The tourism industry has proposed to the government of the Russian Federation a set of measures that should increase the number of trips made by foreigners to Russia by 2030, to 16 million. These measures include the rejection of “equality rules” in the aviation industry and the “open skies” regime for foreign airlines. In this respect he is writing RBC with reference to two sources. According to the publication, the measures were discussed on August 29 at a strategic session on tourism in the government, organized by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.
“Equality rules” assume that all countries participating in various aviation conventions agree to continue flights simultaneously, and the “open skies” regime allows foreign airlines to carry passengers to third countries. This block of measures also includes a reduction in fees for the use of Russian airspace by foreign airlines for charters with tourists.
The second block concerns the simplification of the visa regime. This plan includes lifting the moratorium on Russia’s unilateral visa facilitation, simplifying the content of the e-visa application form, and reducing visa fees.
Third, by the end of 2023, a virtual “tourist card” of the Mir national payment system should be made available, and the import limit of foreign currency should be increased for tourists who do not need to be declared separately. This block also includes the development of the infrastructure of acceptance points of external payment services (Union Pay, WeChat, Alipay).
In the presentation of the session, it is stated that by 2030 the number of tourist trips in Russia will almost double, reaching 140 million a year. We are talking about excursions made by both residents of the country and foreigners. The number of trips for the latter will increase to 16 million, which is five times more than now.
According to the data of the Federal Security Service, foreigners made 187.8 thousand touristic visits to Russia in January-June 2023. In 2019 there were about 2 million.
Previously reportedRussia will increase its budget expenditures on tourism by 1.5 times.