RUSSIAN VISA

General Info


Russian visa is an official document giving permission to stay in Russia for a specific period of time. To enter Russia for any purpose, citizens of most countries must possess a valid Russian visa. It typically includes limits on the duration of the foreigner’s stay (entry and exit dates), visa type and number of permitted entries, holders’ passport details and information about the inviting company (“Visa Sponsor”). Visa is required not only to enter but also to leave the country. Thus, in case you overstay your visa’s validity or lose your passport with a visa, you will face serious problems while leaving the country.
If you are a citizen of the Russian Federation carrying a valid Russian passport, you must enter the country on this passport without a visa. If you left the country before 1992, you must enter Russia on passport of the country of your citizenship. Please see the list of visa-free countries and visa-free trips to find out whether you can travel to Russia without a visa. In the other cases, you will need to obtain a visa.


If your child is under 14 years of age and is added to your passport, he/she can enter Russia on your visa. If a child has his/her own passport, he/she will have to obtain a separate Invitation for a family member visa type. While making an order, please, provide us with the appropriate information on a child travelling together with you. In case one of the parents travelling with a child is a Russian passport holder, the child will need a Russian passport or a private visa. Tourist visa will not be accepted in this case.
How to get a Russian Visa
To enter the Russian Federation, you need:

• Step 1 – Obtain the Visa Invitation
• Step 2 – Get the visa issued by the Russian Consulate
• Step 3 – Register your visa upon arrival to Russia

Step 1 – Obtaining the Visa Invitation

• Decide what type of visa is the most suitable for your trip is quite possible that the chosen type of visa will differ from the exact purpose of your trip. For example, for a short-term business trip you can use a Tourist visa which you can get faster and cheaper than a Business one.
• Apply for the appropriate Visa Invitation issued by a Russian legal entity or individual directly or through a reliable agency
• Request the Visa Invitation and, if necessary, the delivery of its original

Step 2 – Getting the visa issued by the Russian Consulate

• Contact the appropriate Russian Consulate in order to determine their requirements for obtaining a visa. In some cases, you will need to contact the Visa Centre instead of the Consulate.
• Prepare the required package of documents and submit it to the Consulate
• Collect your visa and check it to make sure that everything is correct

Step 3 – Registration of a visa in Russia

• Visa registration can be performed by the landlord of the apartment/home where you are staying
• It is necessary to register a visa upon each arrival to Russia, if the intended period of stay in the place of stay exceeds 7 working days. If you are staying in a hotel, its administration should register a visa for the whole period of your stay there.