Russians Have Begun Searching En Masse For Ways To Leave The Country
- 23.07.2026, 21:09
Amid rumors of mobilization.
In June 2026, Russians set a record for the number of search queries related to leaving the country. Searches for “where to go without a visa,” “how long does it take to get a passport,” and “permission to leave the country” reached their highest levels since the start of the war, according to an analysis of data from Yandex and Google Trends conducted by "We Can Explain". The surge in interest coincided with the fuel crisis, Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian cities, and rumors of a new mobilization.
For example, the search query “how long does it take to get a passport” was entered into Yandex 26,339 times in June—the highest figure for the entire observation period and 221% more than in November 2024. On Google Trends in May, this search query reached the maximum score of 100 points for the first time in five years. The number of searches for “leave without a visa” rose to 1,251 in June—an increase of 118% compared to February 2025.
The surge in interest in emigration coincided with new obstacles for those wishing to leave the country, notes “MO.” In July, Moscow residents began complaining en masse about the inability to schedule an appointment to apply for a foreign passport due to a lack of available slots at Ministry of Internal Affairs offices. In addition, as of January 1, 2026, the FSB Border Service database listed 8.9 million active travel bans for debtors—a 41.5% increase from the previous year.
The increase in the number of emigration requests coincided with the authorities’ intensified preparations for a possible mobilization. According to an assessment by the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the Kremlin is creating a legal framework for this: the State Duma has expanded the group of individuals with criminal records who are permitted to enter into contracts with the Ministry of Defense, and the Russian Guard has updated its civil defense regulations to account for periods of mobilization and martial law.
Reuters sources close to the Kremlin also report that Vladimir Putin is preparing for a further escalation of the war. According to Western intelligence estimates, by mid-2026, Russian military casualties had reached 1.4 million killed and wounded, and the rate of conscript recruitment has ceased to offset the losses. Pro-Russian media outlets cite October as a possible date for a new mobilization and estimate its scale at 1.2 million people.