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Moscow is working on extending the duration of stay for foreign nationals holding an electronic visa to 30 days, said Alexey Klimov, Director of the Consular Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in an interview with RIA Novosti.

In early December, Russia expanded the list of countries whose citizens can enter Russia with a unified electronic visa to 64. The list was updated to include Barbados, Bhutan, Zimbabwe, Jordan, Kenya, Papua New Guinea, Saint Lucia, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkmenistan, and Eswatini. Serbia and Andorra were removed from the list, as bilateral agreements on mutual visa-free travel for citizens have been established with these countries.

"Currently, the ministry is working on amendments to legislation to extend the validity of the unified electronic visa from 60 to 120 days, as well as the permitted duration of stay for foreign nationals in Russia on an electronic visa from 16 to 30 days, while maintaining its multiple-entry nature", the diplomat stated.

According to him, these changes are aimed at increasing the number of foreign nationals entering the country for tourism, business, humanitarian, and guest purposes. At the same time, Klimov emphasized that the "necessary level of migration control and requirements to ensure Russia's national security" would be maintained.

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