Loans for a Foreigner in Russia

Taking out a loan by a foreign national is Russia is a tricky question. On one hand, there are no legal restrictions for them to get loans. In addition, in almost any Russian bank, foreigners can register for debit products, such as savings accounts, deposits, or payment cards. Transferring funds and exchanging currency is also easy. On the other hand, it is very-very difficult for a non-citizen to be given a loan; the point is that banks are wary of lending money to foreigners because it may be extremely hard to collect it later. Firstly, a foreign national may leave Russia at any time. And sometimes not even of his free will. For serious or repeated violations of the rules of stay, a foreigner may face sanctions from the Migration Service in the form of deportation to their homeland with a ban on entry into Russia for several years. In this case, borrowers often stop making payments on the loan. Secondly, in Russia, judicial practice for collecting debts from foreigners located in another country is not developed. Thirdly, bank scoring and credit history inquiry are designed exclusively for Russian citizens.

Features

Needless to say, the conditions for such a consumer loan would not be the most favorable: increased interest rate, short loan term, and reduction in the maximum possible amount. It is impossible to apply online; loans are issued only at a bank branch. You are also required to justify the purpose of lending. Your application is more likely to be approved if the loan is secured; the co-borrower is a Russian citizen, and the borrower is a salary client of this bank. By the way, citizens of the CIS are granted consumer loans more often than persons with citizenship of other countries.

What positively affects a foreigner's creditworthiness?

A residence permit (especially permanent) greatly increases the chance - those who are in Russia on a visa are almost never granted loans. Also, if you are registered in the bank's region, have a long work history in one company, have relatives who are citizens of the Russian Federation, own real estate or a car in our country, or (most important) are officially employed, the bank will be more willing to provide you with a loan. Although this is not a 100% guarantee of success – everything depends on the bank's policy.

Mortgage

However, it is much easier to get a mortgage than a consumer loan, since, despite the larger amount, this transaction is safer for the bank because of liquid collateral, which will help return the money, even if the client leaves for their motherland. The conditions will be almost the same as for Russians, only without the social mortgage program.


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