All foreigners (except citizens of some former Soviet republics) visiting Russia need a visa. In order to get one, travelers need an invitation from a Russian citizen or a company, which is then taken to a Russian embassy or consulate, where the actual visa is issued. Within three working days of arrival in Russia, the visa needs to be registered by the person/organization that issued the invitation. If you don't make it through this bureaucratic loop, you may have problems leaving the country.

Prices for processing Russian visas vary according to the applicant's citizenship and the embassy/consulate applied to. Perhaps in response to the trials the U.S. Embassy in Moscow puts Russian visa applicants through (see articles), U.S. citizens routinely pay more for Russian visas.

There are six types of Russian visas, but most travelers get one of three kinds:

• Visitor's Visa

  Issued on the basis of a slip of paper, called Izveshenije, or notification, received from a Russian contact (usually a friend or somebody else you know) and one who can vouch for you and lodge the Notification Application at the local Immigration Office. It requires a certain amount of paperwork prepared by your contact and is processed in 4 to 5 weeks (frankly we have had quite a few situations when Immigration did not have the Notification issued by the time they originally promised, a week or two delay is common).

  This Notification is not free, the Government requires a fee to be levied prior to issuing the Izveshenije. Although the fees change constantly, one can say that this type of visa support paperwork is by far the most economical and least complicated to get for the one who is in Russia.

  After your contact has received the Notification, he or she forwards it to you, you attach it to your visa application and, ultimately, get your visa. No visitor's visa can be obtained without this small not outstandingly attractive but important piece of paper.

  Most of the time it takes two or three weeks to get a letter from Russia. Ask your contact to send it via registered mail as we have had cases when the mail has been lost.

  The longest one can expect to stay in Russia on a Visitor's Visa is three months, but this has to be specified by your Russian friend in the Application, as the Notification is normally issued for the period of stay stipulated in the Application. A single entry is the only option on this type of visa. Extensions are hard if not impossible, to get, although there are alleged occasions where officials have been bribed for an extension although, this method should not be relied upon.

• Tourist Visa

  The Tourist Visa is issued against an original (sometimes a fax copy!) of a voucher issued in its turn by a travel agency accredited with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (called reception confirmation) and a reference number of a travel agency. This type of visa cannot be longer than 4 weeks in length. No hotel booking confirmation is accepted by the Russian Consutates. As a substitute of the Reception Confirmation the received Confirmation Voucher needs to be attached to the visa application to support it. Single entry only. Extensions are impossible.

• Business Visa (Commercial)

  This type of visa is the most attractive for an independent traveller, as it is only this visa that can be issued for multiple or double entries. It also allows a longer period of stay in Russia. Currently the longest you can expect to stay is one year, anything longer can be received only on the basis of a visa extension or renewal.

  The Business Visa Supporting Paperwork can be processed much faster than any other type of visa and the best part is that it does not require any paperwork received from Russia. As all the applications are filed with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia (MFA), the paperwork is faxed by the MFA itself to the diplomatic post of the Russian Federation specified in the application.

  Short term Business Visas can theoretically be obtained in 24 hours from the moment the application is lodged at one of the MFA offices. This, unfortunately is not true with the yearly visa, where a three week waiting period is a must.

  The fees collected by the MFA are also significantly higher than the ones required for the Tourist or Visitors Visa, although it is worth the money if one needs it urgently or for an extended stay.

  Only the agencies or institutions accredited with the MFA are allowed to lodge Business Visa Support applications, individual and independent applications are not accepted. If you require a Business Visa, than you should try to locate an accredited company in Russia who will be able to fill the paperwork in on your behalf, leave it with the MFA and, ultimately help you get the visa.

• A maximum 10 day Transit Visa

  Issued against a valid visa to the third country (if required) and the onward tickets confirming the Itinerary. You may be lucky to get a 10 day Russian transit visa if you have valid Mongolia or China visas in your passport (or any other country that lies your way after crossing Russia). Generally the period the visa is going to be valid for, and the fact whether it is going to be issued at all is up to the Embassy official you will be dealing with.

• 72 hour Tourist Visa

  It is something new what the Russian Authorities have recently suggested. Can be received on arrival at Moscow, St Petersburg airports. Check with you nearest diplomatic post for details to avoid difficulties or unpleasant surprises on your arrival.

• Registration and Overstaying

  All non transit visas, no matter what type, require registration upon arrival in Russia, normally done at the same place and by the same party where your visa support papers were originally issued. If one does not register after arrival in Russia, or overstays, a penalty of perhaps 100US$ is imposed against you at the time of departure. The exact amount is very often up to a particular passport control officer. Minor delays in registering are usually not a problem. A hotel most of time can take care of your registration for free.

  Fortunately, nonregistering and overstaying are not considered serious offences under Russian law and it should not affect one's ability to obtain other visas in the future. Although this is subject to change.

How to Get a Russian Visa

Although it is possible to arrange your own Russian visa, most travelers choose to hire a visa service to do the work. Invitations can cost anything up to and beyond $200, depending on the type of visa and the speed of service. For an extra $20-$30, agencies take your invitation to an embassy or consulate and send you the visa. Some services will even take care of registering the visa when you arrive in Russia. Given that each Russian consulate and embassy has different tastes and temperaments, it's usually best to have somebody who knows the ropes do the dirty work.

The only problem with hiring somebody to handle your visa is figuring out who to hire. Amid many honest and efficient agencies are a handful of fly-by-night firms that tend to disappear as soon as they get your credit card number. That shouldn't stop you from using a firm; just choose wisely! See below for a list of visa agencies with an Internet presence.

General Russian Visa Resources

Visa Advice from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow
http://usembassy.state.gov/posts/rs1/wwwhca5.html

Russian Consulates and Embassies

One way to find reliable visa agencies is through Russian embassies and consulates. Unfortunately, only a handful of them are online.

Russian Embassy in the U.S.: www.russianembassy.org/
Russian Consulate in New York: www.ruscon.com/

Russian Embassy in Canada: www.magma.ca/~rusemb/

Consulate locator; this page has contact information for Russian consulates and embassies all over the world: www.russianembassy.net/

Check with the nearest Russian diplomatic post for the specifics, or write to us, for further information.