7 MILLION RUSSIANS TURNED OUT TO BE BANNED FROM TRAVEL ABROAD DUE TO DEBTS

According to Izvestia, the information was provided by the Federal Bailiff Service. At the end of the first quarter of 2021, the bailiffs collected 9.2 billion rubles from the debtors banned from travel (283 million of which fell on alimony). Moreover, only 103 thousand people from this category of debtors were able to pay off the debts.

7.8 thousand Russians are registered as not allowed to travel abroad due to the alimony debts.

Those citizens who owe amounts from 30 thousand rubles and have delays in payment of more than 90 days were classified as restricted to travel abroad. It is noted that a significant increase in Russians, for whom the borders were closed, fell on the period from July to November 2020.

In total, almost 19 million people having debts live in the Russian Federation. If we consider the statistics, the number of debtors banned from travel abroad is growing every year: 6.1 million people in 2019, 6.5 million in 2020 and 7 million in 2021.

Almost all debtors who cannot travel abroad have obligations to banks, while almost 95% simultaneously have debts in microfinance organizations.

5% of Russians are in debt only to MFOs. Such a low percentage is explained by the fact that microfinance organizations rarely provide large loans that cross the threshold of 30 thousand rubles.

Experts note that the growth of debtors is associated with a difficult financial situation, in which many Russians found themselves due to the coronacrisis. The level of income went down, some citizens lost their jobs. In most cases, it is not about unwillingness to pay, but about the lack of such an opportunity. On average, Russians who cannot travel abroad owe about 85 thousand rubles in unsecured consumer loans.

Market analysts believe that the Russians are trapped in a debt trap for several reasons. First of all, low interest rates on loans create the illusion of easy payments. Secondly, the period of the pandemic is still not over, and therefore debtors often suffer from coronavirus or recover from it – and it is difficult to pay debts at this time. The number of arrears on car fines has also increased - Russians have become less likely to pay them, since money is required for other primary needs. For a similar reason, communal debts also continue to grow.