Russian Visa: What is a Russian visa?

A Russian visa is a document that allows you to stay in the Russian Federation for a specific period of time. To get a visa you need to apply to a Russian embassy or consulate in your home country.

Photo by Anna Nazarova

All foreigners visiting Russia need a visa. Several CIS countries are notable exceptions. The citizens of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine don’t need a Russian visa. But changes to regu- lations are possible, so check with a Russian embassy or consulate before applying.

There are several types of Russian visa, each corresponding to the purpose of your visit. Before applying for a visa, you need an invitation (also called visa support): a document issued by the party that invites you to Russia – a citizen or an authorised company. For every type of visa there’s a different type of invitation.

The cost of invitations and visas varies. The price of a visa can be anything up to $450, depending on its type, the speed of processing (1 to 14 days) or your nationality. Generally, the more flexible conditions the visa provides or the faster it’s processed, the more expensive it’ll be.

Tourist visa

This type of visa is issued for travellers coming to Russia for tourism purposes. It’s normally the easiest to get. A Russian tourist visa is usually single-entry, can’t be longer than one month and can’t be extended while in Russia.

It’s the best one to get if you know your exact itinerary and plan to stick to it. A tourist visa requires confirmed accommodation or transit information for every night of your stay in Russia.

To obtain a tourist visa you need a tourist invitation. It comprises a tourist voucher and a tourist confirmation. They can be issued by a travel agency which is registered with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The invitation is usually sent to the applicant by fax, by e-mail (scanned copy) or by post.

You can get also get a tourist invitation from a hotel but only for the period you have your room booked and paid there. The hotel must have its own tourist reference number. If it doesn’t, a tourist visa won’t be issued so the safest option remains getting your invitation from a Russian travel agency.

Business visa

Business visa is issued for those who come to Russia for business purposes. It allows greater flexibility so it’s the best one to get if you plan to stay in Russia longer than 30 days or want multiple entries. You don’t need to have a hotel reservation or a planned itinerary for it. But it’s not the one to apply for if you’ve got official employment in Russia – you’ll need a work visa. It can be valid from 1 to 12 months and be either single, double or multiple-entry.

To get a business visa, you need an official invitation from a Russian company. The invitation is issued by the Russian Interior Ministry so your inviting company must be registered there. It can either be sent to you by post, by fax or by e-mail (scanned copy). In some cases the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can send a special telex instead to the Russian consulate where you apply.

Student visa

This type of visa is issued to students who come to Russia for exchange or education. You can only get it if you’ve applied to a Russian education institution, which will send you the invitation. Normally, a student visa doesn’t have limited validity; it’s extended depending on the length of your studies.

Personal (Private) visa

This type of visa is issued to foreigners coming to Russia to visit friends or relatives. It can be valid for up to 3 months and is single entry only. It’s also the hardest one to obtain. You’d need an invitation from a Russian citizen. The invitation usually takes from 45 days to 3 months to process in Russia and will then have to be mailed to you – in this case the consulates only accept originals.

Transit visa

This type of visa may be obtained when you are travelling to another country through Russian territory. It doesn’t require any visa support. A transit visa is usually issued for 3 days. You don’t need it if you remain in the airport transit zone and will be taking a connecting flight within 24 hours.