The Changes Everyone Was Waiting For. What's The Catch?

As we know, a temporary residence permit (razreshenie na vremennoye prozhivanie) confirms a foreign national's right to temporarily reside in the Russian Federation. It is usually issued for a three-year period. A permanent residence permit (vid na zhitel'stvo) is a document entitling a foreign national to reside permanently in the Russian Federation, generally for a five-year period with a possibly unlimited number of five-year extensions. A permanent residence permit gives the foreign national many more privileges than a temporary one. These include visa-free entry to Russia and the ability to work anywhere in the country.

Many foreigners consider the temporary residence permit an unavoidable step on the way to getting a permanent residence permit. Although some categories of foreign nationals are allowed to get a permanent residence permit without first obtaining a temporary residence permit, most foreign nationals who want to later get a permanent residence