The European Union has quietly flipped an important switch in its visa policy: from 16 December 2025, Russian citizens who apply for a short-stay (Schengen C-type) visa at any EU consulate inside Russia—including the German Consulate General in Moscow—will normally receive only a single-entry visa valid for a markedly shorter period.
The change was confirmed in a client alert by global immigration law firm Fragomen after EU interior ministers formally endorsed the tightened regime. Until now, most well-documented Russian travellers could still obtain multiple-entry visas for up to five years if they had a good travel history. German missions issued more than 142,000 Schengen visas to Russians in 2019 but fewer than 20,000 in 2024; business chambers warn the new single-entry ceiling will push those numbers lower still.
For German companies, the immediate effect is extra paperwork and cost. Single-entry visas mean every follow-on business trip—whether for contract negotiations in Munich or a trade fair in Düsseldorf—requires a fresh application, biometric visit and fee. Logistics groups with Russian drivers who cross into Bavaria report “overnight” disruption because multiple-entry documents that guaranteed flexible routing across Poland and Germany are no longer issued.
![EU enforces single-entry rule for many Russian Schengen visas, impacting travel to Germany]()
At this juncture, many businesses are turning to specialised visa facilitators for help. VisaHQ, for instance, offers an always-updated overview of German entry requirements (https://www.visahq.com/germany/) and can handle paperwork, appointment scheduling and document couriering for applicants suddenly limited to single-entry visas. Partnering with such a service lets HR teams offload administrative headaches and track every application in real time, mitigating the risk of costly travel delays.
Consular insiders say the EU move is politically motivated: it mirrors restrictions Moscow imposed on EU citizens and serves as an additional sanction in response to Russia’s war in Ukraine. Officials in Berlin also frame it as a security measure, pointing to a spike in forged Russian passports detected at Germany’s eastern borders this autumn.
Practical advice for German HR and global-mobility managers:
1. Check every invitation letter—some German consulates now demand more detailed agendas to justify even a single entry.
2. Build in at least three weeks’ lead time; appointment slots in Moscow and St Petersburg have already lengthened.
3. Consider remote participation or meetings in Istanbul or Dubai where Russian partners can still travel visa-free.
4. Warn travellers that overstaying or attempting a second entry on a single-entry visa can trigger a Schengen-wide ban.
Although the rule technically applies EU-wide, Germany is expected to enforce it strictly: Berlin has set removal targets for “visa violators” in its 2026 migration strategy, and border police at Frankfurt Airport are now automatically flagging Russian multiple-entry visas for secondary inspection.
The change was confirmed in a client alert by global immigration law firm Fragomen after EU interior ministers formally endorsed the tightened regime. Until now, most well-documented Russian travellers could still obtain multiple-entry visas for up to five years if they had a good travel history. German missions issued more than 142,000 Schengen visas to Russians in 2019 but fewer than 20,000 in 2024; business chambers warn the new single-entry ceiling will push those numbers lower still.
For German companies, the immediate effect is extra paperwork and cost. Single-entry visas mean every follow-on business trip—whether for contract negotiations in Munich or a trade fair in Düsseldorf—requires a fresh application, biometric visit and fee. Logistics groups with Russian drivers who cross into Bavaria report “overnight” disruption because multiple-entry documents that guaranteed flexible routing across Poland and Germany are no longer issued.
At this juncture, many businesses are turning to specialised visa facilitators for help. VisaHQ, for instance, offers an always-updated overview of German entry requirements (https://www.visahq.com/germany/) and can handle paperwork, appointment scheduling and document couriering for applicants suddenly limited to single-entry visas. Partnering with such a service lets HR teams offload administrative headaches and track every application in real time, mitigating the risk of costly travel delays.
Consular insiders say the EU move is politically motivated: it mirrors restrictions Moscow imposed on EU citizens and serves as an additional sanction in response to Russia’s war in Ukraine. Officials in Berlin also frame it as a security measure, pointing to a spike in forged Russian passports detected at Germany’s eastern borders this autumn.
Practical advice for German HR and global-mobility managers:
1. Check every invitation letter—some German consulates now demand more detailed agendas to justify even a single entry.
2. Build in at least three weeks’ lead time; appointment slots in Moscow and St Petersburg have already lengthened.
3. Consider remote participation or meetings in Istanbul or Dubai where Russian partners can still travel visa-free.
4. Warn travellers that overstaying or attempting a second entry on a single-entry visa can trigger a Schengen-wide ban.
Although the rule technically applies EU-wide, Germany is expected to enforce it strictly: Berlin has set removal targets for “visa violators” in its 2026 migration strategy, and border police at Frankfurt Airport are now automatically flagging Russian multiple-entry visas for secondary inspection.
