©Reuters. Russians Ilia Gafarov and his wife Nadia Gafarova share a laugh on the roof of their “banya”, a traditional Russian sauna they are building together, after moving to Argentina 9 months ago, as part of a wave of migration since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022
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By Lucinda Elliott and Miguel Lo Bianco
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – When Ilia Gafarov and Nadia Gafarova inaugurate their “banya”, a traditional Russian sauna, in April, they hope it will help make their adopted city of Buenos Aires permanent.
The couple, former bankers and recruiters from Russia’s eastern port city of Vladivostok, moved to Argentina with their two daughters nine months ago, part of a wave of migration from Russia to Latin America following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The Gafarovs said they are looking to invest much of their savings in the business and apply for citizenship when they are eligible at the end of next year.
“The Russian community has grown significantly since we’ve been here, and they want a banya too,” Ilia said, also citing demand from health-conscious locals.
As Russia’s war in Ukraine enters its third year, a growing number of Russian families are putting down roots in Latin America, according to previously unreported residency visa approval data from five countries and interviews with a dozen exiles and experts.
Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay granted temporary or permanent residency last year to a total of nearly 9,000 Russians, up from just over 1,000 in 2020, according to the data.
Some, like the Gafarovs, are leaving an imprint in their adopted cities. The family also cooks traditional Russian dishes like blini to feel at home.
Exiles and experts cited Latin America’s lax visa rules and easier paths to citizenship, accessible lifestyles, good weather and relative ambivalence toward international sanctions as major attractions for Russian citizens who seek to escape war and its impacts on the economy, despite geographical distance.
LOSING VISA REGIMES
Unlike Europe and the United States, most South American countries do not require tourist visas for Russian citizens, and extending your normal stay by 90 days is usually simple. Although most countries in the region have condemned Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, none have sent aid or weapons to Kiev.
“Latin America was an experiment for the Russians two years ago, now those who travel to the continent come with the intention of staying,” said Vladimir Rouvinski, a political scientist at Colombia’s ICESI University.
According to government data, Argentina was the main destination in the region for Russian expats, issuing 3,750 residence visas to Russian citizens in 2023, more than ten times the number before the war began and the pandemic curbed travel global in 2020. were more than 500.
Mexico granted residence permits to 3,231 Russians last year, three times more than in 2021, according to government data.
And Brazil granted residency to about 1,000 Russian citizens last year, up from 400 in 2021.
In group chats on the messaging app Telegram, Reuters saw Russian emigrants in Latin America sharing advice on buying property, opening businesses, finding childcare and applying for residency.
The influx is gradually changing the appearance of the city neighborhoods. Russian-run cafes and beauty salons have popped up around Buenos Aires, in affluent Recoleta and trendy Palermo. Russian Orthodox church groups in the southern Brazilian coastal city of Florianopolis are looking for a permanent priest. Waiters, teachers and cashiers began learning simple Russian phrases.
ADAPTATION IS A PROCESS
When 36-year-old Tatiana Kalabukhova, originally from Rostov-on-Don, near Russia’s western border with Ukraine, moved to Mexico City with her partner in December last year, she never imagined the daily reminders of Russian culture that he would find in her. adopted neighborhood, such as Pushkin Garden, named after the poet Alexander Pushkin, where she takes her son to play.
Kalabukhova, a business consultant, has been granted temporary residency which she plans to extend, but admits her family is “still in the process” of adjusting to their new home and learning Spanish after living in the United States for several years.
“When I moved here from the United States, I felt more comfortable because life here seems more grounded,” she said.
Some Russians living in or visiting parts of the United States and Europe have reported facing anti-Russian sentiments after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Emigrants Reuters spoke to said that while there were obstacles in transacting with Russian banks, they could turn to cryptocurrencies widely used in Argentina and Brazil, and Chinese bank cards, such as UnionPay, which are available in Russia and accepted in 12 Latin American countries. countries including Argentina, Brazil and Mexico.
Argentina and Brazil became popular destinations among Russian mothers-to-be two years ago due to automatic citizenship rules for newborns.
But this has extended to business owners and families, partly because of changes to Russia’s conscription system last year that made it harder to avoid being called up for military service. The legislation came into force last January.
A former police officer in his 30s from Yekaterinburg, who requested anonymity for fear of retaliation, said he and his wife went to the border with Kazakhstan six hours after the first draft was announced because they feared be at high risk of being mobilized.
He said the couple moved to Brazil after learning that his wife, who has medical training, was pregnant.
Others have fled because of the political repression and economic impacts of the war, said Russian Helena Yaw, who moved to Florianopolis with her husband in 2019 and was recently joined by her brother.
“People are buying everything they can find, to invest the rapidly devaluing rubles,” Yaw said.
(This story has been refiled with a changed headline)