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Buenos Aires: Ever since Russia invaded Ukraine, many soon-to-be Russian parents have been flying to Argentina to give birth so their child can obtain citizenship of the South American country.
Owing to Russia’s growing isolation, Argentina has become the number one destination for birth tourism as the country doesn’t require visas from Russians.
The head of the consular department of the Russian Embassy, Georgy Polin said around 2,000 to 2,500 Russians have moved to Argentina in 2022. Many of these people were women who were planning to give birth in the country.
“In 2023 year, that number can grow to 10,000,” Polin predicted.
Polina Cherepovitskaya, a Russian woman who gave birth in Argentina’s capital Buenos Aires in December told The Guardian, “I found out I was pregnant shortly after the war in Ukraine started. As we saw that borders started to quickly close around us, we knew we had to find a place that we could easily travel to. An Argentinian passport will open up many doors for my child.”
Cherepovitskaya and her husband now plan to stay and seek citizenship in Argentina, considering it wouldn’t be difficult to obtain since their newborn daughter is an Argentinian.
Perks of travelling to Argentina
Eva Pekurova, a travel agency worker said, “Buenos Aires is in demand right now; it is the only destination we currently work with.”
She added that holding an Argentinian passport enables its citizens to make short trips to 171 countries, including the European Union, UK and Japan. Obtaining a long-term visa in US visa is also “not very difficult.”
The cost of travelling to Argentina to give birth ranges between ?1,000 to ?8,000 to travel brokers, who offer services such as arranging translators and helping with paperwork.
The baby-tourism boom in Argentina
Kirill Makoveev, the founder of Baby.RuArgentina said that his firm has helped around 100 women and their partners to give birth in Argentina.
“We are currently booked up until May 2023. There is a waiting list too,” he said. Makoveev says that more than a “dozen pregnant Russians” land in Buenos Aires every day.
“Since the start of the war, demand has boomed. It has come to a point where hospitals have advertisements in Russian,” he added.
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