Russians with residence permits in Germany are now being denied bank cards
Russians who hold residence permits in EU countries have begun to face refusals to issue bank cards. In particular, in Germany, Kreissparkasse Köln refused to issue a card to a customer with Russian citizenship, citing EU sanctions. The reason was a discrepancy between the validity period of the residence permit and the term for which the bank issues the card.
Russians with European residence permits have begun reporting new difficulties with bank cards. The problem has already arisen in Germany, at least, where banks are interpreting EU sanctions rules in a new way. According to reports, a Russian citizen holding a German residence permit was denied a card by Kreissparkasse Köln. The reason was the EU sanctions against Russian citizens. These sanctions impose restrictions on the provision of certain banking services to Russians, but at the same time include exceptions for people who hold a residence permit in the European Union. This is precisely where the problem arose.
The card is valid longer than the residence permit
According to “Dovod,” the German bank believes that a Russian national’s bank card can only be valid for the duration of their residence permit. In practice, this creates a discrepancy. German residence permits are often issued for one to three years. At the same time, bank cards can be issued for four to five years at a time. This means a person may have a valid residence permit, but its validity period will be significantly shorter than that of the new bank card.
At Kreissparkasse Köln, this was precisely the reason for denying the Russian national’s request. Due to this interpretation, the customer effectively finds himself in a situation where the bank is unwilling to issue a card for the standard term, yet is also unwilling to issue it only until the residence permit expires. This problem may not be an isolated one.
Financial advisor Natalia Smirnova described similar cases among her clients in Germany. According to her, she has so far encountered this practice specifically at some German banks. “So far, I’ve only encountered this interpretation with a few clients from Germany, but who knows how banks in the EU will interpret the 19th package going forward,” Smirnova noted. She added that she has also come across similar cases in other sources, specifically regarding Germany.
Banks Cite EU Sanctions
Smirnova links this new practice to the EU’s 19th sanctions package. She explained that banks emphasize that if a person loses their residence permit, their bank card must also be canceled. In other words, what matters to the bank is not only the customer’s citizenship but also whether they have a valid EU residence permit and how long that document remains valid.
Gera Ugryumova, head of the human rights association “Iskra,” believes that, formally speaking, the bank’s position may be justified. According to her, the European Commission has stated in its guidelines that the validity period of a payment card must not exceed the validity period of the residence permit. It is precisely this rule, she says, that banks can use as an argument to refuse to issue cards.
Human rights advocates fear a broader problem
Ugryumova suggests that if this practice spreads to other banks in the European Union, Russians with residence permits may face serious problems accessing standard banking services. “If this practice spreads to other banks, we’re in for a real disaster, because the maximum validity period for a residence permit card is five years, but the count begins from the moment the application is submitted,” she wrote. The problem here lies in the timeframes.
Even if a person has the right to live in the European Union, their residence permit may be valid for less than the standard validity period of a bank card. If banks strictly enforce this rule, it may be difficult for a Russian national to obtain a new card even with a valid residence permit. According to Ugryumova, an excessively strict approach toward Russian customers could ultimately lead to a situation where they are unable to obtain a payment card at all.
She has already raised this issue with DG FISMA—the European Commission’s Directorate-General responsible, among other things, for financial services. So far, the issue primarily concerns cases in Germany. There is no confirmation that all banks in the European Union are already applying the same approach. At the same time, human rights advocates fear that identical sanctions rules may be interpreted differently in practice by banks in different EU countries.
For Russians living in Europe on residence permits, this could mean new restrictions on their access to banking services. The full extent of the problem will become clear once it is known whether this practice will spread to other banks and EU countries. The “Dovod” project reported on one such case.
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