On July 15 after the closing of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed the initiative to provide an opportunity for the FAN ID holders to come to Russia again without a visa until the end of the year.
On July 17, the bill was introduced in the State Duma by Chairman Viacheslav Volodin
Vyacheslav Victorovich
The Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the eighth convocation. Elected in single mandate constituency № 163 (Saratov constituency - Saratov Oblast)
, leaders and members of all factions. The initiative was considered as a priority and adopted by the State Duma’s members in the third reading on July 26.
The Federation Council approved the bill on July 28.
Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the law on August 3.
The Chairman of the State Duma expressed his confidence that this law ”will ensure the growth of Russia's tourism potential, which, of course, is huge, and is not limited to impressions of the FIFA World Cup“.
”Everyone who will use the FAN ID ”will have the further opportunity to discover our hospitable country“, Viacheslav Volodin noted.
FAN ID is a document that spectators should receive in order to visit matches of 2017 Confederation Cup and 2018 FIFA World Cup. Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Physical Culture, Sport and Youth Affairs Mikhail Degtiarev
Mikhail Vladimiroviсh
noted that nearly 1 million 800 thousand Russian and foreign citizens from 195 countries received FAN ID.
”This is a serious increase in the tourist flow. All of them will leave money in the hospitality industry, this will have a positive effect on the development of small and medium-sized businesses and our economy as a whole“, — Mikhail Degtiarev is sure.
According to the signed law until December 31, 2018 inclusively, the entry and exit from Russia of foreign citizens and stateless persons who visited the 2018 FIFA World Cup matches as spectators ”is carried out without issuing visas by presenting valid identity documents recognized by the Russian Federation in this capacity, and the personalized card of the spectator received by such citizens and stateless persons before or during the 2018 FIFA World Cup matches“.
