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Visa refusal rates for Russia: Schengen countries (2025), easiest and hardest, the UK, New Zealand and Canada

How many Schengen visa applications made in Russia were not issued in 2025, country by country and consulate by consulate, with the easiest and hardest countries for Russian applicants, and how many UK visitor, study and work visa applications by nationals of Russia were refused, with the latest figures for New Zealand and Canada. Official figures only.

Visa refusal ratesRussia

Schengen visas · applications made in Russia · 2025: 6.4% not issued (42,953 of 673,558 decisions)

679,425applications
618,806uniform visas issued
42,953not issued
−1.1 ptschange on 2024 (7.5%)

Easiest Schengen visa from Russia, by the numbers: the lowest not-issued rate among Schengen countries with at least 500 decisions was Netherlands (0.9%); the highest was Malta (19.8%). Full ranking by country and consulate. Of the 74 countries with the most applications, Russia ranks 16 (1 = lowest rate). Multiple-entry visas: 28.4% of uniform visas issued in 2025 (by country).

Source: European Commission, Visa statistics for consulates 2025 (XLSX, downloaded on 15 October 2026); European Commission, Visa statistics for consulates 2024 (XLSX, downloaded on 15 October 2026). Short-stay (Schengen) visas, calendar year. All years on the Commission website.

United Kingdom · nationals of Russia · July 2025 to June 20266.8% of visitor visa decisions refused (details)

4.3%study visas refused · 1,022 decisions
2.7%work visas refused · 1,475 decisions

Source: Home Office, entry clearance visa outcomes, published 27 August 2026, downloaded on 15 October 2026

Australia, New Zealand and Canada · by citizenship: Latest official full-year figures for nationals of this country

16.3%New Zealand visitor visas declined · 2025/26 · 10,382 decisions
67.9%Canada temporary resident applications approved · 2025 · 17,660 processed

Sources: Immigration New Zealand (to 30 September 2026, CC BY 3.0 NZ); IRCC (2025, Open Government Licence – Canada); downloaded on 26 October 2026. Details and definitions below.

Statistics, not advice. These are official figures for all applications made in a past period. They cannot predict the decision on your application, and a lower rate does not make a visa easier for you: you must apply to the Schengen country where you will spend the most time (or, for equal stays, the one you enter first), at the consulate responsible for the place where you legally live. Always follow the consulate's official requirements.

Schengen visa rejection rate by country, applications made in Russia

Tap a column heading to sort. "Not issued" includes refusals and applications whose examination was discontinued. * Fewer than 100 decisions: the rate can swing a lot.

Italy5.4%5.2%170,511161,1219,390
France3.5%7.1%167,549156,5475,634
Spain9.3%8.2%139,596123,35912,701
Greece11.2%12.7%67,57959,0207,480
Hungary7.0%8.8%28,54026,2921,972
Bulgaria3.4%4.5%27,42326,006925
Germany4.0%5.5%24,69020,036987
Netherlands0.9%0.6%11,95911,637109
Switzerland9.1%4.7%11,3789,0651,033
Portugal9.7%4.8%6,9666,289677
Austria9.8%22.8%4,9594,216526
Finland7.1%9.4%4,1483,369288
Estonia17.4%22.7%2,3631,934429
Lithuania9.2%9.5%1,7961,467160
Belgium6.0%5.9%1,7531,575100
Croatia6.5%5.5%1,6941,376107
Slovenia4.4%5.6%1,6071,25471
Slovakia3.6%8.8%1,2031,14949
Latvia4.7%2.9%1,1261,06262
Luxembourg3.1%2.7%1,04873227
Malta19.8%25.0%879702175
Romania12.1%3.8%20818025
Czech Republic10.9%12.4%17515519
Poland0.0%1.1%1031030
Sweden4.4%*21.0%91824
Norway3.7%*5.8%81783

Source: European Commission, Visa statistics for consulates 2025 (XLSX, downloaded on 15 October 2026); European Commission, Visa statistics for consulates 2024 (XLSX, downloaded on 15 October 2026). Short-stay (Schengen) visas, calendar year. All years on the Commission website.

Easiest Schengen visa from Russia: lowest and highest refusal rates (2025)

Which Schengen country has the lowest rejection rate for Russian applicants? Among the 21 Schengen countries that decided at least 500 applications made in Russia in 2025, Netherlands had the lowest not-issued rate (0.9%) and Malta the highest (19.8%). Smaller numbers move too much from year to year to compare. These rates describe past decisions, not your chances. See the easiest Schengen visa from Russia: all countries and consulates ranked.

Lowest refusal rates

  1. 1Netherlands12,644 decisions0.9%
  2. 2Luxembourg871 decisions3.1%
  3. 3Bulgaria26,950 decisions3.4%
  4. 4France162,448 decisions3.5%
  5. 5Slovakia1,348 decisions3.6%

Highest refusal rates

  1. 1Malta882 decisions19.8%
  2. 2Estonia2,471 decisions17.4%
  3. 3Greece66,534 decisions11.2%

A lower rate is not a guarantee, and you cannot choose freely. Each rate mixes different travellers, purposes and documents. You must apply to the country of your main destination: the rule is on the European Commission page on applying for a Schengen visa (checked on 15 October 2026). Applying to a country you do not plan to visit mainly can itself lead to a refusal.

Source: European Commission, Visa statistics for consulates 2025 (XLSX, downloaded on 15 October 2026). Short-stay (Schengen) visas, calendar year. All years on the Commission website.

Multiple-entry Schengen visas issued in Russia (2025)

Multiple-entry visasRussia · 2025

Schengen visas issued in Russia · 2025: 28.4% were multiple-entry visas (175,862 of 618,806 uniform visas issued)

41.3%in 2024
−12.9 ptschange on 2024
Luxembourghighest share: 94.9%
Spainlowest share: 1.6%

Among the 21 Schengen countries that issued at least 500 visas in Russia in 2025, Luxembourg gave the highest share of multiple-entry visas (94.9%) and Spain the lowest (1.6%). All Schengen visas issued worldwide in 2025: 51.7% multiple-entry. Multiple-entry Schengen visas by country and by place of application.

Source: European Commission, Visa statistics for consulates 2025 (XLSX, downloaded on 15 October 2026); European Commission, Visa statistics for consulates 2024 (XLSX, downloaded on 15 October 2026). Short-stay (Schengen) visas, calendar year. All years on the Commission website.

Schengen countries that issued at least 500 uniform visas in Russia in 2025, from the highest share of multiple-entry visas. Tap a column heading to sort. "Change" is in percentage points; * fewer than 500 visas issued in 2024. Not shown (fewer than 500 visas issued): Czech Republic, Norway, Poland, Romania, Sweden.

Luxembourg94.9%84.9%+10.1 pts732695
Lithuania73.6%76.4%−2.8 pts1,4671,080
Croatia73.5%77.8%−4.3 pts1,3761,011
Finland71.0%63.3%+7.6 pts3,3692,391
Netherlands70.1%70.6%−0.5 pts11,6378,158
Switzerland63.5%78.1%−14.6 pts9,0655,759
Estonia61.4%48.8%+12.7 pts1,9341,188
Belgium60.4%73.8%−13.4 pts1,575951
Bulgaria53.6%59.1%−5.5 pts26,00613,942
Italy50.1%71.1%−21.0 pts161,12180,760
Slovakia46.1%63.8%*–1,149530
Greece41.6%39.0%+2.6 pts59,02024,525
Latvia39.4%58.2%−18.8 pts1,062418
Hungary29.5%37.6%−8.1 pts26,2927,757
Austria17.3%27.9%−10.5 pts4,216731
Malta14.4%10.7%+3.6 pts702101
France14.0%32.6%−18.6 pts156,54721,935
Slovenia8.8%14.9%−6.1 pts1,254110
Portugal8.1%14.3%−6.2 pts6,289508
Germany5.0%7.1%−2.0 pts20,0361,004
Spain1.6%10.2%−8.6 pts123,3592,034

Source: European Commission, Visa statistics for consulates 2025 (XLSX, downloaded on 15 October 2026); European Commission, Visa statistics for consulates 2024 (XLSX, downloaded on 15 October 2026). Short-stay (Schengen) visas, calendar year. All years on the Commission website.

What this share means, and what it does not. A multiple-entry visa "allows several visits to the Schengen area for as long as the visa is valid"; a single-entry visa allows one entry (European Commission, checked on 30 October 2026). Every visit is still a short stay, of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. A multiple-entry visa is not a long-stay visa, a work permit or a residence permit. The Commission's file only says whether each visa allows multiple entries: it does not say how long the visas were valid for. The share describes visas issued in the past, not your chances: the consulate decides the number of entries and the validity of each visa.

By consulate

Each Schengen country's consulates (or visa sections) in Russia, by number of applications in 2025. Where a country is represented by another, the applications appear under the country that decided them.

FranceMoscow3.5%167,5495,634
ItalyMoscow5.4%148,6128,104
SpainMoscow9.7%126,50312,044
GreeceMoscow12.1%56,9396,805
GermanyMoscow4.0%24,676987
ItalySt. Petersburg5.9%21,8991,286
BulgariaMoscow3.6%21,129751
HungaryMoscow8.2%18,3171,492
SpainSt. Petersburg5.2%13,093657
NetherlandsMoscow0.9%11,959109
SwitzerlandMoscow9.1%11,3781,033
PortugalMoscow9.7%6,966677
GreeceNovorossiysk6.3%6,392391
BulgariaSt. Petersburg2.8%6,294174
HungarySt. Petersburg2.3%5,101113
AustriaMoscow9.8%4,959526
GreeceSt. Petersburg6.7%4,248284
FinlandMoscow7.1%4,148288
HungaryYekaterinburg8.7%3,057263
EstoniaMoscow17.4%2,363429
HungaryKazan5.0%2,065104
BelgiumMoscow6.0%1,753100
CroatiaMoscow6.5%1,694107
SloveniaMoscow4.4%1,60771
SlovakiaMoscow3.6%1,20349
LatviaMoscow4.7%1,12662
LithuaniaMoscow10.9%1,106117
LuxembourgMoscow3.1%1,04827
MaltaMoscow19.8%879175
LithuaniaKaliningrad6.6%60338
Czech RepublicMoscow10.9%17519
RomaniaMoscow15.3%14322
SwedenMoscow4.4%*914
LithuaniaSovetsk5.9%*875
PolandMoscow0.0%*870
NorwayMoscow3.7%*813
RomaniaSt. Petersburg4.8%*653
PolandKaliningrad0.0%*160
GermanySt. Petersburg0.0%*140

Source: European Commission, Visa statistics for consulates 2025 (XLSX, downloaded on 15 October 2026). Short-stay (Schengen) visas, calendar year. All years on the Commission website.

UK visa refusal rate for nationals of Russia: visitor, study and work visas

From July 2025 to June 2026, the UK refused 6.8% of visitor visa decisions for nationals of Russia (3,786 refused out of 55,498). 4.3% of study visa decisions were refused (1,022 decisions); 2.7% of work visa decisions were refused (1,475 decisions). Unlike the Schengen figures, the UK counts applicants by nationality, wherever they apply.

Visa typeRefused
12 months to Jun 2026		Year before
12 months to Jun 2025		DecisionsGrantedRefused
Visitor visas6.8%7.3%55,49851,7123,786
Study visas4.3%6.1%1,02297844
Work visas2.7%3.2%1,4751,43540
Family visas8.0%5.3%33731027
of which partner (spouse) visas7.0%*4.5%28726720
Other visas21.0%30.0%23818850
All visas6.7%7.3%58,57054,6233,947

Source: Home Office, Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes detailed datasets, year ending June 2026 (XLSX, published 27 August 2026, downloaded on 15 October 2026; next update 26 November 2026). Refusal rate = refused ÷ (granted + refused), as in the Home Office grant rate; withdrawn and lapsed applications are excluded. Figures from 2026 Q1 are provisional.

Visitor visas, quarter by quarter

  1. 8.9%Q3
    2024     11,177 decisions
  2. 8.1%Q4
    2024     10,176 decisions
  3. 7.0%Q1
    2025     9,339 decisions
  4. 5.8%Q2
    2025     14,822 decisions
  5. 6.7%Q3
    2025     13,743 decisions
  6. 8.1%Q4
    2025     10,664 decisions
  7. 6.4%Q1
    2026     12,123 decisions
  8. 6.4%Q2
    2026     18,968 decisions

Source: Home Office, same file as above (published 27 August 2026, downloaded on 15 October 2026). Each bar is the share of visitor visa decisions taken in that quarter that were refusals; 2026 figures are provisional.

Study and work visas, quarter by quarter

Q3 20243.6%1,0323.8%635
Q4 202420.4%1622.1%420
Q1 20259.7%*623.8%372
Q2 20256.2%*962.7%374
Q3 20251.1%7391.8%501
Q4 202513.4%1863.3%359
Q1 20268.3%*482.1%283
Q2 202614.3%*493.9%332

Source: Home Office, Entry clearance visa applications and outcomes detailed datasets, year ending June 2026 (XLSX, published 27 August 2026, downloaded on 15 October 2026). "Study" is the Home Office group for sponsored study (Student, Child Student) and short-term study visas; "Work" groups all work routes (Skilled Worker, Health and Care Worker, temporary and seasonal work, Global Business Mobility, talent and business visas, and their dependants). * Fewer than 100 decisions; 2026 figures are provisional.

Australia student visa refusal rate

In 2025-26 Australia decided 225 student visa applications from primary applicants who are nationals of Russia and applied from outside Australia, fewer than the 500 we need to show a meaningful rate. See Australia visa refusal rates for all nationalities.

New Zealand visa decline rate for nationals of Russia (2025/26)

In the New Zealand financial year 2025/26 (July 2025 to June 2026), Immigration New Zealand declined 16.3% of visitor visa applications from nationals of Russia (1,690 declined out of 10,382 decided); 1.5% of work visa applications (1,495 decisions). INZ counts applications by the country that issued the passport, and its "declined" figure includes applications that were withdrawn, so these rates are not directly comparable with the UK or Australian refusal rates.

Visitor visas16.3%11.0%14.8%10,3821,690
Student visas9.4%*13.9%*23.6%*41439
Work visas1.5%1.1%1.3%1,49522

Source: Immigration New Zealand (Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment): Visitors Visas decided (applications), by nationality and financial year of decision; Student Visas decided (applications), by nationality and financial year of decision; Work Visas decided (applications), by nationality and financial year of decision (PDF, prepared 8 October 2026, decisions to 30 September 2026, downloaded on 26 October 2026). Crown copyright, licensed under CC BY 3.0 NZ (copyright notice). Decline rate = declined ÷ (approved + declined), applications; INZ counts withdrawn applications as declined. Financial years run from July to June.

New Zealand, year by year

2016/174.1%5,2668.6%9184.2%1,373
2017/185.7%5,41210.5%9544.2%2,061
2018/199.2%6,03914.6%8262.6%2,315
2019/208.0%5,33613.2%7063.7%1,784
2020/213.6%1,4534.5%*3784.2%1,478
2021/221.6%3,0604.0%*2724.5%759
2022/2316.1%3,18223.2%62813.9%1,368
2023/2414.1%7,40910.5%6208.0%1,698
2024/2511.0%9,14513.9%*4471.1%1,565
2025/2616.3%10,3829.4%*4141.5%1,495
July to September 2026 (2026/27)14.8%2,37223.6%*1481.3%526

Source: Immigration New Zealand statistics, same PDFs as above (prepared 8 October 2026, downloaded on 26 October 2026, Crown copyright, CC BY 3.0 NZ). Declined includes withdrawn applications.

* Fewer than 500 decisions; – fewer than 100. All nationalities: New Zealand visa decline rate by nationality.

Canada: temporary resident applications from Russia approved (2025)

In 2025, IRCC approved 67.9% of the temporary resident applications from Russia that it processed (11,985 approved out of 17,660 people). This share mixes visitor visas, study permits and work permits, first applications and extensions; "processed" includes applications refused and withdrawn, so the other 32.1% were refused or withdrawn. In 2024: 76.7%. January to August 2026: 73.8% (13,695 processed).

No study permit or visitor visa refusal rate. For each country IRCC publishes only the number of new study permit applications processed (515 from Russia in 2025) and the number of visitor visas approved (5,515), never both for the same visa, so a study permit or visitor visa refusal rate cannot be calculated from the official files.

January to August 202673.8%13,69510,1104553,780
202567.9%17,66011,9855155,515
202476.7%19,35514,8508957,435
202367.5%27,95018,8751,5559,365

Source: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), Operational Processing – Monthly IRCC Updates: temporary resident applications processed, temporary resident applications approved, new study permit applications processed, visitor visas (V-1) approved (XLSX, data as of September 1, 2026, downloaded on 26 October 2026). Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. IRCC rounds counts to the nearest 5 and does not publish counts from 1 to 4; the data are operational and subject to change.

Approved share, month by month (all temporary resident applications)

  1. 72%Sep
    2025     1,265 processed
  2. 78%Oct
    2025     1,330 processed
  3. 75%Nov
    2025     1,210 processed
  4. 68%Dec
    2025     1,320 processed
  5. 74%Jan
    2026     1,210 processed
  6. 71%Feb
    2026     1,650 processed
  7. 72%Mar
    2026     1,655 processed
  8. 74%Apr
    2026     1,790 processed
  9. 72%May
    2026     1,730 processed
  10. 78%Jun
    2026     2,120 processed
  11. 77%Jul
    2026     2,210 processed
  12. 70%Aug
    2026     1,335 processed

Source: IRCC, same files as above (data as of September 1, 2026, downloaded on 26 October 2026). Each bar is approved ÷ processed in that month. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada.

All countries: Canada temporary resident approval rate by country.

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How to read these figures

Other countries where people apply

Morocco19.2% not issued in 2025Saudi Arabia5.2% not issued in 2025United Kingdom10.5% not issued in 2025Algeria31.3% not issued in 2025United Arab Emirates24.2% not issued in 2025Thailand5.9% not issued in 2025Philippines6.9% not issued in 2025Egypt24.2% not issued in 2025

Schengen visa refusal rates by country, 2025 · Multiple-entry Schengen visas by country · UK visa refusal rates by nationality · Australia · New Zealand · Canada · Visa income calculator