Estonia to stop recognizing non-biometric Russian passports

Estonia to stop recognizing non-biometric Russian passports. Photo: Sander Ilvest

Starting from March 31, 2025, Estonia will no longer recognize non-biometric travel passports issued by the Russian Federation.

People who have a residence permit from Estonia or another European Union member state and who currently hold a non-biometric Russian passport have until Sept. 30, 2025 to apply for a biometric passport, the Estonian Foreign Ministry said.

Russia issues both biometric and non-biometric passports. The non-biometric travel passports issued by Russia are not in line with the recommendations of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and they entail various security risks. Non-biometric travel passports do not contain electronic data carriers, which is why it is not possible to compare the personal data of the passport holder with the data on the microchip.

Unlike with the biometric passports issued by Russia, the issuing institution of the passport is not that easy to determine, which makes it harder to identify non-recognized documents, such as those issued in occupied areas. Russian passports, including biometric passports, issued in non-recognized regions are not accepted as travel documents by the Schengen countries.

As of March 20, non-biometric Russian passports are not recognized or are recognized conditionally also by Denmark and Czechia.