Regulation Takes Force In Russia Obliging Those Barred From Traveling Abroad To Surrender Their Passports

A regulation obliging Russian citizens barred from traveling abroad, including people officially summoned to military service, to hand over their passports to official entities came into force on December 11. According to the law, adopted by the government on November 22, passports must be handed to state bodies within five days of their holders being officially barred from traveling to a foreign country. Travel documents that are not handed over to the state on time will be invalidated, the regulation says. The passports will be returned to their owners after the ban is lifted. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Russian Service, click here.