Visa policy of Russia
The visa policy of Russia deals with the requirements which a foreign national wishing to enter the Russian Federation must meet to obtain a visa, which is a permit to travel to, enter, and remain in the country. Visa exemptions are based on bilateral or multilateral agreements. Russia has agreements with scores of countries whose citizens are either exempt from visas or can apply for a visa online. Citizens of countries without such an agreement with Russia must obtain a visa in advance from a Russian diplomatic mission or visa centre.
Foreign citizens while in the territory of Russia, must comply with the legislation of Russia, including requirements of customs, border and immigration regimes, rules of travel finance, registration, internal movement within the territory of Russia and extensions of stay. Nothing limits the right of competent authorities of Russia to deny entry or to shorten the period of stay in the territory of Russia for foreign citizens.
Travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia has imposed the following temporary travel restrictions:From 1 August 2020, restrictions on entry to Russia are lifted for citizens of Tanzania, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. The issuance of entry visas and invitations has also been resumed.
For foreign citizens who are in Russia on the basis of a visa or visa-free regime, the duration of temporary stay is suspended From 15 March to 15 June 2020.
From 18 March until a special order of the government, all foreign citizens are not allowed to enter the Russian Federation. This does not apply to some category of travels
- from 16 March 2020, air traffic between Russia and European Union countries, Norway and Switzerland has been limited: all flights between Russia and the countries has been suspended, except flights on the following lines: Moscow-Oslo, Moscow-Geneva, and Moscow - the capitals of the EU countries. All flights are operated only from Terminal F of Sheremetyevo airport.
- from 13 March 2020,
- *the issuance of regional electronic visas to the Italian citizens has been suspended
- *the issuance of educational, work, private invitations to Italian citizens has been suspended
- *the issuance of educational, work, private, tourist and transit visas to Italian citizens and foreighn citizens, stateless person who are on the territory of Italy has been suspended
- *Russia temporarily suspended the entry of Italian citizens travelling for educational, work, private, tourist and transit purposes
- *entry of foreign citizens from the territory of Italy has been canceled. The restriction does not apply to citizens of the member States of the Eurasian Economic Union, as well as aircraft crews, members of official delegations and persons who have a residence permit in the Russian Federation
- from 1 March 2020,
- *air traffic between Russia and South Korea has been limited for Russian air companies. Aeroflot and Aurora continue to operate flights. All flights in Moscow are operated only from Terminal F of Sheremetyevo airport.
- *entry of foreign citizens from the territory of South Korea through air checkpoints has been canceled. The restriction does not apply to citizens of the member States of the Eurasian Economic Union, as well as aircraft crews, members of official delegations and persons who have a residence permit in the Russian Federation
- from 28 February 2020,
- *air traffic between Russia and Iran has been limited. Aeroflot and Mahan Air continue to operate flights from Moscow. All flights are operated only from Terminal F of Sheremetyevo airport.
- *entry of foreign citizens from the territory of Iran through air checkpoints has been canceled. The restriction does not apply to citizens of the member States of the Eurasian Economic Union, as well as aircraft crews, members of official delegations and persons who have a residence permit in the Russian Federation
- *the issuance of regional electronic visas to the Iranian citizens has been suspended
- *the issuance of educational, work, private invitations to Iranian citizens has been suspended
- *the issuance of educational, work, private, tourist and transit visas to Iranian citizens and foreighn citizens, stateless person who are on the territory of Iran has been suspended
- *Russia temporarily suspended the entry of Iranian citizens travelling for educational, work, private, tourist and transit purposes
- from 7 March 2020, entry of foreign citizens from the territory of Iran has been canceled. The restriction does not apply to citizens of the member States of the Eurasian Economic Union, as well as aircraft crews, members of official delegations and persons who have a residence permit in the Russian Federation
- from 30 January 2020, the issuance of regional electronic visas to the Chinese nationals has been suspended
- from 31 January 2020, certain sections of Russia's border with China in the far East are closed. Traffic is restricted through 16 checkpoints, including roads and railways.
- from 31 January 2020, rail service between China and Russia, except for the Moscow - Beijing and Beijing - Moscow trains, has been suspended
- from 31 January 2020, the issuance of work visas to Chinese citizens has been suspended.
- from 1 February 2020, crossing through 4 checkpoints on certain sections of the Russian-Mongolian border has been restricted for Chinese citizens
- from 1 February 2020, air traffic between Russia and China has been limited. Regional scheduled flights between the countries are closed; Aeroflot, Air China, Hainan Airlines, China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines continue to operate flights from Moscow. All flights are operated only from Terminal F of Sheremetyevo airport.
- from 2 February 2020, visa-free tourist trips provided for by the agreement on visa-free group tourist trips has been suspended
- from 4 February 2020, entry of foreign citizens from the territory of China through air checkpoints has been canceled. The restriction does not apply to citizens of the member States of the Eurasian Economic Union, as well as aircraft crews, members of official delegations and persons who have a residence permit in the Russian Federation
- from 14 February 2020, charter air transportation between Russia and China has been suspended
- from 19 February 2020, the issuance of private, educational and tourist visas to Chinese citizens has been suspended. Business, humanitarian and transit visas are issued as usual.
- from 20 February 2020, Russia temporarily suspended the entry of Chinese citizens, including Hong Kong and Macao, travelling for work, private, educational and tourist purposes
Border-crossing points
Land border with Belarus
Citizens of third countries aren't allowed to cross the Belarus–Russia land border due to a lack of international border crossing points, because passports must be stamped.Visitors are advised to enter mainland Russia via other countries such as :lv:Terehova |Terehova–Burachki and Senkivka–Novye Yurkovichi.
Entry will be allowed through the road checkpoints on the border between Russia and Belarus in 2020:
- Vitebsk Region Yukhovichi – Dolostsy Pskov Oblast
- Vitebsk Region Yezerishche – Nevel Smolensk Oblast; Part of European route E95
- Vitebsk Region Liozno – Kruglovka Smolensk Oblast
- Vitebsk Region Redki – Krasnaya Gorka Smolensk Oblast; Part of European route E30
- Mogilev Region Zvenchatka – Dubovicka Smolensk Oblast
- Gomel Region Selishe – Novozybkov Bryansk Oblast
Land border with Kazakhstan
Visa exemption
Ordinary passports
Travelers who are nationals of the following 61 nations are not required to obtain a visa prior to visit Russia as long as the length of their trip is within the visa waiver limit listed below.From 2014, citizens of these countries—except for citizens of Belarus and South Ossetia, who have the right to unlimited visa-free entry to Russia—must not stay longer than 90 days within any 180-day period. Resetting the allowed period by leaving and re-entering the country is no longer allowed. Overstaying up to 180 days is punishable by a three-year entry ban, 180–270 days by a five-year entry ban, and over 270 days by a ten-year entry ban.
ID – May enter with a national ID card
ID – May enter with a national ID card if arriving from Kazakhstan
1 – 90 days within any year period
2 – 30 days within any 60-day period
| Date of visa changes |
As the Soviet Union
|
Tour groups
Citizens of may visit Russia without a visa for up to 15 days if traveling as part of a tour group that is accompanied by a representative of a tour operator registered in both countries.Temporarily not applied from 2 February 2020.
Common visa
On 19 June 2020, Russia and Belarus have signed an agreement on mutual recognition of visas. After ratification visa-free entry will be available for holders of a valid visa or residence permit of Belarus.Fan ID
In 2018 the Russian government introduced a visa-free entry for holders of a FanID, for spectators of sports, cultural, and other events.Holders of tickets for matches of the 2018 FIFA World Cup championship could enter Russia without a visa from 4 June to 15 July 2018 by using a personalized card and their valid passport. Spectators admitted with a Fan ID had to leave Russia no later than 26 July 2018. According to the Border Service of Russia over 633,000 foreign nationals arrived in Russia using a FanID rather than a visa. Of these, 68,000 were citizens of China, 52,000 from the United States, 44,000 from Mexico, 31,000 from the UK, and 30,000 from Germany.
Russia later extended its visa-free travel regime for foreign soccer fans until the end of 2018.
Holders of tickets for matches of the UEFA Euro 2020 championship in Saint Petersburg will be able to enter Russia without a visa during the matches in 2021.
Visa-free visits for up to 72 hours for cruise ship and ferry passengers
Since May 2009 international tourists entering by regular ferry via several ports have been able to stay in Russia visa-free for up to 72 hours, provided that they spend the night on-board or in accommodation specifically approved by the travel agency.In addition tourists entering by tourist cruise ships can leave the ship visa-free on tours organized by any authorized local tour company, when entering Russia through the ports of Anadyr, Kaliningrad, Korsakov, Novorossiysk, Murmansk, Sevastopol, Sochi, Saint Petersburg, Vladivostok, Vyborg, Zarubino.
Entry to the port of St. Petersburg by regular ferry can be done only from the ports of Tallinn or Helsinki. It is also possible to travel visa-free for 72 hours from the port of Stockholm with the stop in Helsinki.
Visa-free zones
- — Group travel to central and southern Kuril Islands for pre-approved lists of the Foreign Ministry. Visits are carried out on the basis of identity cards and inserts.
- — Residents of Alaska who are members of the indigenous population do not require a visa to visit Chukotka Autonomous Okrug if they have relatives in Chukotka. Individuals must be invited by a relative in Chukotka and must leave Chukotka within 90 days. Entry points are in Anadyr, Provideniya, Lavrentiya and Uelen. The agreement was signed between USSR and USA on 23 September 1989 but came into force on 17 July 2015 after ratification by the United States.
- — 90 days for holders of border traffic permit
- — 15 days for holders of border traffic permit
- — 30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within a 180-day period for holders of border traffic permit
Crew members
Visa is not required for crew members of airlines, sea crew, river crew, rail crew that have a bilateral agreement with the Russian government exempting crew members from visa requirements.Citizens of following countries may visit Russia without a visa if they are travelling as part of the airline crew:
Afghanistan,
Algeria,
Austria,
Belgium,
Bulgaria,
Canada,
China, Croatia,
Cyprus,
Czech Republic,
Denmark,
Egypt,
Ethiopia,
France,
Germany,
Greece
Iceland,
India,
Iraq,
Italy,
Japan,
Jordan,
North Korea,
Lebanon,
Libya,
Lithuania,
Malta,
Netherlands,
North Macedonia,
Norway,
Oman
Poland,
Portugal
Qatar,
Romania
Singapore,
Spain,
Sri Lanka,
Sweden,
Switzerland,
Turkmenistan,
United Arab Emirates,
United Kingdom
Vietnam.
Agreements were signed with
Finland,
Italy and
Luxembourg
and are yet to be ratified.
Russian Government has instructed the Foreign Ministry to sign an agreement with Georgia and Tunisia.
Citizens of following countries may visit Russia without a visa if they are travelling as part of the sea crew: Bulgaria,
China,1
Croatia,
Cyprus,
DR Congo,
Egypt,
France,
Iran,
Iraq
North Korea,
Lithuania,1
Poland,
Tunisia,
Turkey,
Turkmenistan,1
Vietnam.
1 - including riverboats crew
Citizens of following countries may visit Russia without a visa if they are travelling as part of the railway crew:
China, North Korea,
Turkmenistan.
Visa-free transit
;Direct airside transitPassengers travelling through international airports do not need a visa for a transit of less than 24 hours in most circumstances, provided a confirmed onward ticket is held and the traveller remains in the international transit area.
A transit visa is needed when transiting Russia to/from Belarus
The following international Russian airports do not have international transit areas, meaning a transit visa is required to connect there:
- Irkutsk Airport
- Khabarovsk Airport
- Krasnodar Airport
- Mineralnye Vody Airport
- Rostov Airport
- Sochi Airport
- Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Airport
- Zhukovsky Airport
In accordance with a treaty between Russia and Finland, though there are passport controls at borders, a visa is not required for just passing through the Russian part of the Saimaa canal without leaving the vessel.
;Värska–Ulitina road
The road from Värska to Ulitina in Estonia, traditionally the only road to the Ulitina area, goes through Russian territory for one kilometre of its length, an area called Saatse Boot. This road has no border control, but there is no connection to any other road in Russia. It is not permitted to stop or walk along the road. This area is a part of Russia but is also a de facto part of the Schengen area.
Diplomatic and service category passports
Under reciprocal agreements, holders of diplomatic or various categories of service passports issued by the following countries, territories and jurisdictions are allowed to enter and remain in Russia for up to 90 days without a visa:D* – diplomatic passport only
D — diplomatic passports
S — service passports
O — official passports
Sp — special passports
C — consular passports
1 – unlimited
2 – 3 months
3 – 90 days within any 180-day period
4 – 90 days within any one-year period
5 – 60 days
6 – 30 days
7 – 14 days
8 – only for employees of Zimbabwe official institutions in Russia
Among nationals of countries whose citizens are normally visa-exempt, only holders of diplomatic or service category passports of Israel, service passports of Qatar and service passports of the UAE require a visa.
APEC Business Travel Card
Holders of passports issued by the following countries who possess an APEC Business Travel Card containing the "RUS" code on the reverse that it is valid for travel to Russia can enter visa-free for business trips for up to 90 days within any 180-day period.ABTCs are issued to nationals of:
E-visa to visit certain regions
From 8 August 2017, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia started to implement the eVisa Program. Citizens of the 18 countries could apply eVisa to visit to regions in the Far Eastern Federal District. From 1 July 2019, in accordance with the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 595/2019, citizens of the 53 countries can apply for single-entry business, humanitarian and tourist visas to visit the Kaliningrad region. From 8 June 2019, citizens of Taiwan were added to the list for Far East. In July 2019, it was announced that from 1 October 2019, free electronic visas will become valid for Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast. On 24 January 2020, the new list for the Far Eastern e-visa was approved. Citizens of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia were not included in the new list. Thus, the list of countries has become uniform for all regions where an electronic visa is applied.From 1 January 2021, electronic visa will be available for all regions of Russian Federation.
Conditions for issuing:
- E-visa is a single-entry visa and issued for 30 calendar days from the date of its issuance. The permitted stay in Russia with an e-visa is up to 8 days starting from the date of entry, within its validity period
- E-visa validity and/or the permitted stay under it cannot be extended
- An e-visa is free of charge
- Invitations, hotel booking confirmations or any other documents that confirm the purpose of your journey to Russia are not required for an e-visa
- The time period for issuing an e-visa is no longer than 4 calendar days from the date of submission of the complete application
- E-visas can be of the following categories only: ordinary business visa, ordinary tourist visa, and ordinary humanitarian visa
3 - Sakhalin Oblast
4 - Amur Oblast
5 - Khabarovsk Krai
6 - Chukotka Autonomous Okrug
7 - Zabaykalsky Krai
8 - Buryatia
and Leningrad Oblast
- Foreign nationals will have the right to freedom of movement within the territory of the region near the point of entry with the exception of territories, organizations and facilities, to enter which a special permission is required in accordance with federal laws of the Russian Federation.
- Foreign citizens who have arrived to Russia with e-visas have the right to freedom of movement within the territory of the constituent entity of Russia which they entered, with the exception of territories, organizations and facilities, to enter which a special permission is required in accordance with federal laws of Russia.
- Foreign citizens should leave the territory of Russia only through checkpoints of the constituent entity of Russia which they entered
- Application form for an e-visa can be filled not earlier than 20 days and no later than 4 days before the intended date of entry into Russia
- Passport must be valid for at least 6 months from the date of application
- Foreign citizens are required to have a medical insurance
1 — available for holders of non-biometric passports
* — temporarily not applied :
for China from 30 January 2020
for Iran from 28 February 2020
for Italy from 13 March 2020
| Eligible border crossing points of entry and exit for Kaliningrad Oblast |
| Airport |
| Khrabrovo Airport |
| Land crossing |
| Bagrationovsk |
| Gusev |
| Mamonovo |
| Mamonovo |
| Morskoye |
| Pogranichny |
| Sovetsk |
| Chernyshevskoye |
| Rail station |
| Mamonovo |
| Sovetsk |
| Port |
| Kaliningrad |
| Baltiysk |
| Svetly |
| Eligible border crossing points of entry and exit for St. Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast |
| Airport |
| Pulkovo Airport |
| Land crossing |
| Ivangorod |
| Brusnychnoe |
| Svetogorsk |
| Torfjanovka |
| Port |
| Vysotsk |
| Marine Station |
| Passenger Port of St. Petersburg |
| Pedestrian crossing |
| Ivangorod |
There are currently no railway border-crossing points where the visa could be used. It is planned that the electronic visa could be used when travelling with a train to Vyborg and taking another train between Vyborg and Saint Petersburg would be allowed. This is because the border control for passengers exiting the train at Vyborg takes place in the station due to the station being close to the border, while the other border controls take place on trains. The train between Riga and Saint Petersburg travels outside the Leningrad Oblast in Russia. Therefore, electronic visas will be allowed for passengers only when the target area expands to other oblasts.
Closed cities
Several closed cities in Russia require special authorization.Areas requiring special permits
In accordance with the Government Decree of 1992, 19 areas of the Russian Federation are closed to foreigners without special permits. This restriction does not apply to Russian citizens.A full list of such areas:
- 1. Part of Kamchatka Krai.
- 2. abolished
- 3. Part of Primorsky Krai.
- 4. Part of Krasnoyarsk Krai.
- 5. Part of Orenburg Oblast.
- 6. Part of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast.
- 7. Part of The Republic of Mordovia.
- 8. Parts of Murmansk Oblast and the Republic of Karelia. Transit to/from Norway is possible by main road.
- 9. Parts of Arkhangelsk Oblast and the Komi Republic.
- 10. Parts of Sverdlovsk Oblast.
- 11. Parts of Chelyabinsk Oblast.
- 12. In Leningrad Oblast - all Russian islands of Gulf of Finland, except Gogland, and strip along south coast of the Gulf of Finland.
- 13. Parts of Moscow Oblast.
- 14. Part of Kaliningrad Oblast, approx. 15%.
- 15. Part of Volgograd Oblast.
- 16. Part of Astrakhan Oblast.
- 17. Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, all except Bilibino region.
- 18. Part of Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug.
- 19. The Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, 45% of territory. Transit to border with Georgia and to border with South Ossetia are possible along the main roads. Tsey Gorge is opened for foreigners from 2012.
Crimea
Future changes
The Russian Government has instructed the Foreign Ministry to sign an agreement on visa waiver with the following countries:- – 21 days for tourist groups from 3 to 50 persons
- – 90 days for diplomatic and service passports
- – 90 days within 180 day-period for diplomatic and service passports
- – 90 days within 180 day-period for diplomatic and service passports
- – 90 days within 180 day-period for diplomatic, service and special passports
- – 90 days within 180 day-period for all passports
- – 90 days within 180 day-period for diplomatic and service passports
- – 90 days within 180 day-period for diplomatic and service passports
- – 90 days within 365 day-period for all passports
- – 60 days within any 180-day period for ordinary passports
- – 90 days for diplomatic and service passports
- – 15 days for tourist groups
- – 30 days for all passports
- – 90 days within any 180-day period for diplomatic passports
There is a plan for mutual recognition of visas with Belarus allowing for visa-free entry for holders of a valid visa or residence permit of Belarus.
Agreements
The Russian Federation has visa waiver agreements with 140 jurisdictions.In the table, red indicates agreements signed but not ratified or temporarily not applied.
| Country | Type of passport | Duration of stay | Date of signing | Effective date | Citation |
| Alien's passport | 90 days within any 180-day period | 17 Jun 2008 | 17 Jun 2008 | ||
| Non-citizen passport | 90 days within any 180-day period | 17 Jun 2008 | 17 Jun 2008 | ||
| Diplomatic passport | 90 days within any 180-day period | 3 Sep 2017 | 3 Sep 2017 |
Russia has concluded agreements that facilitate procedures for issuing visas to both Russian citizens and citizens of the partner jurisdiction on a reciprocal basis. Such agreements are in force with the following countries or political associations:
| Country | Entry into force |
| 1993 | |
| 2002 | |
| 2014 | |
| 2013, 2019 | |
| 2006 | |
| 2009 | |
| 2011 | |
| 2007 | |
| 2005 | |
| 2004 | |
| 2010 | |
| 2011, 2015, 2016 | |
| 1990 | |
| 1996, 2016, 2019 | |
| 2002, 2016 | |
| 2005 | |
| 2013, 2017 | |
| 1995, 2013, 2018 | |
| 2015 | |
| 2003 | |
| 2012, 2017 | |
| 2003, 2012 | |
| 2004 | |
| 2020 | |
| 1996 | |
| 1992, 2002, 2010 | |
| 1990, 2015 | |
| 2011 | |
| 1999 | |
| 1989 | |
| 2012, 2013 | |
| 1994, 2005 | |
| 1988 |
Russia has agreements on cancellation of consular fees with the following countries: Algeria, Angola, Iran, Japan, Mauritania, New Zealand.
Agreements were denounced with Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, and Pakistan
;Visa waiver agreements which ceased to apply
Visa
The Russian visa is a machine-readable document, which is placed in the holder's passport. All fields are indicated in both Russian and English, but are filled out only in Russian. The holder's name appears in both the Roman and Cyrillic alphabets.The name that appears in the machine-readable zone at the bottom of the visa represents the holder's Cyrillic name mapped into the Roman alphabet. This allows Russian computer systems to read the Cyrillic name, despite the machine readers only being able to read Roman alphabet letters. As a result, the spelling of a name in the machine-readable zone does not necessarily reflect its spelling in the visa's name field. For example, the name “Christoph” would appear in the field as “Kpиcтoф/Christoph”, but the MRZ would contain the name “Kristof”.
Contrary to guidelines for machine-readable documents, the issuing country's ISO code is not shown at positions 3-5. Instead, the first line is formatted as: VSURNAME<
Types of visa
Depending on the purpose of entry into the Russian Federation and the purposes of stay, visas are categorized as:- Private
- Business
- Tourist
- Educational
- Working
- Humanitarian
- Entry
A diplomatic visa shall be issued to a foreign citizen holding a diplomatic passport.
A diplomatic visa is issued:
- to foreign heads of state, foreign heads of government, members of the foreign official delegations, family members of such persons traveling with them or accompanying them - for a period of up to one year.
- to diplomatic agents of diplomatic missions and consular officials of consular establishments, the staff of representations of the international organizations in the Russian Federation which have the diplomatic status in the Russian Federation, to family members of specified persons for a period of up to one year.
- to foreign diplomatic and consular couriers for the term of business trip.
- to officials of the foreign states who have the official status in the Russian Federation have the right to a diplomatic visa and who come for a working visit to diplomatic missions or consular establishments of the foreign states in the Russian Federation or to the international organizations or their representations in the Russian Federation, for a period of up to one year.
A service visa is issued to the foreign citizen having service passport.
A service visa is issued:
- to members of foreign official delegations, family members of such persons traveling with them or accompanying them - for a period of up to one year.
- to administrative and technical and service personnel of diplomatic missions, consular employees and service personnel of consular establishments of the foreign states in the Russian Federation, representations of the international organizations in the Russian Federation and to family members of such persons for a period of up to one year.
- to military personnel of armed forces of the foreign states and family members of such persons for a period of up to one year. Extension of term of stay in the Russian Federation by issuance of the multiple entry visa for a period of validity of the foreign trade contract registered in accordance with the established procedure, but no more than for five years is allowed to the military personnel of armed forces of the foreign states driving to the Russian Federation for implementation of international treaties of the Russian Federation and decisions of public authorities of the Russian Federation in the field of military and technical cooperation, and family members of such persons.
- to foreign state officials who have the official status in the Russian Federation have the right to be issued a service visa and those who travel for a working visit to diplomatic missions or consular establishments of the foreign states in the Russian Federation or in the international organizations or their representations in the Russian Federation, for a period of up to one year.
Depending on the purpose of entry of the foreign citizen into the Russian Federation and the purpose of his stay in the Russian Federation ordinary visas are subdivided on private, business, tourist, educational, working, humanitarian and entry visas to the Russian Federation for temporary residence or citizenship ceremony:
- An ordinary private visa is issued for a period of up to three months or on the basis of the principle of reciprocity for a period of up to one year to foreign citizens traveling to Russia for a short visit on the basis of an invitation letter.
- An ordinary business visa is issued for a period of up to one year to foreign citizens traveling to Russia for a business trip.
- An ordinary tourist visa is issued for a period of up to one month or on the basis of the principle of reciprocity for a period of up to six months to foreign citizens traveling to Russia as tourists, if holding an invitation letter by a Russian tour operator. Invitations can be issued by many hotels on request or through various online services associated with Russian tour operators.
- An ordinary student visa is issued for a period of up to one year to foreign citizens traveling to Russia for training in the educational institution.
- An ordinary work visa is issued to foreign citizens visiting Russia for work purposes for a period of validity of the employment contract or civil contract for performance of work, but no more than for one year.
- An ordinary humanitarian visa is issued for a period of up to one year or on the basis of the principle of reciprocity for a period of up to five years to foreign citizens visiting Russia for a scientific, cultural, political or a sport visit, religious communication and contacts, pilgrimage, charity, delivery of humanitarian aid.
- An ordinary entry visa to Russia for receiving a shelter is issued to foreign citizens for a period of up to three months if holding a decision of the federal executive authority authorized on implementation of functions on control and supervision in the sphere of migration on recognition of this foreign citizen as a refugee on the territory of Russia.
- An ordinary entry visa to Russia to obtain citizenship of the Russian Federation is issued to foreign citizens for a period of up to one year if holding a decision on recognition of such foreign citizen as a native speaker of Russian.
- An ordinary entry visa to Russia to obtain permission for temporary resident is issued to foreign citizens for a period of up to four months.
A Transit visa is issued for a period of up to ten days to the foreign citizen for transit through the territory of Russia.
;Visa of temporary living person
A visa of temporarily living person is issued for four months to the foreign citizen to whom entry into Russia is allowed for temporary residence, within a quota of delivery of permissions to temporary residence.
Applying for visa
All types of Russian entry visas are received through Russian embassies and consulates. Provided all the documents are ready, the process usually takes no more than 3-10 workdays for Russian travel visa.Russian Tourist Visa requirements:
- Original passport
- One photo
- Tourist invitation
- Russian Consulate Application Form
Exit
Russia requires that an alien who needs a visa on entry be in possession of a valid visa upon exit. To satisfy this formal requirement, exit visas sometimes need to be issued. Russia requires an exit visa if a visitor stays well past the expiration date of their visa. They must then extend their visa or apply for an exit visa and are not allowed to leave the country until they show a valid visa or have a permissible excuse for overstaying their visa. In some cases, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can issue a Return-Home certificate that is valid for ten days from the embassy of the visitor's native country, thus eliminating the need for an exit visa.A foreign citizen granted a temporary residence permit in Russia needs a temporary resident visa to take a trip abroad. It is also colloquially called an exit visa.
Costs for visa
Almost all Russian embassies and consulates, require visa applications to be submitted to semi-private visa processing centers instead of directly to the consular section of the embassy. Costs differ.Fingerprinting
From January 2015 visa applicants from the United Kingdom, Denmark, Myanmar and Namibia will be obliged to provide fingerprint scans. After a trial period it will be decided whether to expand this to other countries as well.Russia plans to require, from 1 July 2019, fingerprinting and photographing of all foreign citizens entering the Russian Federation without a visa and staying for more than 30 days.
Statistics
;Visitor statisticsAccording to the Border Service of the Federal Security Service and the Federal State Statistics Service, most visitors arriving to Russia were from the following countries of nationality:
;Visa statistics
Most visas were issued in the following countries:
History
General Rules
The law "On the legal status of foreign citizens in the USSR" was used by the Russian Federation. Action extended from 1 January 1993.Chapter III of the law "entry into the USSR and exit from the USSR Foreign citizens" was replaced adopted the Federal Law No.114-FZ 1996 "On the Order of Exit from the Russian Federation".
The law was repealed with the adoption of the Federal Law 115-FZ on 25 Jul 2002 On the Legal Status of Foreign Citizens in the Russian Federation.
The laws establishes that as a general rule all foreign citizens and stateless persons need visas for entry and exit from the territory of Russia and the period of temporary stay. It also establishes a number of exceptions addressing certain groups of travelers.
The basis of the legal status of foreign citizens and stateless persons are secured primarily by the Constitution of the Russian Federation 1993 - Art. 62 and Art. 63.
According to the Russian Constitution, international treaties of Russia override the domestic legislation. Russia has concluded a number of bilateral or multilateral treaties on visa abolishing or simplification and is seeking to negotiate new such treaties.
The visa policy Russia applies the principle of reciprocity, the principle of specular.
;Visa-free 72-hour transit
In September, 2013 the president of Russia has sent the bill of introduction of 72-hour visa-free transit to parliament. The list of the airports and the list of the states which citizens will be able to use visa-free transit in the tourist purposes, will be approved by the Government of the Russian Federation after ratification. In 2014 the parliament has suspended ratification of the bill for an indefinite term.
;Crimea
In April 2014 Crimea's Tourism Minister proposed a visa-free regime for foreign tourists staying at Crimean resorts for up to 12 days and a 72-hour visa-free stay for cruise passengers. Visa-free access for Chinese citizens was proposed in June 2014. Visa-free entrance in cruise courts to Sevastopol began to be carried out from September 2015 Other of the proposals has been not realized.
International events
;Art eventsParticipants and members of delegations coming to participate in the musical events are either provided with a simplified visa regime or the right of visa-free entry.
Currently the law providing permanent visa abolition for participants and jury members of art competitions is being planned by the Government of Russia. The focus of this regulation will be on the International Tchaikovsky Competition.
;Economic events
Participants of the 1st Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok did not require a visa. Entrance was allowed with passport and the accreditation certificate only.
Participants of East Economic Forum in Vladivostok can visit an event without visas from 8 to 15 September 2018.
;Sporting events
Prior to the adoption of a special law, participants and members of delegations arriving to sporting events, could count on a visa-free entry or visa facilitation. For the 2008 Champions League Final held in Moscow, also spectators were given such visa-free entry. On 13 May 2013 the presidential decree on the abolition of visas for athletes, coaches, team leaders and members of foreign official delegations, as well as judges from the international sports competitions came into effect. It envisages entry on the basis of passport and accreditation certificate. The order of the President or the Government of Russia is sufficient for visa abolition or simplification of registration of visas.
Visas were abolished for participants of the 2013 Summer Universiade, the 2014 ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Moscow, the 2014 World Judo Championships in Chelyabinsk and the 16th FINA World Championships in Kazan. Participants of the XVI World Aquatics Championships in the Masters category were exempted from visa fees.
The right to enter Russia without a visa was also given to visitors during the 2014 Winter Olympics and 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi if they were in a possession of tickets for the event. Players of 2016 IIHF World Championship were able to obtain visas on arrival, for the fans were simplified procedure for issuing visas.
2017 FIFA Confederations Cup holders of tickets for matches of the championship could enter Russia without a visa with personalized card of viewer and national passport from 7 June to 12 July 2017, if holding a laminated FIFA FAN ID card; from 14 June to 2 July 2017, if holding a printed FIFA FAN ID electronic format card. The foreign citizens could use their FAN IDs for multiple visa-free entry into and exit from the Russian Federation.
2018 FIFA World Cup holders of tickets for matches of the championship were able to enter Russia without a visa with personalized card of viewer and national passport from 4 June to 25 July 2018.
Foreigners participating in events and athletes included in the lists of FIFA, will have to obtain visas, but in a simplified manner. In particular, visas for this category of citizens will be issued within 3 working days from the date of filing and without consular fees. This procedure will be applied until 31 December 2018.
Foreigners involved in activities and not participating in sporting events, will travel to and from Russia by an ordinary multiple-entry work visas that will be issued for a period of 1 year. Foreigners, attracted by the FIFA, its subsidiaries and contractors, confederations, national football associations, the Russian football Union, organizing Committee "Russia-2018" will be entitled to work in Russia without obtaining a patent.