Sources now reportedly say it is unlikely he will be allowed to live in Britain again. Officials are reportedly under instructions to make it impossible for Mr Abramovich to base himself in the UK. He withdrew his application for a British Tier 1 investor visa in 2018, after reported delays in his application following criticism of Russian oligarchs in the wake of the Salisbury poisonings.
The government should seize the assets of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, a Labour MP has said, citing concerns about alleged links to corruption. Mr Abramovich is one of Russia’s richest people and is believed to be close to President Putin.
Speaking in the House of Commons, Mr Bryant urged the government to take action against Mr Abramovich, including removing his ownership of Chelsea Football Club and seizing his assets.
Chris Bryant told MPs he had a leaked Home Office document which suggested the Chelsea Football Club owner should not be able to base himself in the UK.
Mr Bryant said it was written in 2019 and “little” had been done since then.
A spokesperson for Mr Abramovich declined to comment.
Replying to Mr Bryant, senior minister Mark Spencer said the government had taken “very strong action against high-profile Russian individuals who are of concern”.
According to The Sun, senior security sources now say it is unlikely that the 55-year-old will ever be allowed to live in Britain again.
Immigration officials are reportedly under instructions to make it impossible for Mr Abramovich – who owns a £125million mansion near Kensington Palace – to base himself in the UK.
His case is said to be being handled by the Home Office’s ‘Special Cases Unit’.
It comes after Mr Abramovich was named by MPs on Tuesday as being one of 35 oligarchs identified by Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny as one of the ‘key enablers’ of the ‘kleptocracy’ run by the country’s president Vladimir Putin.
He vehemently denies he is close to the Kremlin or has done anything that would merit sanctions being imposed against him – as Britain looked to impose sanctions on Russia amid rising tensions with Ukraine.
In 2018 Mr Abramovich became an Israeli citizen, allowing him to enter for Britain for up to six months.
He used his Israeli passport last October to make a short trip to London.
However, a senior source told The Sun that any attempt by the oligarch to apply for a permanent visa would ‘almost certainly be rejected’.
Mr Abramovich has an estimated wealth of £8.4billion.
As well as his huge property portfolio, he also owns a series of superyachts, including the £450million Solaris, which has a missile detection system.
Mr Abramovich has never held UK citizenship and made his money selling assets purchased from the state when the Soviet Union broke up.
