhazia. 14 of these 15 people came to Georgia after the start of the war in Ukraine.
Most of the Russian citizens interviewed, particularly, 18 people are employed in the field of computer technologies. 14 of them work in the media, and 15 are teachers.
We also asked the Russian citizens under what circumstances they would leave Georgia. 19 out of 106 mentioned the introduction of a stricter visa regime. 16 respondents named the end of the war, 10 the negative attitude in Georgia, and 6 Putin’s death and the change of the Russian government.
“I am not even considering the option of returning to Russia now. To be honest, I don’t see any possibility of ending the war under this government. However, if somehow the war is over, but Putin will still be in power, I will not return,” said Maya Guseva, a journalist and activist who escaped from Russia.
“Russia is our homeland and we spent our whole lives there. Of course, we want to return, because we have relatives there. But now I see no way back. The government in Russia will not change. Even if the war is over, the government will still be there. We have experienced this for years. Everyone knows that Russia is a place where the government does not change,” Alyona tells us.
For foreign nationals, prolonged say in Georgia does not pose any major obstacles. But if they still decide to obtain a residence permit, this is not related to a particularly complicated procedure as well.
Currently, two types of residence permits are issued in Georgia: permanent or temporary right to live. Foreign nationals can receive a temporary residence permit if they arrive for work, study, family reunion, or investment purposes. A temporary residence permit is initially issued for a period of 6 months to 1 year, but it can be extended up to 5 years. A short-term residence permit is issued for 1 year each time.
The service fee for issuing a temporary residence permit ranges from 300 to 600 GEL, and for a permanent one – from 350 to 500 GEL. The price varies depending on the time frame the applicant wants to receive the response.
A foreign national can obtain a permanent residence permit in Georgia if they are a spouse, parent, or child (minor) of a Georgian citizen.
As of July 2022, a total of 16,480 citizens of Russia have received a residence permit in Georgia. 1,669 of them received permits after the start of the war in Ukraine. Until August 4, 2022, the largest number of 550 permanent residence permits were issued to Russian citizens.
What are the threats related to Russian nationals moving to Georgia?
Conflict experts, state security, and international relations specialists think that there is a risk that Russia will resort to the well-tested method of using the “violation of the rights” of the Russian nationals as the justification for another military aggression against Georgia. And if the uncontrolled migration continues there will be many of them coming to Georgia.
“Perhaps today Russia does not need a justification for war, but history shows that it usually starts military operations under the motif of protecting its citizens. This danger exists especially in an occupied country, whose citizens’ children, parents, family members, and friends were killed by the Russian military just 12-15 years ago. It is not surprising for an angered citizen to commit illegal actions against Russian nationals from bullying to physical violence. Naturally, this instability is also in the Kremlin’s interest,” Andro Gotsiridze, a state security specialist and a former employee of intelligence and defense agencies, told us.
Gia Japaridze, a professor at the University of Georgia and Chavchavadze Center, and a specialist in international relations says military aggression motivated by the protection of own nationals is a well-known tactic. Declaring this with an official document poses serious risks, even now, when Russia is weakened and, as a rule, should not have the strength of opening up a new front. According to him, the states do not live just today, and it is necessary to consider what happens after the war ends or in 5-10 years.
“A fairy-tale that all of the Russian nationals arriving here are against Putin is a lie. Those who oppose him are either in prison, have already been killed, or have left the country a long time ago. Many are physically well prepared. What happens if they get an assignment to go out on the streets to protest? There are already so many nationals of the Russian Federation in Georgia that they could organize a large rally if want to. What happens if they start making claims and these claims are supported by the Russian Federation? We have a government that says, “Is war what you want?!” And all their requests will be satisfied,” Japaridze said.
Conflict expert Zurab Bendianishvili recalls and compares the events in Samachablo and Ukraine before the war. According to him, issuing the Russian passports before military aggression, and then seemingly protecting its citizens, has been Russia’s signature for a long time. When they talk about that in the official documents should be considered a serious threat.
“The classic Russian scheme of action involves taking care of fellow citizens. Declaration to protect its citizens is a manifestation of imperial delusions of being a “Derzhava,” which is and will be everywhere, and we need to get used to it. Provocations might be created consistently, in the streets or as a local neighborhood conflict, and in the end, it will serve as a shallow excuse,” Bendianishvili told us.
How do we plan to stop uncontrolled migration?
For Russia not to invade Georgia through migration, we must take specific steps and oppose their efforts. The government of Georgia does no good, moreover, the actions of other actors to stop the uncontrolled migration have not brought visible results.
The political party Lelo and the political union of citizens Droa presented a vision for a stricter visa policy in August. According to Lelo, tourist visas for Russian citizens should be issued directly at the border or online only for 30 days. And those who want to stay in Georgia for a longer time should get visas, taking into account the best examples of the European Union.
Droa proposed the touristic visa be reduced to 3 weeks and that those entering Georgia be required to submit biometric data (including fingerprints).
That’s wonderful, but there remains a question how can we force the government to consider these initiatives?
Elene Khoshtaria, the representative of the non-parliamentary opposition, believes that discussing these proposals with the government means recognizing the government’s legitimacy.
“It is wrong to create an illusion as if the parliament is an institution where the decisions are made. They have declared their position on Russia. This is an absolute puppet institution, and the more documents you submit there and claim that you’ve tried, the more legitimacy is given to it” says Elene Khoshtaria.
However, not even the parliamentary opposition can tell anything promising in this regard. MP Ana Natsvlishvili from the party Lelo told us that they are unable to hold discussions on that topic either at plenary sessions or committee meetings of the parliament, as the agenda is set by the majority. The only thing the opposition can do is make political statements. Natsvlishvili said that she plans to address the executive branch on this topic.
“Even though this issue has been raised, the Georgian Dream pays no attention to it. We don’t have governmental leverage, but this does not mean that agenda is not created. We will follow up on that issue. We are actively discussing that issue, but it would not be appropriate to go into details right now.” – said Ana Natsvlishvili.
Another opposition party, which demanded the introduction of the visa regime, is the United National Movement. According to their proposition, the term of a touristic visa for Russian citizens should be reduced to one month.
According to Levan Khabeishvili, MP from the National Movement, they drafted a specific plan for the introduction of a visa regime. However, they do not see the willingness of the government to cooperate.
“When the government is not interested in these propositions, does not cooperate or take into account the opinions of others, including the opposition, which represents one and a half million people, it is clear that the further bureaucratic steps are meaningless. A public statement should be enough for the government representatives to call for cooperation. I don’t think it makes sense to work in this direction under this government,” Levan Khabeishvili told us.
Member of Parliament Ana Natsvlishvili explained that introducing a visa regime for Russian citizens is not anti-Semitism or discrimination, as the members of Georgian Dream present it.
“Entry into a foreign country for 1 day or 1 year is not a human right, and therefore no discrimination can happen. It is an integral part of the country’s sovereignty to decide on the permit and duration of entry into the country. Just as we are not obliged to let in an unwanted guest home and we control the door of the house, so is the visa policy for the state,” Natsvlishvili said.
The chairperson of the Georgian Young Lawyers Association, Nika Simonishvili, is sure that our legislation does not prevent the introduction of a stricter visa policy. Moreover, since we do not have free movement with Russia, the occupier country has established a visa regime for Georgian citizens.
“Introducing stricter emigration policy for a specific country is a political decision, and there is no xenophobia in all of this, as our government says. This kind of decision serves the country’s security interest and is fully compatible with human rights and international law,” Simonishvili told us.
Similar to Simonishvili, 30 NGOs think that Georgia needs to establish a visa regime for Russian citizens. They even addressed the government with a petition. It’s clear to all of us that the government does not want to hear anything on this topic and it seems that it is not going to take the public’s appeal seriously. No one has yet taken other, more radical steps.
iFact even contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to find out whether they intend to consider public opinion and revise the visa policy. However, as expected, they did not respond to our inquiries. It seems that, like other public agencies, they forget that communication with the media is one of the foundations of democracy.
While we are in this dilemma, European countries have tightened their visa policies and some have even closed their borders to Russian nationals.
For example, Estonia has tightened its immigration policy toward Russian nationals. It is virtually impossible for them to get a visa. In August, the Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Urmas Reinsalu, announced that the border will be closed to visa holders as well.
Shortly after the start of the war, Latvia first limited the issuance of visas to Russian nationals, and from August 4, completed restricted it for an indefinite period. The Czech Republic has stopped issuing visas to Russian nationals until March 2023. Belgium is no longer issuing short-term visas since July. Meantime, we can watch how long this government will be more Catholic than the Pope from the position of an ostrich. Meanwhile, a patron or a donkey will die.
