Montenegro will introduce visas for Russian citizens no later than September next year

Montenegro will introduce visas for citizens of Russia by September of next year at the latest, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Radio Free Europe.

According to the current Agreement on Mutual Travel, Russian citizens can currently enter and stay in Montenegro for up to 30 days without a visa.

“It is necessary for Montenegro to harmonize its visa policy with the EU by the end of the third quarter of 2026, which, among other things, means the introduction of a visa regime for citizens of Russia.”

According to the Ministry, this measure is part of the obligations that the state has undertaken within the Reform Agenda 2024-2027. and alignment with European rules from Chapter 24 – Justice, Freedom and Security.

“Harmonization with the EU visa policy is carried out gradually and with careful consideration of national economic and other interests, which are essential for preserving stability and long-term development of the country”.

For now, stay up to 30 days

Official data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs show that more than 21,100 Russian citizens live in Montenegro, and the largest number of them live on the coast, especially in Budva.

Although they can stay in Montenegro for up to 30 days without a visa, in practice they leave Montenegro for a short time after that period, often only to the nearest border point, and on their way back they get a new 30-day visa-free period.

The number of such ‘exits-entrances’ is not limited.

The Police Directorate previously clarified that the Travel Agreement with Russia has no limit in terms of the length of the total stay in a certain period, which in practice meant that the stay could be continuously extended.

Alignment with EU policies

Earlier, Prime Minister Milojko Spajić, announcing a tougher regime for Russian citizens, said that Montenegro fully follows the foreign and security policy of the European Union, including measures towards Russia.

Namely, in 2022, Montenegro introduced sanctions against Moscow, but the European Commission continuously warns that the visa policy is also crucial for progress in the negotiations and the use of funds from the Growth Plan for the Western Balkans.

According to the latest report of the European Commission, Montenegro is still not aligned with the EU visa regime, an issue that, they believe, is “a matter of urgent importance”.

Especially due to the fact that it is the final condition in one of the two most important access chapters.

9,000 Turkish citizens left Montenegro

Brussels expects to introduce visas for nine countries that are not aligned with the EU – Russia, China, Belarus, Azerbaijan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Turkey.

Montenegro recently introduced visas for Turkish citizens.

The occasion was an incident that took place on October 25 in the Zabjelo neighborhood of Podgorica, when a man from Podgorica was wounded with a knife.

Although the police claimed that a citizen of Turkey and Azerbaijan participated in the wounding, in the end it turned out that the woman from Podgorica was allegedly wounded by two citizens of Azerbaijan.

Since the end of October, when the Government temporarily introduced visas for citizens of Turkey, almost 9,000 of them left Montenegro, while in the same period 194 requests for issuing visas to citizens of that country were approved.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs informed Vijesti that from October 27, when the executive authority introduced visas for Turkish citizens, until November 26, 8,935 Turkish citizens left Montenegro.

Economic aspects as justification

By the way, the Government justified the current practice of incompletely following the EU visa policy with economic interests in tourism, which make up 26 percent of Montenegrin Gross Domestic Product.

In this context, they stated that 230,000 Russian and 320,000 Turkish citizens visit Montenegro annually…

For China, they stated that it participates in infrastructure projects, and for the four Middle Eastern countries, increasing investments in Montenegro.

Brussels has repeatedly emphasized that economic interests cannot take precedence over European rules and obligations from the accession process.

The Montenegrin authorities expect that the full harmonization of the visa regime with EU rules will be completed by the end of 2027.

The Government of Montenegro intends to close all chapters by the end of next year and become a member of the EU in 2028.

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