Today, the June amendments to the Tax Code of the Russian Federation and the regulations on consular fees came into effect, significantly increasing the state fees for acquiring or renouncing Russian citizenship.

The state fee for renouncing Russian citizenship at consulates has risen to 1,200 U.S. dollars, or approximately 25,000 Czech korunas.

Moreover, if the application is rejected, this money will not be refunded.

Once the freeze on citizenship applications from Russians ends, the requirement to renounce one’s former citizenship will remain in effect for an indefinite period—until the entire Lex Ukrajina law or its provisions regarding citizenship for Russians are completely repealed.

If at least one-quarter of the nearly 40,000 Russians living in the Czech Republic agree to renounce their Russian citizenship to obtain Czech citizenship, this will bring Russia nearly one billion rubles (~250 million Czech korunas).

And to obtain Czech citizenship, an average family of two adults and two children would have to pay $4,800 (~101,000 Czech korunas) to the Russian budget, which is twice more than one average salary in the Czech Republic. The initiators of the amendment to the Lex Ukrajina law, Martin Exner and Vit Rakusan, presented it as a measure “against the Russian regime,” but instead forced people to pay money into the Russian state treasury - just as Ukrainians and citizens of other former Soviet republics are forced to do, from whom the Ministry of Interior requires proofs of the absense of Russian citizenship, which can only be obtained at Russian consulates for a fee.

This is one of the reasons why this amendment must be completely repealed.