Russian Business Visa
 

Can anyone give me some advise regarding obtaining a 6 month business visa for Russia. I am in the early stages of planning a trip from the UK to Magadan via Kazakhstan and Mongolia next year. I would obviously need a multi entry visa but I am retired so cannot supply a company letter. Are there other forms that are acceptable to get a letter of invitation such as bank statements that you can successfully aquire a 6 month business visa.

A number of points -

For British Resident Citizens,

Visas-
- you can only apply for a 90 day (almost 3 month) Business visa (single or double entry only) unless you have had another visa within the previous 12 months.
- subject to having had (and presumably used) a previous Visa, you can apply for a one year ME Business Visa.
- any visa over 90 days still has a 90 day in 180 visit restriction. That means you can't come back in for another 90 days if you used uo the full first 90 days here.
- you can only apply in UK - unless you have Residency Rights, written specific to you, in the country where you are applying. So no getting a new similar one in, say, Mongolia
- the Visa's validity start/end dates are as you tell the inviting organisation and cannot start more than 45 days (I think it is) in advance of the Visa application/issue date.

Invitations-
-These must come from a resident Russian organisation - agencies get them from about 50Euro.
-as far as an Employers letter, being 'self employed' is an acceptable alternative. Ask the Embassy's Visa handling agents about supporting documentation
Russia Visa Information - UK - All About Your Visa They give advice but do not obtain anything like invitations - you need other agencies. Or just 'borrow' a letterheading from a friend. (I was still using my old Company letterheading 8 years after we closed it down!). The Embassy only check the paperwork looks good, not enquire if it really is.

Other-
- UK citizens do not need health insurance due to NHS reciprocal arrangements

Yes, being self-employed or even retired is perfectly acceptable for a business visa. You can imagine that like most places, they are always looking for potential entrepreneurs or investors. And before you can invest, you have to go to take a look don't you? I have just received my second 1-year multi-entry business visa. Except for a simple letter from me, outlining in very broad terms my business interest in Russia, no other documentation was requested. YMMV.

My first visa application was also for a 1-year multi-entry visa and it was issued with no problems. I had never had any other visa for Russia before that. Also, I wasn't able to use the first one due to a change of plans, but reapplied for a second one, and had no issues with that one either.

Heading out April 18. :mchappy: I think I might actually get there this year! :D

So was mine - 7 years ago.

The 'first' visa rule was introduced in the last year or so - certainly for British applicants.

Rules and conditions vary according to each Applicants citizenship - which is why I put on post "For British Resident Citizens" - which is what the OP indicated.

Many thanks for the information. I know next year is still a long way off and things can change. But being aware of the problems is better now than 45 days before your planned trip. I'm sure there will be a way round it, as I have been wishing to do this trip for a lifetime.

It's possible, but what I hear is that an easing in rules for British is unlikely for the forseeable.
There is strong talk of a 3 or 5 year Visa becoming available to Americans in a year or two's time. The detail is still speculative. Probably it would keep the 90/180 - just save the need of renewing so often.

You could get a single entry BV (90 days) and fly here for a few days sometime later this year. That will then entitle you to get a 1 year MEBV next year. With a 1 year MEBV you can play the 90 days better as time in Kaz and Mongolia will not be eating into a 'first time' 90 day BV.

And I'll be happy to show you round 'my' town including parts not on the normal tourist circuit! But you will have to like a Beer or two.
Hotels are not cheap - the air fare would be about £200 - £300.

But your main trip will happen.
You will have an amazing time and you will meet the most generous people in the World (but sadly not so much around glitzy, brash, 'loads-of-dosh' Moscow)

A HUBBer said "Those who have nothing give you the most"
How true.
(I must look back to see who it was and give him proper credit)

hi , you try this agency they got my multi entry business visa last year as "self employed" Real Russia — Hotels, Trains, Visas, Tours, Trans-siberian experts


Siberia is nothing like us old godgers were lead to believe during the cold war , the people are so curious and friendly , several people along the way offered food lodgings , their time and most of all their friendship . One old lady who "lent us" her bathroom and shower fed us twice and on leaving would accept nothing from us and because she had very little she baked a loaf of bread for us to take on our journey !! .
The people will help with anything fix the bike find a room for night , take you to the road you need and all that is expected is a little of your time, a smile and a handshake . Terrific place and i will go back

That may have been me......
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...a-russia-58646

That was it.

Truest words about Russia on HUBB, ever. I have quoted (or misquoted!) them several times and not just here.

Thanks Strimstrum. I will acknowledge it in future.

Thanks very much for the invite and tour. I was there in 1980 in the cold years. I guess it is an option if nothing else turns up but with my wife coming as well its double the costs. But then ultimate happiness doesn't always come cheap. As for friendly folk, when we cycled India and Nepal we found the poorest people are the most generous. But as a bird watcher the Russian taiga and the Central Asian steppes are our Mecca.

Balls doh

I didn't know this.

Can anyone else verify they have obtained a visa for 6 months/1 year without having been to Russia before?

Tony, do you think if we bought a visa and dont use it that it will still count? Cant really afford a holiday this year whilst planning to leave next year.

Just looking at the options.

G

Griff
I have just looked at Russia Visa Information - UK - Home Page

They are the Russian Embassy's official visa handling agents you have to go to with visas applications (other than diplomatic and long term).

A few months ago I checked there to confirm for someone else about the requirement to have had a previous visa in the last 12 months before you can apply for a 12month MEBV.

It was there then, but I can't find it now! I do see that the Business Visa page is dated 2012 so it may have been removed since I looked.

I suggest you contact them for clarification on this point. Ensure they understand you are a UK passport holder looking to apply for a first visa and want a 1 year MEBV.
And please report back - I don't want to keep repeating old, obsolete, rules. Thanks.

the link i gave above has a forum Viewing a thread - Business Visa Scrutiny

try looking in there if not ask the question in there , i know i got a multi entry business visa last year and that was my first visa for Russia .

The other way round is get a cheap flight into Russia stay a night on a tourist visa and back , don't forget Kaliningrad so maybe a real cheap flight into Poland or Lithuania then into Kaliningrad, just an idea !!

I emailed the RUS embassy here in the UK straight after posting. They were no help when I asked about getting my UK trailer into Russia though :( so not holding out much hope!

Kaliningrad I looked at, might be an option. we will see what the embassy comes back with. A short break may be good to test out the russian we have been learning :)

G

Sorry for opening this can of worms, there seems to be a little ambiguity. But it's a problem that needs clarifying earlier on in ones planning stages. But you guys are the experts and I will take heed of your words.

This is the reply I got:

Dear Gareth,

This rule is only for EU national passport holders who are applying with simplified invitation containing Tax Number of inviting organization.

With official invitation issued by Ministry of Foreign Affairs you may apply for multiple entry without previous visas.



All relevant information regarding visa application process can be found on our website Russia Visa Information - UK - Home Page

Any help to anyone? not sure which route us folk go down, probably the former.

any info on how to proceed appreciated!

G

Russian business visa for Romanian citizens
 

Hi,

The below applies to Romanian citizens (EU passports):
In order to get the Russian busines visa, one needs the following:
- passport valid for another 6 months after the expiration of the requested visa;
- visa application form;
- passport photo;
- letter of invitation ("LOI") from Russian company/organization. The LOI must be submitted in original. This will add supplementary costs because of the transport fee from Russia to the destination country. LOI from Stantours - 95 Euro + 55 Euro DHL transport fee;
- Health insurance - 80 Euro/1 year (original and copy)
- Fee at the Embassy - 35 Euro
- Emergency fee - 35 Euro.

Without emergency fee will take 7-10 day to issue the visa. With emergency fee, they issued the visa in 45 minutes, on spot.

The documents can be submitted by another person then the owner of the passport.
The documents ca be picked up by another person then the owner of the passport if he/she has the receipt given to you by the Embassy when you submit the documents for visa along with the payment.

Safe travels,
Adrian

Although we dont know the exact question they read, this is a typically Russian response. No direct answer, introduce a further point and not get a lot further forward!

An ИНН Tax Number is required by any Russian Company, Partnership or Self Employed persons and individuals here on Residency Permits (me!).
Not initially, but eventually.

I can't remember if HUBB or another Site, but the topic of having one or not arose recently in reference to Visa Invitations, as it takes longer for the Foreign Ministry to process Invitation aplications where the inviting organisation does not have an ИНН.

All Applications for Invitations are submitted by the Inviting Organisation to the Ministry. The Ministry issue an official Invitation Certificate which eventually gets to you and is what you submit (original document or telex reference number) with your Visa Application. Ministry processing times vary depending on if the Inviting Organisation has a registered ИНН tax number. Presumably because the 'bona fides' of the inviting organisation can be quickly accessed via their computors through the tex records.

If you go through a Visa (Obtaining) Agent they worry about all that detail for a fee.

I suggest talking with the Embassy's Visa Handling Agency, as the link - they are the ones who initially check/reject your Application while you wait there. The staff are mostly Russian speaking East Europeans, not Russians, and generally more helpful.

thanks Tony,

I have just emailed them. due to the fact it is a business visa, should I be stating that I am self employed, there for opertunities, etc etc or is it fairly widely known that travellers get business visas to travel?

Just wondering how 'honest' to be, I dont want to get into a pickle!

G

I just wanted to add my bit.

We got a 3 month- Multi entry business visa for Russia last year. This was even though the embassy website says you need to have had a visa before.

My cover letter simply said that I wanted to enter Russia to look for investment opportunities and i stated a long list of cities that i wanted to visit.

The Visa was issued without any pain- Apart from the cost.

G,
Self Employed is no problem. You still need the Invitation but not an 'Employers' letter. You must produce original Bank Statements (or certified print outs) for the past 3 months which must have a current balance equal to at least £100 for each day of the Visa validity.
Once you have your visa no one worries if you are on business, holiday etc, nor which parts of Russia you go to (other than military and border restricted areas). When I used visas the invitation/application said Moscow and Peter - the visa says nothing and not a query when I produced it in Magadan, Vlad or other places.
In fact the Police in Fevralsk (east section of BAM road), not having seen a GB passport before, took it to the station to photocopy and check on the computor. No problem. Same when once stopped on a gravel track high in the Caususes not far from Chechnia and very close to the Georgia border.

For UK citizens, 3 month MEBVs have never required previous visas - as you apear to have discovered assuming you are a UK citizen.
It is the 1 year MEBVs that required you had a visa before, within the previous year.
This requirement appears to have very recently disappeared from the UK Russian Embassy Handling Agents Website. It is unclear if the rule had been dropped or overlooked!

Ok, I sent this:

Hi,

I am having trouble locating information on the requirements for UK citizens to obtain a 12 month multi-entry Business Visa.

I have been told that to obtain this we must have previously held a Russian visa. Is this correct?

We are looking to travel from early next year, have never been to Russia and will use your services to obtain the LOI and 12 month visas. Could you clarify what we need to do in order to achieve this?

Regards,

-----------------------------------------------------------

and I got this:

Dear Gareth,

You don’t have to have previous visa to apply for multiple, this rule refers to different, simplified type of invitation which cannot be obtained by UK nationals.

Please check our website for documents required, visa fees and processing times:

http://ru.vfsglobal.co.uk/Business.html


All relevant information regarding visa application process can be found on our website Russia Visa Information - UK - Home Page

Yours sincerely,
Vitaliy

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So it looks like there is no problem and you cannot make a mistake? too easy to be true surely!

G

Great stuff!
A lot of people will be relieved to see that.

They operated that rule in the past for 1 year Business Visas (they have to be Multi Entry because of the 90/180 condition) - as letsdo1 observed.

Thanks for getting that cleared up. I'll report it on another thread which is waiting to hear.

Thanks for that update, i for one am definately relived,

Am leaving for Mongolia/Magadan/Vlad at the end of April from London.

Reading everything up to now i had feared the worst and suspected i may have to choose between Kaz and Mongolia with a double entry visa, but if i can get a multi entry business first time around that would be great, as much as i would like to do turkey i dont fancy the Azerbaijan Baku ferry...

I will be applying for my visa in the next week or so, i will update with any success or failures for a first time British passport holder.

Cheers

-Don

I'm leaving for Magadan via Mongolia mid July. Likewise on the Baku ferry, so I'll be going through the Balkans and Turkey, then getting the Trabzon-Sochi ferry into Russia and onto Volgograd that way. Skipping the Stans for another time.

Let us know on this thread how you get on with your application. Who you getting your LOI from?

bier

And now it has re-appeared on the Website - "Thats Russia" !!

From here Russia Visa Information - UK - Business Visa Processing time
"For EU citizens applying for multiple entries business or humanitarian visa with invitation letter containing Individual Tax Number (ИНН) visa processing time is 10 working days.
Applicants should also have a single or double Russian visa in the last 1 year, without which they cannot apply for multiple entries."
The bold type is on the site, so they must be aware of confusion.

Aw ffs, I thought I had it all sorted!

G

This particular quote has been addressed further up the thread...

Good news
 

Collected from Gee Street today a 12 month MEBV.

This is my first ever application.

One problem was that they required the ORIGONAL LOI, which caused a delay owing to a mix up between Stan Tours and Real Russia. I was sent ''packing' when I turned up with a copy of the LOI a couple of weeks earlier.

Alec:

:D

That's excellent news. How much did it cost you in the end all in? Who'd you get your LOI from? What questions did they ask? You taking a bike? Anything special you have to provide for that? Applying for mine in a couple of months months so any advice would be helpful. Cheers.

bier

Hi Stephen,

Rough figures :-

LOI from Stantours - £108
Postage of LOI - £8
Visa Fee -£333 (this includes approx £111 - next day express service)
Train Fares - £30
My Time - Free!!!!!!!!!! - retired earlier this month.
Perhaps next time shall use an agency!!!!!

Leave next week on my TT250R - will be searching out investment opportunities for my pension monies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Had to supply up to date, bank certified statements showing savings to cover £100 per day for stay in Russia and a covering letter requiring the following info :-
1. Name of inviting organisation
2. Purpose of visit
3. Dates of visit
4. Who will be financialy responsible
5. Contact details of person meetings

Alec

Thanks for that. £100 per day is a bit rich! :cool4:

Hi All,

Very interesting reading, thanks to all.

However, I have been browsing their website, and it looks like a tourist visa can be single or double entry, but is a tourist visa limited to 30 days?

Is it possible for example to get 60 days, or 90 days tourist visa with double entry?

vette

Tourist visas are limited to 30 days ... which is why exactly there is so much talk on here about business visas. If we could get 90 day tourist visas, then we wouldnt have 25 threads about business visas :)

Business visas are the easiest way to get more than 30 days.

.
Thanks Colebatch,

Much appreciation to you sir :thumbup1:

Vette

Hi Livotlout,

I received my LOI from Stantours for a 6 months MEBV, Went straight down to Gee street, and was turned away because i did not have this covering letter?, Points 1-4 were already included on the application form. I have contacted David from Stantours to advise and await a response.

I would be interested to hear what you're covering letter contained, did you make it yourself or must it be 'official' looking/on headed paper of the LOI organisation...?

Annoyed by my first taste of Russian bureaucracy, as now my departure date is looking like being setback by at least a week (they are not open tomorrow due to a holiday)

This bank statement certifying savings of £100 a day is a bit worrying... I'll have about £4k saved up to get me to Magadan and back (via Mongolia), which would only give me a maximum of 40 days in Russia.

I'm planning on living cheap by wild camping so there's no way I'll spend £100 a day. I'm not saying I'll use the whole 90 day max visit of a MEBV but I'd certainly like the option. If i theoretically wanted to use the whole 90 days would they expect me to have certified savings of £9k?

Any thoughts or advise would be gratefuly received?

That is the rule that only applies if you say you are Self Employed. There is no such nonsence if you are 'employed' but you must submit an Employers Letter confirming your trip.

Why not get a UK pal to write a letter saying you are visiting the Invitating Organisation in RUS on their behalf (i.e, as if you were an employee) and that your costs will be met by you and them.

I have never heard of them trying to contact the 'employer'.
I was using old letterheads of a Company that we liquidated and address was demolished 6 years earlier!

I have even heard of people completely making up 'employer' firms and having a few sheets of good quality paper printed up!

Donuk,

My covering letter was typed as a conventional letter (word pad) and addressed to :-
To The Russian Consulate in London,
Russian Embassy,
5, Kensington Palace Gardens,
London. W8 4QS

I said that I was writing this introductory letter in support of my application.
I gave the inviting organisation as those that issued the LOI.
My purpose of visit was/is seeking potential investment opportunities for my recent increase in wealth from pensions. (Hence why I am writing a normal letter since I am recently retired.)
I gave a brief/approx travel timmings.
1 confirmed that I was self funded from my savings.
Finaly I detailed details of the contact that Stan Tours supplied.

Signed and dated


NB.
When I was turned away at first visit to Gee St., when I did not have origonal LOI, they suggested I write letter , following the five headings., also then, my bank statements were not quite up to date or confirmed, another issue I had to address.

Alec

Thanks for all the advice in this thread, Just got a 6 month multi entry business visa (uk citizen) from Gee Street (Russia Visa Information - UK - Home Page). This will give me the crucial third entry to do Kazakhstan and Mongolia, avoiding the Baku ferry. Probably entering from Ukraine.

As others have said, You need a Letter of invitation (i used Stantours and would again), you create an account on the VFS-UK site which automatically fills in a PDF for printing, there are two computers and a printer for use at the Centre, i would advise sorting it out before hand for less flapping.

With the Business visa application form, make everything the same as is on you're LOI, so in my case Commercial reasons. Enter the cities to be visited just as they are listed on the LOI. When it asks your passport type it would be tourist/ordinary, not official.

You also need the covering letter, conveniently for me a friend employed me in his sole trading business in an administrative function to seek out commerce in Russia ;)... RealRussia website seems to have templates for the format to rehash the info from your LOI. As a result of the covering letter no bank statements were ever mentioned/asked for.

Then standard processing is 5 working days i believe.

The cost was just over 300 all in.

Now tomorrow to the Kazakh embassy!

You will need a hotel booking for three days somewhere in Kaz to get that visa. Or they won't give it to you. You can easily do one on boolong.com and cancel it later.

I went to the Kazakh consulate on Friday, and she read my breif covering letter and said that you need a hotel booking, when i explained i would be camping/riding most of the way she handed me a pen and told my to write that in by hand on the covering letter, and took my passport, so i'll see on Friday if that was enough.

Website like Booking.com: 213,703 hotels worldwide. Book your hotel now! for example allow you to book hotels all over the world. No payment is required and you'll be able to print out a lovely email hotel booking confirmation that'll give embassy consular staff a warm and moist sensation.

HTH
C