This paper explores the use of Russian in state communication in officially monolingual Estonia. Drawing on interviews with high-level public employees in four central state institutions and an analysis of these institutions’ websites, the paper displays that while Russian is not specifically mentioned in the laws, it is de facto widely present in the virtual and physical public sector of Estonia. Russian is a notable linguistic resource for employees in positions that involve contact with the public in the capital Tallinn, and state institutions also invest in Russian by translating their websites. The study reveals a covert policy of accommodating Russian speakers despite the erasure of Russian in Estonia's overt language policy. Furthermore, it points out how exploring covert policies reveals a growing commodification of Russian in the public sector in terms of valuing linguistic skills in the language.