Arctic residents have submitted over 3,300 applications for free local land plots, with the first 56 participants already granted land.

“As of October 1, 2021, 3,361 applications have been received. The greatest demand is in the Murmansk Region, with 1,866 applications. The first 56 participants have joined the program,” the press service of the Far East and Arctic Development Corporation (FEDC) said in a statement.

According to FEDC sources, most often people want to use these land plots for housing construction and smallholdings, as well as for growing agricultural produce and implementing tourism projects and business initiatives.

The Russian Arctic’s residents can obtain free single-hectare land plots in the Murmansk Region, the Nenets and Yamal-Nenets autonomous areas, as well as in municipal districts of the Arkhangelsk Region and the Komi and Karelia republics. People can choose a plot from the 1.1 million hectares of land available in these regions by going to the website Гектарварктике.рф, which is integrated with the federal database Надальнийвосток.рф. It is possible to obtain land plots in just one month, rather than six months, under a simplified procedure.

In late June, President of Russia Vladimir Putin signed a law expanding the Far Eastern Hectare program to the Russian Arctic. On August 1, the Arctic Hectare program opened to local residents, who can apply for free land plots for personal use or business purposes. All Russian citizens, as well as people involved in the state program for the voluntary resettlement of compatriots living abroad, can also join in starting February 1, 2022.