Russia denies entry to nearly 70,000 foreigners under biometric border control pilot program
AKIPRESS.COM – Russia has denied entry to nearly 70,000 foreign citizens at border checkpoints since launching a biometric data collection pilot program, during which 14 million people have submitted their biometric information to enter the country, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs reported.
Launched on December 1, 2024, the initiative identifies individuals entering Russia during border control using two parameters: facial photographs and fingerprints, both collected directly at checkpoints.
The Interior Ministry noted that the system not only collects biometric data but also identifies individuals attempting to re-enter Russia under altered personal details after receiving an entry ban.
Initially launched across Moscow’s Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, and Zhukovsky airports alongside the Mashtakovo road checkpoint in Orenburg region, the experiment expanded to Vnukovo airport on May 1, 2025.
In June 2026, biometric collection systems were deployed at 11 additional border crossings, including facilities in Saint Petersburg, Novosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk, and Yekaterinburg, as well as the Altai Territory and Irkutsk, Kurgan, Novosibirsk, Saratov, Orenburg, and Omsk regions.
