The visa history of Russia deals with the requirements, in different historical epochs, that a foreign national had to meet in order to obtain a visa or entry permit, to enter and stay in the country.
Kievan Rus'
Initially in Rus', allowing the entry of foreigners was fixed according to customary law. As a rule, the following categories of foreigners were granted admittance: merchants and travelers, mercenary soldiers, and, after the adoption of Christianity, priests, painters, and artisans engaged in the construction of churches.
In the tenth century, Rus' concluded treaties establishing procedural rules. The most notable of these was the Treaty with Byzantium in 911, concluded by Oleg of Novgorod, according to which a Russian who committed crimes in the Byzantine Empire, was sent for punishment to Rus, and a Greek was sent to Byzantium. Their property was subject to confiscation.
Russkaya Pravda, the legal code of Rus', accorded foreigners equal rights with Russian citizens.
Grand Duchy of Moscow
Russkaya Pravda was also the main act regulating the status of foreign nationals in the Grand Duchy of Moscow.
Other highlights of the formation of the legal regime governing the entry, stay, residence, and movement of foreigners in the territory of Russia for the purpose of trade were treaties—between Novgorod and Sweden, the Treaty of Nöteborg (1323); and between Novgorod and Norway, the Treaty of Novgorod (1326)—allowing merchants of these countries to move freely along the Neva River.
During this period, foreigners entering Russia were issued a special document to travel across the country, the Proezjaya Gramota (Russian: Проезжая Грамота, English: Charter for journey).
Tsardom of Russia
In this period, legal regulation of the arrival and stay of foreigners in Russia continued to develop.
In the 16th-17th centuries the Russian borders were closed to the free entry of foreigners.
The Russian government was interested gaining the expertise of foreign specialists and to come to agreement with the monarchs of the country where such foreigners resided. In some cases, foreigners were accepted who arrived at the border on their own initiative, but acceptance of their services was preceded by a lengthy procedure to establish their identities and qualifications.
Foreigners were allowed to settle only in certain places, such as cities; and it was forbidden them to travel Russia unaccompanied by Russian officials. In the 16th-17th centuries, the influx of foreigners to Russia was small, and so did not require passport control, although almost every foreigner was in possession of a Posolsky Prikaz (Посольский Приказ, or "Ambassadorial Prikaz") issued by the foreign ministry.
From the 16th century to the first half of the 17th, foreigners settled among the Russian population. Under pressure from the Church, in accordance with the Decree of 1652, areas, or quarters, were allocated on the outskirts of cities—such as Moscow's German Quarter—where immigrants from Western Europe settled and they were allowed to live according to their own customs. Staying in the city center was only permitted for those foreigners who converted to Russian religious belief.
In the 17th century, the government sought to invite foreign manufacturers to Russia to establish sectors of important industries, and offered them favorable conditions for the activity, such as the donation of state-owned land for factories and plants, the right to the enterprises by inheritance, loans from the Treasury, and long term monopolies on the production of goods (15–20 years).
The Novotorgovyy Charter (Новоторговый Указ, or "New Trading Charter"), of 22 April 1667, was the first attempt at legislative regulation of the legal status of foreigners in the Russian state. This act was narrowly focused, regulating only questions of entry by foreign merchants. In Moscow and other cities, only those who had a "special charter of trade, with a red seal" could enter. Those foreigners who did not have such a charter could trade only in Arkhangelsk and Pskov.
The reign of Peter the Great (1682-1725) is characterised by the formation of state administration on a large scale, the transformation of the Tsardom of Russia into the Russian Empire.