Russian lawmakers are considering increasing the entry ban for foreigners who have violated Russian migration law from three to 10 years, RIA Novosti reported Thursday.
The proposed legislation would mean that any person who overstays his or her visa for a year or more would face a 10-year ban from the country. Currently, such individuals face a ban of three to five years.
"We need to take a close look at this initiative because we need to support the establishment of certain legal consequences for those foreign citizens and individuals without citizenship who violate the legislation while they are on our territory, and distinguish the rules of liability, including by banning [those individuals] from entering," Dmitry Vyatkin, the deputy chairman of the State Duma's Constitutional Law Committee, was cited by RIA Novosti as saying.
The initiative, first submitted in April by Federation Council members Andrei Klishas and Vladimir Dzhabarov, has found support from Vyatkin's committee.
"Regardless of what the individual has done — whether he has just slightly overstayed his visa, or done something else [to violate the law] — it's three years [minimum.] Now we are suggesting 10 years for those who've done something more serious. It's absolutely correct," Vyatkin was cited as saying.
