Current situation to travel to Russia due to Covid-19

In this post I will update the situation of foreign citizens who can already travel to Russia, and the conditions they must meet, due to the coronavirus pandemic. I will also include those countries to which Russians can travel.

I'm going to talk about ...

1. Citizens that can travel to Russia
2. Can citizens of other countries travel to Russia?
3. Countries with open borders for Russian citizens
4. Recommendations from government authorities

1. Citizens that can travel to Russia

From August 1st, 2020, citizens of the United Kingdom, Turkey, Tanzania and the Georgian region of Abkhazia can enter Russia. It applies to citizens of these countries, as well as to people who have a permanent residence permit in these countries, regardless of their nationality.
From August 15, Swiss citizens can also enter Russia.
From September 3, citizens of Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the Maldives can enter Russia.
Citizens of the following countries: Belarus, Cuba, Ethiopia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Serbia, Seychelles, South Korea, and Japan.

Citizens of these countries will need the following to enter Russia:

Passport with valid visa.
Negative Covid-19 test with less than three days before your arrival in Russia. The test result must be in English or Russian. If you don´t submit the negative Covid-19 test, you will have to enter a two weeks quarantine in your accommodation.

2. Can citizens of other countries travel to Russia?

Foreign citizens from other countries in the world (United States, Australia, India, Canada, etc.) can enter Russia as long as they meet the following conditions:

1. Have a passport with a valid visa

2. Take a Covid-19 test in the 72 hours prior to their arrival. The result of this test must be in English or Russian. It can also be in other languages, but in this case you must have it translated to Russian, and validated by a consular section of the Russian embassy.

3. Be covered by one of the legal exceptions provided for entry into Russia. It is essential to ask in advance at a Russian consulate or Embassy to confirm this exception, and to be informed of the documents you need to submit at the border. Among these exceptions are the following:

Foreign citizens who are relatives (spouses, parents, children, adopters, adoptees) and guardians of citizens of the Russian Federation. In this case, in order to enter the Russian Federation, they will need a valid passport, visa and a copy of the document proving the relationship.
Foreign citizens can enter the Russian Federation if they are going to receive medical treatment, and in this case, they will need, in addition to the visa, an invitation from the health center, processed through the Ministry of Public Health of the Russian Federation.
Foreign nationals who are travelling, in order to care for a close relative who is ill. In order to enter you will need a visa, a copy of the documents that certify the degree of kinship and documents from the medical institution that certify the health status of the relative or guardian.
By order 1761 dated June 25, 2020, the list of exceptions to the entry ban has been expanded to certain categories of highly qualified workers, though under certain requirements.

3. Countries with open borders for Russian citizens

The countries that are open to Russian citizens, albeit with a mandatory two-week quarantine on arrival are:

United Kingdom (from August 1st, 2020)

The countries that are open to Russian citizens without quarantine requirements are:

Turkey (from August 1, 2020)
Tanzania (as of August 1, 2020)
The Georgian region of Abkhazia (as of August 1, 2020)
Montenegro (from August 7, 2020)
Switzerland (from August 15, 2020)
Egypt, United Arab Emirates and Maldives (from September 3, 2020)
Albania, Bahrain, Croatia, Dominican Republic, Morocco and Mexico.