When you plan to travel to Russia, you will have to obtain a visa to Russia. There is a special procedure to get it. On our website you will find detailed information about a visa to Russia and the visa support services provided by AST.

Trip to Russia requires a visa, which you can get at the Russian Consulate in your country or region. In order to get a visa you need the following:

— an invitation from a Russian company, organization or a private person who invites you to Russia;
— national passport: it should have at least two blank pages. It must be valid not less than six months after the expiry date of the visa;
— filled in application form (download: );
— photo: 35 × 45mm, one recent passport-sized photograph;
— consulate fee;

Each point is described below!

The procedure of getting a visa includes several steps:

1. You get an invitation from Russia issued by a Russian company which is licensed by authorities or a private person if it concerns a family visit, etc.
You should be very correct with the purpose of the visit to Russia (tourism, business, conferences, private visits, etc.). The invitation is issued on the basis of your purpose to Russia.

Invitation to Russia can be issued by AST both for tourist and business travels. AST has an accreditation at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and may invite citizens of any country.

Then you start collecting all the necessary documents for the Russian Consulate.

2. You fill in the application form. An application form should be signed and dated by the Applicant personally. Please note that you are to answer ALL the questions in the visa application form in Russian or English in block letters. Incomplete application forms would not be accepted. Any corrections in the application forms would not be accepted. You can be asked to submit all necessary documents to substantiate information given in the application form.

3. Valid national passport (original only and it should have at least two blank pages). It must be valid not less than six months after the expiry date of the visa.

IMPORTANT! Any damage of any page of the Applicant’s passport (especially of the page with a photograph) will result in the rejection of a visa application

4. One recent passport-sized photograph (35 × 45mm) of an Applicant, stapled to the upper right corner of an application form. According to the rule of the Russian Consulate: “The photograph must be:

a) of true likeness and not more than 6 months old; showing full face;
b) taken without headgear, head coverings and hats;
c) taken against a plain, evenly lit light background.
Photographs that do not meet these requirements won’t be accepted.” (The Russian Consulate in Oslo)

5. Consulate fee is 35 Euro (4 – 10 working days), for the express visa is 70 Euro (1-3 working days)

Visas can be issued for short or long periods or for one or several trips (multiple entry). A multiple entry can be received only for business trips.

You deliver these documents personally or through the authorized travel agency to the Russian Consulate/ Embassy in your country or region.

It takes 2 – 3 weeks to get a visa and a bit longer for a multiple entry visa. It includes time to issue an invitation, send it to the Russian Consulate and prepare all the required documents. It takes 4-10 working days for the Consulate to issue the visa for citizens of Norway, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden.

It is possible to get an express visa within 1-4 days. But it does not refer to a business visa.

People that are not staying at a hotel but at a private have to register their stay at the migration authorities (FMS) upon their arrival. If it is not done it can lead to fines both for a traveler and the inviting person/organization. Those who stay at the hotel get registered automatically by the hotel, therefore in principle a person orders an invitation and reservation of a hotel room at the same time.

WARNING:

You must have a correct visa which corresponds to your visit. The Russian migration service (FMS) takes it under a strict control and in case of a wrong visa they apply the following measures:
- to a traveler: arrest; fines; cancellation of visa; deportation from the country;
- to the inviting organization: fines, arrest, cancellation of its license;
The purpose of your visit to Russia is stated in the invitation on the basis of the information received from the client.

AST issues invitations (all types; each case is considered individually) and provides professional consultation about the procedure of getting visa in your country.

Contact:
E-mail: tour.murmansk@astavia.com
Tel.: +7 9086050066
Fax: +7 8152 45-42-85