Russia Visa | Travel Documents for Russia | Pyala Travel

Russia Visa | Travel Documents for Russia | Passport and Permits

Travelers planning a visit to Russia should take care to have the proper travel documents. Below there is information about the required travel documents as known at the time of writing.

You will need a travel passport, valid for at least six months after returning from the trip. You also need a visa to Russia.

Obtaining this visa requires a letter of invitation, which Pyala Travel can arrange for you after you have booked your trip. The invitation letter confirms that a local travel agent is responsible for you during your stay in Russia.

We need the following information to make the invitation:

• Passport copy (a page with a photo)
• Dates of arrival and departure from Russia (not more than 30 days of stay). Please take into consideration possible flight delays. Dates should be the same as for that you apply to Russian embassy.  
• The whole route on the territory of Russia. From which city the tourist comes to Russia, from which city he leaves Russia, every city that the tourist visits on the territory of Russia, all hotels and hotel room types.

A valid insurance is also recommended.

A tourist visa to Russia is valid for 30 days period of stay.

You should apply for a tourist visa for Russia to the Embassy of Russia in the next city you live. However, you can also outsource this deal to a visa service, which obviously will charge extra fees. They apply to the relevant embassy, then stand in line to submit your application, and finally get your passport with visa again at the embassy. This saves you a lot of time. 

It takes between 2 working days and 6 weeks to get your visa.

We would like to stress that you are always responsible for completing all data correctly and providing the necessary forms and documents in time. Please always check that obtained visas contain the correct data and information.

Remember, you must register your visa when you arrive in Russia. All foreign citizens arriving in the Russian Federation must register their visas within seven working days of their arrival (excluding weekends and official public holidays) and not later than 7 days before departure. An unregistered visa can cause problems and delays with even the most common tasks that require a passport as identification and even cause you to be denied exit from Russia.
Basically, registration involves placing a stamp on your migration card and obtaining a registration slip. The stamps and registration slip show the period you are registered to stay in any one place. Keep all slips with your during the total stay in Russia. In big cities registration is usually completed by hotels through an online system. No camp, lodge, hostel, apartment provides such a registration, only hotels are responsible for that.