I left Moscow in 2022 and I still cannot get paid like a normal person

I want to say first: I am not asking for pity. Ukrainians have it much worse, I know this. This is only a post about what is it like to be a relocant developer with a Russian passport, because people ask me and I am tired of explaining it in DMs.

I left Moscow the week mobilisation was announced, September 2022. Belgrade, because Serbia did not need a visa and I had a friend with a sofa. I am against the war. Против войны. I said it then and I say it now, also with my name.

Cards. My Russian Visa and Mastercard stopped working abroad in March 2022, like everybody's. So I arrived with cash in an envelope like it is 1995.

Bank account. To open a normal account in Serbia, I needed residence permit. Residence permit took months. Meanwhile I was paid... creatively. Friends' accounts, which is stressful for everybody.

Payment services. One closed my account after a "routine review", without explanation. Another wanted proof of residence in a country I already had proof for, twice. A contractor platform told my client they "cannot onboard this nationality at the moment". My client was a small Dutch company, they were confused and embarrassed and nice, and then they found someone else.

Now. I have Serbian residence, a Serbian bank, a remote job I found through andrei_cluj, and a bank card blocked in three countries because they see the passport. I ship Android apps. Kotlin, Compose, the normal things. My client does not care about my passport. Banks care very much)))

The strange part is the limbo. In Russia I am a traitor who left. In Europe I am a risk score. In Serbia I am fine, but always with a little question in people's eyes. I understand all of them, which is maybe the worst part.

If you are a relocant reading this: plan 6 to 9 months for banking, keep every document in PDF and paper, and do not let a client pay you to someone else's account if you can avoid it. It always ends badly.