French actor GERARD DEPARDIEU has been granted Russian citizenship amid an ongoing dispute with politicians over a tax hike in his homeland.

The Green Card star moved to the Belgian village of Nechin, just minutes from the French border, after the government pushed ahead with plans to introduce a 75 per cent tax on millionaires to help boost France's ailing economy.

Depardieu was criticised by French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault over the move, but he has the support of another world leader as Russia's President Vladimir Putin has cleared the star for a Russian passport.

A statement from the Russian government reads, "Vladimir Putin has signed a decree granting Russian citizenship to France's Gerard Depardieu."

It is not known whether the actor has accepted the offer.