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Canadian farmer Arend Feenstra, who moved with his wife and eight children to Russia under a program promoting “traditional values,” says he no longer recommends other foreigners move there. He says obtaining permanent residency would require him to sign a Defense Ministry contract, which he does not want to do. His temporary permit remains in place for now, and he says he may be able to apply for another temporary permit when it expires.
Canadian farmer Arend Feenstra, who moved to Russia with his wife and eight children under a program for foreigners who support “traditional values,” says he no longer recommends that other foreigners move there. In a YouTube video reported by Nizhny Novgorod Onlain, Feenstra said he learned that securing permanent residency would require him to sign a contract with Russia’s Defense Ministry, a condition he does not want to accept.
Feenstra received a three-year temporary residence permit in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region in early 2025. He later brought his family to Russia and began farming. He said the family had become attached to the area, but that their plans are complicated by the requirement attached to an application for permanent residency.
“I didn’t come here to sign a contract,” Feenstra said in the video. He referred to his eight young children and farm as reasons he does not want to sign. He said that if the choice is between signing and returning to Canada, he would “rather take my chances in Canada,” while adding that he also considers life there risky.
Feenstra said he understands he may be able to apply for another temporary residence permit after his current one expires, without signing a Defense Ministry contract. His family’s present permit has not expired, and the report does not say that they have decided to leave Russia.
Residency Rules Shape Feenstra’s Plans
The case highlights a practical limit of Russia’s simplified immigration offer: an easier route to temporary residence does not necessarily remove later requirements for foreigners seeking to stay permanently. For Feenstra, the distinction matters because the next step toward long-term residence, as he describes it, carries a condition he is unwilling to meet.
His account also raises questions for other prospective migrants weighing the program. Rules affecting residency can determine whether a family can make durable plans around work, schooling and a home. Feenstra’s public change of recommendation is one person’s experience, not evidence that every participant faces the same immediate circumstances, but it points to the importance of checking the rules that apply at each stage of an immigration process.
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A Simplified Route With Later Conditions
Russia launched the program in August 2024 for citizens of countries its authorities classify as “unfriendly” who share what the program calls “traditional Russian spiritual and moral values.” Under the simplified process, participants can obtain temporary residence permits without some standard steps, including Russian-language exams.
The permanent-residency requirement Feenstra described is separate from that initial streamlined route. According to the source report, since November 2025, foreign men aged 18 to 65 deemed fit for military service have had to sign a Defense Ministry contract to obtain permanent residence. The report says participants in the traditional-values program are not exempt. Feenstra’s move followed his receipt of a temporary permit in early 2025, before that reported requirement took effect.
““I didn’t come here to sign a contract.””
— Arend Feenstra, in a YouTube video cited by Nizhny Novgorod Onlain
Family’s Long-Term Status Remains Open
It is not clear whether Feenstra or his family will leave Russia, or what plans they will make when his current temporary permit expires. Feenstra said he believes he can seek another temporary permit without signing a contract, but the report does not provide independent confirmation of how that option would apply to his case or whether his family members would face the same process.
The available account is based on Feenstra’s video and reporting by Nizhny Novgorod Onlain, as relayed by Meduza. It does not include a response from Russian immigration authorities or the Defense Ministry, or details of any formal decision on Feenstra’s permanent-residency application. The precise administrative steps and timing of a future application are not stated.
Permit Expiry Is the Next Milestone
The immediate milestone is the expiration of Feenstra’s current temporary residence permit. He says he may then apply for temporary residence again without signing a Defense Ministry contract; whether he does so, and whether the application is approved, remains unknown.
Until then, the report gives no indication that his family has made a final decision about staying or returning to Canada. Further information from Feenstra or Russian authorities could clarify how the contract rule is applied to his application and what options are available to his family.
Key Questions
Why does Feenstra say he no longer recommends moving to Russia?
He says rules have changed and that obtaining permanent residency would require a Defense Ministry contract. He does not want to sign one and says his family sees no clear path forward.
Has Feenstra’s family left Russia?
The report does not say that they have left. Feenstra’s three-year temporary residence permit, granted in early 2025, was still in effect at the time described.
What is Russia’s traditional-values immigration program?
Launched in August 2024, it offers a simplified temporary-residence process to citizens of countries Russia calls “unfriendly” who share what the program describes as traditional Russian spiritual and moral values. The process includes exemptions from steps such as Russian-language exams.
Who does the permanent-residency contract rule cover?
According to the source report, since November 2025, foreign men aged 18 to 65 who are deemed fit for military service have had to sign a Defense Ministry contract to obtain permanent residence. The report says traditional-values program participants are not exempt.
Source: rss
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