A Comprehensive Guide to Getting a Russian Visa

Russia is one of the major countries in the world, and many want to visit this nation that is full of culture and history. For people who want to visit this wonderful country, as with other nations, are required to secure a Russian visa. Though countries of CIS republics can free enter Russia without any special visa, how does a tourist secure his or her Russian visa; this is a small, but helpful step-by-step guide on how to secure a Russian visa.

Fours Step on how to get a Russian Visa:

Step 1: Secure first a Russian Visa Support Letter – If you are planning to visit Russia, you should first secure a Visa support letter, which is basically an invitation letter. This letter can be acquired online, and we will get back to you with details within 1-6 hours. 

Depending on the type of visa you are planning to apply for, we help you with the following invitation letter types: 1) Tourist 2) Business 3) Study 4) Work

1. Travel/visitor invitation for a Russian visa: Given for 30 days maximum, the main advantages of Travel visa is that it is VERY cheap (19,99 USD) and VERY fast to get (Ready in just 1-6 hours). However, the main drawback is that it is only valid for a short stay up to 30 days. No hotel reservation in Russia required.

2. Business type: Can be given for 1 month, 90 days, or 1 year. If it is 1 year, then you are not allowed to stay in Russia longer than 90 days out of every 180 and you have to return to your home country before you can come back again.  Main advantage over the travel invitation is that business visa allows you to stay longer rather than 30 days maximum on a travel visa. In case of 1 year business invitation, it is a multi entry one. Disadvantages include you cannot stay longer than 90 days out of every 180. So, you have to spend money on plane tickets to fly back to your country and then to Russia again. No business in Russia required.

3.  Student invitation: Advantage over the business type is that it is given for 1 year and you do not have to leave Russia every 90 days out of every 180 days - so the 90/180 rule is not applied here.

4. Work invitation: Given for 1 year or 3 years. The most expensive of all, but this is the only way to stay in Russia for 3 years without having to go back to your native country. However, it’s expensiveness is the main disadvantage. 

Short Summary:

For tourists/visitors, length of stay in Russia is from one day to a maximum of 30 days, process time: a few hours. On a business visa invitation you can stay up to 12 months but the 90/180 rule is applied while on a student visa you can also stay for 1 year without the need to return to your country of origin every 90 days.  People securing a work invitation will be paying a much higher cost to an invitation (set of documents as this is not only limited to an invitation – rather a set of documents needed for getting a work visa)

Disclaimer:  Due to a number of factors that are dictated to us by the Russian government, we cannot help with the work permits to all countries. Our offer is only limited to citizens of the following countries: Canada, Australia, USA, European countries and New Zealand. 

Total processing time may vary. For tourist’s visa application, the processing time is roughly 24 hours while business and student applications may range from one day to 20 business days. Work invitations may take longer as processing procedures are tighter. 

Step 2: Finally acquiring your Russian visa – After acquiring a visa invitation, you can now apply for a Russian visa. The first thing to do is to contact the Russian embassy and ask for any additional requirements for them to grant the visa. You either can visit the Russian embassy personally or contact them online. They will give a form which the traveler must complete before the issuance of the visa. A consular fee is also charged before releasing the visa. Afterwards, the Visa will be released, and you are now ready to fly over to Russia. 

Step 3: Complete Visa Registration upon arrival in Russia – Once arrived in Russia, the visa holder must register his or her visa within 7 business days. It is a mandatory regulation for tourists travelling to Russia. It is best to contact us for support on this phase. We will be more than happy to help you with registering your visa. We are here to help you enjoy your visit in Russia and ensure that you have a great time.

READ ALSO: How can I get a letter of invitation for a Russian visa?