Russian Federation Council, or the upper house of the parliament, approved a bill to simplify visa procedure for foreign volunteers in the 2014 Sochi Olympics on Wednesday.

The legislation would halve visa processing time for the as yet unknown portion of the 25,000 volunteers to come from abroad.

The bill will go to Russian President Vladimir Putin for signing into law.

In February, the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee announced its volunteer recruitment program. Anyone between the ages of 18-80 will be eligible to become a Sochi 2014 volunteer.

For foreign nationals, the application will be reviewed by the staff of the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee either in Moscow or Sochi. Many of the positions require a personal interview in Moscow or Sochi, as well as a test of Russian language knowledge.

The volunteers should undergo several training sessions, including courses on the development of personal qualities and necessary skills, games, adoption of policies and regulations of work, orientation of the venues, among others.

The Winter Olympics in the Black Sea resort of Sochi under the motto of "Hot. Cool. Yours" will be opened on Feb. 7, 2014 and run until Feb. 23. The Games will feature 98 medal events, which are 12 more than those of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada. Endi