Advice on what to do if the invaders took you to Russia/Getty Images
Russian invaders are massively taking Ukrainians to the territory of the aggressor state. The authorities of Mariupol gave advice to citizens on how to return home after being deported to Russia.
The easiest way is to say that you have relatives in Russia
The information was collected by the adviser to the mayor of Mariupol, Petr Andryushchenko. He noted that in the filtration camps, the occupiers give Ukrainians a lot of documents to sign.
Upon arrival on the territory of the aggressor state, according to the Kremlin laws, you must register at the place of residence. However, you may not do this, because even if you do not register, you can safely cross the border with any state friendly to Ukraine. The Russians won't bother you.
In addition, in Russia, Ukrainians are given 2 statuses – a refugee, or a person in need of “shelter from the war.” Convince the invaders that you have relatives or friends in Russia and you are going to visit them. So you can not choose any status, but keep the documents with you.
If the invaders force you to choose a status, they will take away the passport of a citizen of Ukraine. You will be issued a certificate that will legally tie you to a certain region and a certain job. The status will be valid for at least a year, and during this period you will officially not even be able to leave the region.
Theoretically, you can revoke your status at any time, and the Russians are obliged to issue it back passport. But where is Russia, and where is the rule of law. Therefore, if you accept the status, it will be difficult to return home,” Andryushchenko noted.
The way home
If you have a biometric passport, then there should be no problems returning home. However, if you only have a passport of a citizen of Ukraine, then there are 2 options:
- cross the border with Belarus, for which a Ukrainian passport will be enough. Then you should go to Lithuania, because it treats Ukrainians with understanding and allows you to cross the border without a passport in case of emergency;
- cross the border with Georgia. A Ukrainian passport is also sufficient for this, but certain problems may arise with the subsequent return to their homeland.
The official noted that Ukraine is making every effort to return citizens home.
