List of countries for issuing electronic visas to Russia from 2021
Attention! The issuance of electronic visas is temporarily suspended due to coronavirus. It is not specified when documents will begin to be issued.
The list of countries to whose citizens Russia is ready to issue an electronic visa was approved by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. The list includes 52 countries:
- Austria
- Andorra
- Bahrain
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Vatican
- Hungary
- Germany
- Greece
- Denmark
- India
- Indonesia
- Iran
- Ireland
- Iceland
- Spain
- Italy
- Cyprus
- China (including Taiwan)
- Democratic People's Republic of Korea
- Kuwait
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Liechtenstein
- Luxembourg
- Malaysia
- Malta
- Mexico
- Monaco
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Oman
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- San Marino
- Saudi Arabia
- North Macedonia
- Serbia
- Singapore
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Türkiye
- Philippines
- Finland
- France
- Croatia
- Czech
- Switzerland
- Sweden
- Estonia
- Japan
If you are a citizen of one of the countries listed above, then you have the opportunity to enter Russia with an electronic visa.
What is needed to issue an electronic stamp?
In order for the e-visa to be issued without problems, the citizen must take care that the documents submitted by him comply with the requirements of the migration legislation of the country he is visiting. In addition, the personality of the applicant also plays an important role here. Therefore, if you have experience of deportation for violating immigration, administrative or criminal laws, then you should not count on approval of your application.
Since most countries that issue e-Visas are located in the Asia-Pacific region, you will have to take into account specific local laws. For example, you will not receive permission to enter some Arab countries if you have previously visited Israel. To avoid this option, it is recommended to have two passports. Recently, Russian legislation has provided such an opportunity.
In addition, there is a restriction on the entry of single young women under the age of 30 into the UAE. According to local law, girls and women have the right to visit Dubai or Abu Dhabi only when accompanied by an adult male relative with the same surname - husband, father or brother.
Package of documents
What documents are needed to obtain a visa? If we take as a basis the standard rules for obtaining an entry permit to most countries, then before submitting an online visa application you will have to prepare the following package of documents:
- a valid passport, valid for at least 4-6 months;
- passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation;
- international medical insurance;
- a photograph in JPG or PNG format, in which the oval of the face occupies 70-80% of the total photo size;
- documentary support for the purpose of the trip (tourist voucher, hotel reservation, air tickets, invitation);
- a certificate from the place of employment indicating the date of employment, position and salary;
- bank account statement or sponsorship letter (if necessary).
The above list can be adjusted based on the specifics of local migration legislation in the country you are visiting. The exact requirements for submitting documentation are indicated on the embassy website.
Price and production period
If you do not take into account the states of the Schengen zone, where you can apply for a visa online at a uniform price of 35 euros for all countries, in other embassies the difference in the cost of issuing electronic visas can vary significantly. To have an idea of the cost of obtaining an electronic entry permit, you should list only the most popular routes for Russian citizens.
- Australia – 140 Australian dollars, processing time – up to 4 weeks.
- UAE – 39 US dollars, registration period – from 15 days.
- Türkiye – $50, processing time – up to 7 days.
- India – 60 US dollars, processing time – up to 4 days.
- China – from 83 to 150 euros.
- UK - 80 pounds (electronic submission of documents is allowed, but an interview is mandatory), processing time - from 15 days.
- Bahrain – 66 dollars.
- USA – $160 (electronic submission of documents is permitted, but an interview is required).
- Mexico – 36 US dollars.
Electronic visas to Russia are issued through a special section of the official website of the Russian Foreign Ministry. A link to it is available from all Russian embassy websites. The cost of a visa document to Russia is determined according to the principle of parity. For US citizens, permission to enter the Russian Federation as a tourist will cost $160. For citizens of European countries included in Schengen, the price of a visa document will be 35 euros.
What is the validity period of an e-visa?
Despite the fact that the period for issuing an electronic permit to enter the country is, as a rule, much shorter than the traditional registration procedure, this does not affect the validity period. Depending on the specific country and category of the visa document, its validity period can range from 30 to 180 days. Accurate information about this can be obtained on the official website of the diplomatic mission of the country you plan to visit.
How long can a foreigner stay in Russia with an e-visa?
The visa itself is valid for 60 calendar days from the date of issue. But you can stay in the Russian Federation for 16 days , no more.
Please note: you cannot stay in Russia longer than the validity period of your visa. Even if the allowed 16 days have not yet expired.
For example, you arrived on Monday, and the 60-day visa period ends on Friday. This means you need to leave no later than Friday. You can calculate the period of stay in the Russian Federation and departure dates using a visa calculator.
How to obtain an electronic visa for a foreign citizen
To receive the document you need to submit an application. At the time of writing, a service on the website of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a mobile application are available for accepting questionnaires.
Stages of obtaining an electronic visa through the website:
- To be able to submit an application for an electronic visa, you need to register on the website evisa.kdmid.ru. After registering in your personal account, the option to submit a form to complete the document will appear.
- payment of the consular fee. Money can be sent using the same service through which the visa is issued, that is, through the website or mobile application.
- filling out and sending the questionnaire. The form contains only relevant and reliable information. The data will be checked and if it turns out that the information is incorrect, the application will not be accepted. If a visa is issued, but it later turns out that the applicant provided false information about himself, the document will be cancelled. The application is processed in the field of payment of the consular fee;
- after processing the application, the applicant receives a notification about the issuance of a visa (it is shown to a representative of the transport company in printed or electronic form).
There are several nuances that relate to the applicant’s passport. First, the passport must indicate the full date of birth of its owner. If the document does not contain such information, then you will not be able to obtain an electronic visa - the application will simply not be processed. The passport must be machine readable. It is also worth checking the validity period of the document - there must be at least 6 months left before the passport expires. It is important that the document has free space for affixing stamps on travel across the border.
How the e-visa system works.
To obtain an electronic visa you must: 1. Fill out the form. 2. Receive notification of receiving an electronic visa on the website (this requires an application number) or by email. 3. Print it or save it on your smartphone. 4. Show it to the transport company employees and border control. It is worth noting that issuing a visa does not guarantee entry into the country. They can refuse directly at the border, for example, if a foreigner has knowingly provided false information about himself or in other cases provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation.
Sample notification for issuing an e-visa
The notification is a form containing information about the visa and its holder. The document states, in particular:
- Last name and first name of the foreign citizen;
- Date of Birth;
- Citizenship;
- Passport ID;
- Validity and frequency of visa.
At the bottom of the notification there are barcodes that can be used to go to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website and check the validity of the e-visa.
Sample notification for issuing a unified electronic visa
Cyprus opened its borders for tourists from Russia from April 1, 2021
From April 1, 2021, the Cyprus authorities opened the borders to tourists from Russia and other foreigners from countries that are included in the red zone.
- Tourists will need to take 2 PCR tests, which must be done in English.
- One negative test will need to be done at least 72 hours before crossing the border. The second one will need to be returned after arrival at the Cyprus airport at your own expense. The cost of the test at Larnaca airport is 30 euros, at Paphos airport – 32 euros.
- The Cypriot authorities will also monitor the sanitary and epidemiological situation in foreign countries, so entry rules may be changed. This was reported on the website interfax.ru.
The Cyprus Embassy once again confirmed the information that from April 1 they will again issue electronic visas to Russian tourists. This was announced by the representative of the country's Ministry of Tourism, Dimitris Dimitriou. Russians can apply for a visa online.
New entry rules for Cyprus for Russians from May 10, 2021
From May 10, 2021, Russians vaccinated with the domestic Sputnik V vaccine can enter Cyprus using an immunization passport.
- The certificate must be printed from the State Services website and translated into English. The document must indicate the passport number.
- Vaccination information must be entered on the Cyprus FlightPass website one day before departure.
- A PCR test before entry and upon arrival in Cyprus is not necessary for those who have completed the full course of vaccination.
In 2009, an agreement was concluded between the two states; citizens of the Russian Federation do not have to apply to a diplomatic mission to obtain a visa.
It is now possible to apply for a visa to Cyprus online. This type of visa is called a pro-visa, a pre-issued electronic permit to visit the island.
Before your trip, you need to print out your electronic pro-visa and present it to the border guards at the airport.
How to check the authenticity of an e-visa to Russia?
A special service has been created to check the validity of an e-visa. If a citizen shows a printed notification form, then it is enough to read the barcode that is on the document. You will be taken to the visa authentication site, with all the necessary information for verification already filled in. All you have to do is click the “Check Status” button.
If you couldn’t use the barcode, then manually go to the website evisacheck.kdmid.ru. Enter the application number and verification code (this data is indicated in the notification) and click “Check status” .
If the visa is active and was actually received by a foreign citizen, then during verification the message “Application status: visa issued” , and below there will be information about the owner of the document and about the visa itself, which must be checked with what is indicated in the notification.
If the foreigner does not have a valid e-visa, then during verification the message “Application status: no visa” will appear.
Detailed instructions for checking an electronic visa.
Which cities provide an e-visa?
The first sign was the experiment with the introduction of electronic visas in the Far East in 2021. Then - the 2018 FIFA World Cup, when fans came to Russia without visas, using Fan ID.
It became clear: it works! There are benefits, tourists come, they write rave reviews about their impressions on social networks, and they spend money. Electronic visas were introduced in the Kaliningrad region, St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region.
By 2021, all of Russia will be open to foreign travelers on electronic visas, Rostourism promises. True, by then they will most likely be made paid.
