Russian Gov’t Lifts Travel Restrictions Imposed On Kenyans

The Russian government has lifted a travel restriction imposed on Kenyans at the height of COVID-19 infections in March 2020.

Russian Embassy in Kenya on Tuesday made the announcement as it opened its borders for travellers from Kenya and called on passengers intending to travel to the Asian nation to apply for visas.

The directive will now enable even the students seeking to apply for programmes in Russia based institutions to apply which had previously been barred from accessing them.

“Dear Kenyans! According to the Decree №440-R of the Russian Government, previously imposed restrictions (including those related to Kenyan students studying in) on entry to Russia, have been removed. You can now apply and get your visa in the Embassy,” the Embassy stated.

At the same time, Russian envoy to Kenya Dmitry Maksimychev however maintained that earlier categories of foreigners including; diplomatic and service passport holders, students and cadets, foreign relatives of Russian citizens, participants of sports and business events would still be in place.

“Meanwhile, the Decree №635-R (March 16, 2020) of the Russian Government that enlists the categories of foreigners (paragraph 2) who are allowed to travel to Russia is still in force,” Maksimychev stated.

This comes as the Ministry of Health also lifted COVID 19 restrictions early this month following the drop in the infections.