New law simplifies Russian citizenship process

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed the federal law, "On Making Amendments and Additions to the Federal Law on Citizenship of the Russian Federation," the presidential press service said.

The new law simplifies the procedure in becoming a Russian citizen for certain groups of people. The law applies to citizens of the former USSR who were born in Russia or who arrived in the Russian Federation from former Soviet republics (and who have been registered in Russia as of July 1, 2002 or received permits for temporally living in the Russian Federation and if they state their desire to receive Russian citizenship up to January 1, 2006). It helps people living in Russia who have been married to a Russian citizen for at least three years as well as disabled people with adult and able-bodied children who are citizens of the Russian Federation.