Russian passport two weeks after Direct Line with Putin: Ukrainian refugees in Naberezhnye Chelny obtain citizenship

“All possible assistance from the republic will be provided”

The long-awaited event has recently happened to the refugee family of Lyulkovichs — in the police department No. 3 Tsentralny, the ministry of internal affairs of Russia in Naberezhnye Chelny solemnly handed Russian passports to three children — Yekaterina, Richard and Jimmy. the Lyulkovichs moved to Russia in 2014 from the area of hostilities in the south-east of Ukraine. This made it possible to obtain citizenship in a simplified manner. With regard to six other family members, “the measures are being taken to consolidate their legal status”.

Let us remind, the head of the family asked Vladimir Putin to help with obtaining Russian citizenship during Direct Line with Vladimir Putin on June 20. Vladimir Lulkovich reminded that recently the president of Russia has signed the decree on simplification of obtaining Russian citizenship. He also told that in 2014 the large family moved to Russia from Dzerzhinsk (now Toretsk), but they were still in the status of refugees.

“Except the decree, there are also other regulations that would allow the citizens of Ukraine who are in the territory of the Russian Federation in the simplified order to receive citizenship,” Putin declared in reply. “I already know that there is a problem associated with that the citizens of Ukraine are required to obtain some documents that they can only get in Ukraine. It is clear that this is a vicious circle. It is hardly possible to solve the problem. Therefore, I will look at what adjustments and additions need to be made to the regulatory framework in order to resolve the issue in essence, not on papers that cannot be executed.”

The head of the state promised the family to discuss the problem with President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov and do everything to make the process of obtaining citizenship “as liberal as possible” for the citizens of Ukraine. Almost immediately after the direct line, the authorities of the republic said that they would help the refugee family: “All possible assistance from the republic will be provided. All issues, in which the republic is authorized to assist, will be resolved,” said then deputy head of the press service of the President of the Republic of Tatarstan Lilia Galimova.

As a result, the family in the shortest possible time was included in the state programme on voluntary resettlement in Russia of compatriots — this has allowed the three children of Vladimir Lulkovich in a simplified procedure of obtaining Russian citizenship within two weeks after the communication with the guarantor of the constitution, the family has been trying to obtain a passport for five years.

“Got under the pressure of the FMS system and all the ‘charms’ experienced in full”

At the briefing on 4 July, Lilia Galimova said that the problem was in the federal government, neither the authorities of Neberezhnye Chelny nor the republican authorities could solve the problem of the Lyulkovichs, although they were aware of their problems. At the moment, she said, the work is underway at the level of the ministry of internal affairs on the Republic of Tatarstan directly with those applicants who were on the direct line.

“This is due to the need to collect documents. First you need to get a residence permit, that is, the procedure is quite difficult. However, given that not much time has passed, as you can see, the process indeed has been accelerated. I think that in the near future the remaining family members will also receive documents. We hope, the same example will be followed also by others who can't get citizenship in view of such circumstances,” she noted.

As Vladimir Lulkovich told, they themselves could not leave the Donbass in the midst of the war, “one good man” helped them who spent his money and took them and more than 40 other countrymen, he found apartments in Naberezhnye Chelny to all of them, helped financially and with job search. The Ukrainians who fled did not hide their grievances:

“Such an impenetrable wall of bureaucracy! We fled from the war, but we do not get any discounts. Got under the press of the FMS system and all its “charms” experienced in full. Five years of suffering, but the results are minimal.” At home, Vladimir was engaged in the manufacture, repair and improvement of guitars, to which he devoted thirty years, but in Naberezhnye Chelny he cannot earn doing the favourite work:

“I had a great workshop in Ukraine! But here I have nothing, no wood, no tools. I have to work on a desk and stools. I spent a huge amount of time on that guitar, which was shown during the direct line. Great instrument, 27 stops, with all sorts of bells and whistles!” Vladimir told.

His son Richard Lulkovich, who received together with his brother and sister Russian passport, said what it cost to live illegally for five years and about how the long-awaited holiday happened to the family:

“First, there was an assignment to the migration service from Putin, the authorities of Tatarstan. Then from Kazan the order was lowered to Naberezhnye Chelny: the order “as soon as possible to do everything”. Here they are more actively engaged in the issue, included us in the programme [to promote the voluntary resettlement of compatriots to Russia]. And we ended up with passports.”

According to Richard, the rest of the family is promised citizenship until the end of July.

Putin said that the migration service demanded some documents from Ukraine? What are these documents?

No, this is not our case, in other situations this happens to people. We had an income problem.

Without a passport, you could not legally work and, as I understand it, show legal income? For the same reason you were not given a passport? A vicious circle.

Actually, yes! We had to show large sums to have an official subsistence minimum for such a large family, — Richard explained to Realnoe Vremya.

“My sister is a diabetic, she bought insulin at her own expense!”

The lack of citizenship also created other problems for refugees. “Everyone is in different situation. Someone has a temporary shelter... It's hard, because officially no one wants to employ you: because you need to be put you on record in the FMS — and this is a very long time, there are queues, a lot of papers. You will work illegally, informally — there can be a penalty on firm to half a million rubles. So no one wants to get involved,” Richard says. The most difficult thing was with medical care.

“Helped in hospitals, but still... My sister has diabetes and she is all the time bought insulin at her own expense! One brother, he is younger, received help from all local authorities. But not my older sister.”

Because of all the obstacles and problems, the family often had the desire to return home, to their homeland: “We just at some point did not know what to do next. They thought that nothing would not work out, and found themselves in this situation: you are like living, but you can register nothing.”

The Lulkovichs are not going to ask the state for financial assistance

Despite the problems, the Lulkovichs do not expect financial assistance — they are going to make money themselves.

“We're not asking for anything. I am working in a private music school, giving lessons. I also have a musical group, we perform with them, we earn. At weddings, corporate parties, etc. Even with the Tatarstan stage cooperate. At one time, we even performed with the famous in Tatarstan duo Guzelem & Salavat Minnekhanov. Two years ago, we had a joint tour with them: they asked us to help, and we performed with them in Tatarstan. We visited 15 cities.”

Richard's brother works in a woodworking company in the motor city. The sister still works unofficially as a chef, the mother is also working in the cafe.

“With us [from Ukraine], there also came our family members, the Fahrutdinovs. They also received help, they were with us on Direct Line with Putin. As for the rest, to be honest, I do not even know how the situation is. I think, most likely, they on the general bases are trying to get citizenship. I doubt that they getting help as actively as we are. We are all waiting for the amendments in the new decree of the president, so that the others [refugees from Donbass] were able to obtain a passport.”

The idea to ask for help from the president of Russia came at the suggestion of journalists of the federal channel: “Well, not that we ourselves have come up with it all. Simply at first journalists of NTV prepared a plot, and then the channel suggested us not to broadcast a plot, but to ask it as a question during the Direct Line with Vladimir Putin. Our friends, of course, then surprised: asked us how it happened, how could? They say: “Well Done!” They are happy for us that this issue has finally been resolved.”