Moldova: Information on whether propiskas are still required and whether individuals must hand in their internal passports to OVIR or a similar agency in order to obtain an external passport
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 May 1994 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | MDA17093.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Moldova: Information on whether propiskas are still required and whether individuals must hand in their internal passports to OVIR or a similar agency in order to obtain an external passport, 1 May 1994, MDA17093.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6abc484.html [accessed 17 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
According to a representative at the Embassy of Moldova in Washington, DC, the residence permit system (propiska) is still in effect in Moldova (3 May 1994). The representative indicated that the propiska stamp appears only in the holder's domestic passport, not in his or her "external passport" (ibid.). The source also indicated that in order to obtain an external passport, Moldovans must apply at OVIR, an office at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and must bring their domestic passport to prove that they are Moldovan citizens (ibid.). More detailed information on how "external passports" are acquired could not be obtained from this source.
A representative of Human Rights Watch in Moscow indicated that she too was unaware that the propiska system had been lifted in Moldova (4 May 1994). A January 1993 CSCE report also indicates that internal freedom of movement is still governed by the propiska system (Jan. 1993, 91).
A writer on Moldovan affairs for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) in Munich indicated that internal passports per se do not exist in Moldova any more, however, as a legacy of the Soviet era and social-administrative habit, the identity card held by Moldovans is informally called an "internal passport" (4 May 1994). He also indicated that to obtain a passport, Moldovans must show their identity card (ibid.).
For further information on propiska and internal movement, please consult Country Reports 1993, the DIRB Question and Answer Series Paper entitled Moldova: Internal Flight Alternatives of July 1993, and Response to Information Request MDA14568.E of 7 July 1993. These documents are available at your Regional Documentation Centre.
This response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.
References
Embassy of Moldova, Washington, DC. 3 May 1994. Telephone interview with representative.
Specialist on former Soviet republics, Human Rights Watch, Moscow. 4 May 1994. Telephone interview.
Writer on Moldovan affairs, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), Munich. 4 May 1994. Telephone interview.
Attachments
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). January 1993. Human Rights and Democratization in the Newly Independent States of the Former Soviet Union. Washington, DC: CSCE.
