Number of people in Estonia renouncing Russian citizenship increases
The number of people in Estonia who have renounced their Russian citizenship in the first 9 months of 2025 already exceeds the total for the whole of 2024.
According to data from the Estonian Ministry of Internal Affairs, while only 107 people were registered as renouncing their Russian citizenship in Estonia in 2024, as of August 25, 2025, there were already 126 cases recorded.
These statistics were provided by Minister of the Interior Igor Taro (Eesti 200) in response to a request from Narva council opposition member Aleksei Jevgrafov.
The reason for the temporary suspension of applications was the entry into force of a new law on Russian citizenship, which was introduced at the end of October 2023. From then until February 2024, the Russian Embassy in Estonia did not accept new applications.
"The process has resumed since then, but due to the closure of [Russian] consulates in both Tartu and Narva and the reduction in the number of embassy staff in Tallinn, the queues for submitting applications remain long," Taro explained.
Taro also stressed that, despite the complicated procedure, people are, once again, able to give up their Russian citizenship should they wish to do so.
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Editor: Michael Cole,
