EU Sanctions for Russians and Belarusians in France 2026

If you are a Russian or Belarusian citizen and hold a residence permit or citizenship of an EU country, the EEA or Switzerland, the restrictions aimed specifically at nationals of those countries do not apply to you: the €100,000 deposit cap and the ban on new cards and crypto services do not reach you. For everyone, with or without a permit, the ban on bringing in a car from Russia, the ban on taking euro cash out, the ban on dealings with the 103 Russian banks on the EU list and the ban on transactions with Russian crypto services all apply. We, the “Vibe South of France” community, have put these rules together from the regulations in force (consolidation of 24 July 2026) and the guidance of the European Commission and the Trésor, with articles and dates and without commentary. This is a summary of what the texts say, not legal advice: for your own case, check with your bank, customs or a lawyer. If you want to know how it looks in practice at a bank or at customs, you can ask in the “Vibe South of France” community chat on Telegram.

At a glance, as of 19 October 2026

EU regulations are binding and apply directly in every EU country, with no French implementing law in between. Guidance on financial sanctions in France is published by the Direction générale du Trésor.

Deposits and accounts: the €100,000 cap

An EU bank will not accept new deposits from a Russian or Belarusian citizen, or from a person living in those countries, if the total of their deposits in that bank exceeds €100,000. For Russia the rule has applied since February 2022 (Reg. 833/2014, Article 5b(1)), for Belarus since March 2022 (Reg. 765/2006, Article 1u(1)).

The cap does not apply to anyone with citizenship of an EU country, the EEA or Switzerland, including a second citizenship, or to anyone with a temporary or permanent residence permit in those countries (Article 5b(3); for Belarus, Article 1u(4)). A second citizenship of a country outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland does not lift the cap. How to open an account in France is in our guide Opening a bank account in France as a foreigner.

Cards, e-money, cryptocurrency

For Russian and Belarusian citizens without a residence permit in the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, EU banks do not issue new cards and other payment instruments, do not provide crypto services and do not issue e-money (Reg. 833/2014, Article 5b(2); Reg. 765/2006, Article 1u(2)). According to the European Commission’s guidance of 13 March 2026, reissuing a card also counts as issuing. Cards already issued and online banking keep working.

If you hold a residence permit, the ban does not apply, but for a new card the permit must be valid for the card’s whole term. According to the same guidance, a long-stay D visa usually counts as a residence permit too, if you have completed registration at your place of residence; national law decides.

Crypto companies. Russian citizens without a residence permit in the EU, the EEA or Switzerland may not, from 18 January 2024, own, manage or sit on the governing bodies of EU companies that hold cryptocurrency or run crypto wallets, and from 25 August 2026 of any EU crypto company (Article 5b(2a)). For Belarusian citizens the same applies from 26 March 2025 and from 25 August 2026 (Article 1u(3)).

Russian crypto services. From 24 May 2026, any transactions with crypto exchanges and crypto services registered in Russia are banned for everyone under EU jurisdiction, whatever their residence status (Reg. 833/2014, Article 5bb).

In our chat, between August and October 2026, about 40 messages from 12 members were about cards of CIS banks. Cash can usually be withdrawn from such a card at an ATM, for a fee; the chat admin summed it up: it is hard to live in France without a French card.

Securities and trusts

Russian citizens without a residence permit in the EU, the EEA or Switzerland may not be sold securities denominated in the currency of an EU country that were issued after 12 April 2022, securities in any other currency issued after 6 August 2023, or units in funds that invest in such securities (Reg. 833/2014, Article 5f). For Belarusian citizens the same ban applies to securities in EU currency issued after 12 April 2022 (Reg. 765/2006, Article 1y).

In the EU, a trust whose settlor or beneficiary is a citizen or resident of Russia may not be registered or administered; the exception is citizens of the EU, the EEA and Switzerland and people with a residence permit in those countries (Article 5m). Reg. 765/2006 contains no such ban for Belarus.

Cars and personal belongings

A car from Russia. Bringing a passenger car (customs code 8703) that was brought in from Russia into the EU is banned, including for Russian citizens with a residence permit in the EU: there is no such exception in the regulation or in the European Commission’s guidance (FAQ of 22 December 2023). The exceptions: diplomatic plates, and authorisation by a national authority for cars of EU citizens and their family members living in Russia. Cars that were already in the EU on 19 December 2023 can be registered (Reg. 833/2014, Article 3i, paras 3ab, 3ac, 3ad, Annex XXI).

A car from Belarus. The ban is the same (Reg. 765/2006, Article 1ra), with one difference: a Belarusian citizen with a valid visa or a residence permit can obtain authorisation from a national authority to bring in their own car for personal use, not for sale. Cars that were in the EU on 1 July 2024 can be registered.

Personal belongings. Items in luggage - clothes, toiletries and other things clearly not meant for sale - customs may let through; the national authority decides (Reg. 833/2014, Article 3i, para. 3aa, introduced by Reg. (EU) 2023/2878; for Belarus, Reg. 765/2006, Article 1ra, para. 4). Your own gold jewellery for personal use can be brought in from Russia (Article 3o, para. 6).

Cash

Euro and other EU-country banknotes may not be taken out to Russia and Belarus, except money for the personal needs of the traveller and the family travelling with them for the time of the trip (Reg. 833/2014, Article 5i; Reg. 765/2006, Article 1za). The Court of Justice of the EU (case C-246/24, judgment of 30 April 2025) clarified that this means money for your own necessary expenses during the trip and the stay. The European Commission adds that you may not carry cash for relatives or acquaintances or take savings out. The ban applies to everyone, whatever their citizenship, and only to cash, not to bank transfers.

Transfers and Russian banks

Any dealings with the banks in Annex XIV of Reg. 833/2014 are banned (Article 5h): the list has 103 Russian banks, among them Sberbank, VTB, Alfa-Bank, T-Bank, Ozon Bank and Yandex Bank. There is no general ban on sending money from the EU to an account at a Russian bank, but the transfer is impossible if the recipient’s bank is on this list or if the recipient or the bank is under an asset freeze (Trésor guidance, FAQ A, 2022).

If you hold a residence permit or EU citizenship and have an account at a bank added to the list on 24 July 2026 or later, a national authority may authorise you to close the account and move the money to an EU bank; the authorisation must be requested no later than three months after the date the bank became subject to the ban (Article 5h, para. 3). For Belarus the list of banks is Annex XV to Reg. 765/2006, Article 1zb.

Property

Neither Reg. 833/2014 and Reg. 765/2006 nor the Trésor guidance on Russia forbid ordinary Russian and Belarusian citizens to buy a home in France; the restrictions concern people under an asset freeze, who need DG Trésor authorisation. Money from the sale of a home is credited within the €100,000 per-bank deposit cap; for residents of France and people with a residence permit or EU citizenship the cap does not apply (Trésor, FAQ B, 2022). How the purchase works is in our guide Buying property in France.

Visas

Since 12 September 2022 the EU agreement with Russia on facilitating the issue of visas has been suspended in full (Council Decision (EU) 2022/1500 of 9 September 2022): Schengen short-stay visas for Russian citizens are issued under the general rules of the Visa Code.

For Belarusian citizens the facilitation agreement is suspended only for members of official delegations, the government, parliament and the highest courts (Council Decision (EU) 2021/1940 of 9 November 2021). How to get a French visa is in our guide A visa for France.

Personal lists

Asset freezes and entry bans concern only the people and organisations on the EU’s personal lists: the freeze is introduced by Reg. 269/2014, for Belarus by Reg. 765/2006, Article 2, and entry bans by Council decisions. The 21st package of 23 July 2026 added 48 people and 170 organisations to the EU lists, and on 12 October 2026 the Council added another 826 companies and 743 people to this list. An ordinary citizen who is not on these lists is not affected by the freeze.

Where to check for changes

• The consolidated texts of Reg. 833/2014 and Reg. 765/2006 on EUR-Lex; as of 19 October 2026 the latest consolidation is dated 24 July 2026.
• The European Commission’s consolidated FAQs (updated 30 September 2026).
• Direction générale du Trésor, “Russie” section - the French guidance on financial sanctions is here.

If you are moving to France from Russia or Belarus and want to know how this looks at a bank or at the border right now, ask people who have already been through it.

The “Vibe South of France” community chat on Telegram - relocation and life in the South of France

See Also

• Opening a bank account in France
• A visa for France
• Buying property in France
• Titre de séjour: residence permit in France
• Russians in France
• Moving to the South of France: paperwork step by step