Germany will resume granting humanitarian visas to Russian and Belarusian citizens, the German Foreign Ministry said in response to an enquiry from Deutsche Welle.
“The procedures for the admission of persons who are at particular risk because of their activities in defence of freedom of speech, democracy and human rights or whose admission is of political interest for other reasons will be resumed,” the Foreign Ministry said.
It’s not specified when exactly the admission of documents from Russians and Belarusians will be resumed.
The lifting of the moratorium was also mentioned earlier by the head of the department for Russia and Belarus in the German Foreign Ministry, Mikhail Novak. Later, this information was confirmed by MEP Sergei Lagodinsky and Russian politician-exile Andrei Pivovarov.
Previously, Germany granted humanitarian visas to people at particular risk due to activities against war, “promoting democracy and human rights or criticising the regime in Russia, Iran or Belarus”. About two and a half thousand Russians have received such visas since May 2022, and more than 400 citizens of Belarus since March 2021.
The visas were discontinued in July 2025 after the new government coalition announced plans to cut foreigners’ admission programmes.