National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden has been granted permission to stay in Russia for three more years, his lawyer said Thursday.

Snowden's temporary asylum expired on August 1, but it has been extended via a three-year residency permit. Snowden, who faces espionage charges in the US, fled to Russia in June 2013, two weeks after his first leak appeared in the Guardian.

The leaker's lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena, told a news conference Thursday that Snowden had a tech-related job, was learning Russian, and had private body guards. Kucherena said Snowden was living from donations and his meager wages, and he had not accepted housing or protection from the Russian government.

"He leads a rather modest lifestyle," Kucherena said. "He moves around pretty freely. He goes to stores, museums, theaters, as photos published in the media show."

Kucherena said Snowden was neither working with Russian intelligence agencies nor employed by the government. Snowden lives at an undisclosed location.

The grant of three years of residency is not asylum. When his three-year residency expires, Snowden can extend it by another three years and become eligible to apply for Russian citizenship.