OREANDA-NEWS According to Reuters, Russians who moved to Turkey after the start of the military operation in Ukraine have begun to move en masse to other countries due to issues with residency permits and financial difficulties. 

Russians interviewed by Reuters from among those who have left Turkey or have acquaintances who have done so, said that they most often choose to move to Serbia and Montenegro. Among the reasons for this move, they cited issues with banking services due to sanctions as well as high inflation in Turkey, which reached 70% in April.In January 2023, the Turkish government tightened the process for obtaining a tourist residence permit for foreigners. Applications submitted for other purposes were rejected without proof of a stay in Turkey for tourism purposes. As a result, no tourist residence permits were issued.

According to official statistics from the Turkish authorities, more than 54,000 Russians with a residence permit left Turkey in January 2024. This represents a decrease of over a quarter million people compared to the previous year. Russians were the largest group of foreign residents in Turkey at the beginning of 2023, but by the end of the year, they had fallen to second place behind Turkmen citizens. The number of Russians holding a residence permit decreased by 34% over the year to just over 100,000.