Visa policy of Russia

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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 an electronic visa (e-Visa).

Citizens of countries without such an agreement with Russia must obtain a visa in advance from a Russian diplomatic mission or visa center.

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.

Overview

Border-crossing points

Foreign citizens may enter into the territory of Russia through the border-crossing points open to international passenger traffic.

As of 11 June 2020, Russia has 386 checkpoints.[1] across the state border of Russia.[2]

Land border with Belarus

Citizens of third countries are not allowed to cross the Belarus–Russia land border due to a lack of international border crossing points, because passports must be stamped.[3][4]

Entry will be allowed through the road checkpoints on the border between Russia and Belarus in 2021:[5]

Land border with Kazakhstan

Residents of the border areas of Kazakhstan who visit the territory of the border areas of Russia up to three days can enter Russia through checkpoints, which are specially installed for residents of border areas.[6][7][8]

Visa policy map

  Russia (including occupied territories of Ukraine)
  Freedom of movement
  Visa not required (90 days)
  Visa not required (60 days)
  Visa not required (30 days)
  Visa not required for tour groups (15 days) / eVisa (16 days)
  Visa not required (14 days)
  eVisa (16 days)
  Visa required

Visa exemption

Ordinary passports

Holders of ordinary passports of the following countries and territories may enter Russia without a visa if the duration of their visit does not exceed the visa-free limit specified below (except for citizens of Belarus and South Ossetia, who have the right to unlimited visa-free entry to Russia).[9][10][11]

From 2014, resetting the allowed period by leaving and re-entering the country is no longer allowed. Overstaying up to 180 days is punishable by a 3-year entry ban, 180–270 days by a 5-year entry ban, and over 270 days by a 10-year entry ban.[12]

Freedom of movement

90 days

60 days

30 days

14 days

ID - May enter with a national ID card in lieu of a passport.
IP - May enter with an internal passport in lieu of a passport.
TD - May enter with a "Travel Document in Lieu of National Passport" in lieu of a passport.
1 - 90 days within any 1-year period.
2 - 90 days within any 365-day period.
3 - 90 days within any 180-day period.
4 - 60 days within any 180-day period.
5 - 30 days within any 60-day period.

Other visa exemption

Tour groups

Citizens of China may visit Russia without a visa for up to 15 days and citizens of Iran may visit Russia without a visa for up to 15 days during one trip, but no more than 90 days within any 180-day period if traveling as part of a tour group from 5 to 50 persons that is accompanied by a representative of a tour operator registered in both countries (Russia-China, Russia-Iran).
Common visa

On 19 June 2020, Russia and Belarus have signed an agreement on mutual recognition of visas.[63]

After ratification, visa-free entry will be available for holders of a valid visa or residence permit of Belarus.[64]

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.[65]

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 (Big port Saint Petersburg and Passenger Port of St. Petersburg), Vladivostok, Vyborg, Zarubino.[66][67]

Entry to the port of St. Petersburg by regular ferry can be done only from the ports of Tallinn (Estonia) or Helsinki (Finland). It is also possible to travel visa-free for 72 hours from the port of Stockholm with the stop in Helsinki.[68][69]

Visa-free zones

  •  United States - Residents of Alaska who are members of the indigenous population do not require a visa to visit Chukotka Autonomous Okrug if they have relatives (blood relatives, members of the same tribe, native people who have similar language and cultural heritage) 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.[70] The agreement was signed between USSR and United States on 23 September 1989 but came into force on 17 July 2015 after ratification by the United States.[71]

Local border traffic

From 6 June 2013, residents of the border areas of Latvia who have a permit for local border traffic can visit the border areas of Russia without a visa. From 16 December 2018, amendments to the current agreement entered into force. The procedure for obtaining a permit was simplified, total period of stay (within 180 days) was canceled, and the stamping of travel documents at the border crossing was canceled.[74]

  •  Norway - 15 days for holders of border traffic permit[75]

From 29 May 2012, residents of the border areas of Norway who have a permit for local border traffic can visit the border areas of Russia without a visa. From 4 March 2017, the Protocol on amendments to the current agreement entered into force – residents of area of Neiden received the right to receive a permit for local border traffic.[76][77]

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.[78]

Citizens of following countries may visit Russia without a visa if they are travelling as part of the airline crew: Afghanistan, Algeria, Austria,[79] Belgium,[80] Bulgaria,[81] Canada,[82] China,[83] Croatia,[84] Cyprus,[85] Czech Republic,[86] Denmark,[87] Egypt, Ethiopia,[88] Finland,[89] France,[90] Germany, Greece,[91] Iceland,[92] India,[93] Iraq, Italy,[94] Japan, Jordan,[95] Latvia,[96] Lebanon, Libya, Lithuania, Luxembourg,[97] Malta, Netherlands,[98] North Korea, North Macedonia, Norway,[99] Oman,[100] Poland,[101] Portugal,[102] Qatar, Romania, Singapore, Spain,[103] Sri Lanka,[104] Sweden,[105] Switzerland, Turkmenistan,[106] United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Vietnam.[107]

Russian Government has instructed the Foreign Ministry to sign an agreement with Georgia,[108] and Tunisia.[109]

Citizens of following countries may visit Russia without a visa if they are travelling as part of the sea crew: Bulgaria,[81] China,1[83] Croatia,[84] Cyprus,[85] DR Congo, Egypt, France,[90] Iran,[110] Iraq, Lithuania,[111] North Korea, Poland,[101] Tunisia,[112] Turkey
Turkmenistan,[111][113] Vietnam.[107]

Citizens of following countries may visit Russia without a visa if they are travelling as part of the railway crew: China,[83] North Korea, Turkmenistan.[114]

Visa-free transit

Direct airside transit

Passengers travelling through international airports do not need a visa for a transit of less than 24 hours in most circumstances,[115] provided a confirmed onward ticket is held and the traveller remains in the international transit area (without clearing regular passport control). 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:

Saimaa canal

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.[116]

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 (0.6 mi) 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.[117]

Non-ordinary passports

Under reciprocal agreements, holders of diplomatic or various categories of service passports (consular, official, service, special) of the following countries and territories may enter and remain in Russia without a visa for the following period:[10]

  Russia
  Visa not required for holders of diplomatic, official or service passports
  Visa not required for holders of official passports
  Visa not required for holders of diplomatic passports

Freedom of movement

3 months3

90 days

60 days

30 days

14 days

C - Consular passports
D - Diplomatic passports
O - Official passports
S - Service passports
Sp - Special passports

1 - 90 days within any 365-day period.
2 - 90 days within any 180-day period.
3 - With the right of multiple entry and exit.
4 - Applies only to employees of official institutions operating in the territory of a contracting parties and their families.

Currently, visa exemption for holders of diplomatic passports of European Union member states, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland have been suspended.[118]

Among citizens of countries whose citizens do not normally require a visa, holders of diplomatic or service passports of Israel require a visa.[119]

Future changes

Russia has signed visa exemption agreements with the following countries, but they have not yet entered into force:

Country Passports Days
 Cameroon[120] Diplomatic, service 90 days within any 180-day period
 Democratic Republic of Congo[121] Diplomatic, service 90 days within any 180-day period
 Micronesia[122] All 30 days
 San Marino[123] All 90 days within any 180-day period

Russia is considering visa exemption agreements or visa policy improvements for the following countries:

  •  Central African Republic - 90 days within any 180 day-period for diplomatic and service passports[124]
  •  China - 21 days for tourist groups from 3 to 50 persons[125]
  •  Côte d'Ivoire - 90 days for diplomatic and service passports[126]
  •  Eritrea - 90 days within any 180 day-period for diplomatic and service passports[127]
  •  Ghana - 90 days within any 180 day-period for diplomatic and service passports[128]
  •  Hong Kong - 30 days for all passports[129]
  •  Lebanon - 90 days within any 180 day-period for diplomatic, service and special passports[130]
  •  Saint Lucia - 90 days within any 180 day-period for all passports[131]

In addition, Russia is currently in talks with Gulf countries as well as other countries to establish visa exemption agreements.[132]

Electronic visa (e-Visa)

From 8 August 2017, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia started to implement the e-Visa Program.

Citizens of the 18 countries[Note 16] could apply an e-Visa to visit to regions in the Far Eastern Federal District.[133]

From 8 June 2019, citizens of Taiwan were added to the list for Far East.[134]

From 1 July 2019, citizens of the 54 countries could apply for single-entry business, humanitarian and tourist visas to visit the Kaliningrad region.[135]

From 1 October 2019, electronic visa have become valid for Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast.[136]

On 24 January 2020, the new list for the Far Eastern e-Visa was approved.[Note 17][137]

Thus, the list of countries has become uniform for all regions where an electronic visa is applied.

On 6 October 2020, in accordance with the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 2571/2020, the list of States was approved.[138] These are all the countries whose citizens were allowed to enter Russia with an electronic visa as part of the pilot project. The e-Visa is a single entry visa, which is valid for a period of 60 days from the date of issue, and which allows a period of stay in the Russian Federation of up to 16 days from the date of entry.

Unified e-Visa was scheduled to be introduced in Russia on 1 January 2021 but the program was temporarily suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[139]

Russia started issuing e-Visas on 1 August 2023.[140]

The 16-day e-Visa is issued for private or business visit, tourism, as well as for participating in scientific, cultural, socio-political, economic, sporting events. The application can be submitted no earlier than 40 days and no later than 4 days before the expected date of entry.

E-Visa applications will be processed within no more than 4 calendar days from the date of application. The consular fee is 40 USD (children under 6 years of age get a visa free of charge).[141]

E-Visa allows arrival and departure only through the following border crossing points:[142][143]

Airports (51)

Seaports (12)

Railways (8)

Roads (24)

Russia – Сhina border (3)
  • Poltavka – China side: Sanchakou
  • Starotsurukhaytuy – China side: Heishantou
  • Turiy Rog – China side: Dangbi
Russia – Estonia border (3)
Russia – Finland border (5)
Russia – Georgia border (1)
  • Verkhniy Lars – Georgia side: Dariali
Russia – Latvia border (2)
  • Burachki – Latvia side: Terehova
  • Ubylinka – Latvia side: Grebnova
Russia – Lithuania border (4)
Russia – Mongolia border (2)
Russia – Poland border (4)

Mixed (3)

River (1)

Pedestrians (1)

Citizens of the following countries and territories may obtain an e-Visa:[144][145]

1 - Visa exemption in general.
2 - Available for holders of non-biometric passports.

APEC Business Travel Card

Main article: APEC Business Travel Card

The APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) is a travel document issued to business travellers who are citizens of APEC participating economies. Valid for five years, the card eliminates the need for its holder to possess a visa when visiting other APEC participating economies.

From 1 June 2013,[146] holders of passports issued by the following countries who possess an APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) containing the "RUS" code on the reverse that it is valid for travel may enter Russia without a visa for business trips for up to 90 days within any 180-day period.[147]

ABTCs are issued to citizens of:[148]

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.[149] This restriction does not apply to Russian citizens.

A full list of such areas:

Conflict area

As of 2024, Crimea and parts of Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Luhansk, Mykolaiv and Zaporizhzhia regions are under Russian control and Russia enforces its visa policy there.

The Government of Ukraine strictly prohibits the entry and transit of foreign citizens to the occupied territories. Foreign citizens who entered the occupied territories without permission will be denied entry and transit to Ukraine.

Agreements

The Russian Federation has visa waiver agreements with 150 jurisdictions. In the table, red indicates agreements signed but not ratified or temporarily not applied, fully or partially suspended agreements are indicated in yellow.

Valid bilateral and multilateral visa waiver agreements
Country or territory Duration of stay by type of passport Date of signing Effective date Citation
Diplomatic Service
Official
Special
Consular 		Ordinary
 Abkhazia 90 days 2 Oct 2009 26 Apr 2011 [150]
 Albania 90 days 7 Apr 1993 6 Aug 1993 [151]
 Algeria 90 days within any 180-day period 19 Feb 2018 6 Feb 2019 [152]
 Andorra 90 days within any 365-day period 5 Dec 2019 25 Nov 2020 [153]
 Angola 90 days 26 Feb 1999 16 Jun 2006 [154]
 Antigua and Barbuda 90 days within any 180-day period 7 Jun 2019 22 Oct 2019 [155]
 Argentina 3 months 16 May 1994 29 Sep 1994 [156]
90 days within any 180-day period 11 Mar 2009
18 Mar 2009 		29 Jun 2009 [157]
 Armenia Unspecified  period 25 Sep 2000 25 Sep 2000[158] [159][160]
 Azerbaijan Unspecified  period 3 Jul 1997 4 May 1998 [161]
 Bahrain 90 days within any 180 day-period 16 Dec 2015 26 Jun 2016 [162]
 Bangladesh 30 days 22 Sep 2016 12 Feb 2017 [163]
 Belarus Unspecified  period 30 Nov 2000 30 Nov 2000[164] [165]
 Belize 90 days within any 180-day period 23 Sep 2021 12 Jan 2022 [166]
 Benin 90 days 21 Jun 2001 20 Aug 2001 [167]
 Bolivia 3 month 11 Apr 1995 24 Apr 1997 [168]
90 days within any 180-day period 12 Apr 2016 3 Oct 2016 [169]
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 90 days 30 days within any 60-day period 31 May 2013 20 Oct 2013 [170]
 Botswana 90 days 10 Feb 2005 11 Apr 2005 [171]
30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period 6 Jun 2019 8 Oct 2019 [172]
 Brazil 90 days 16 Apr 19912 16 May 1991 [173]
90 days within any 180-day period 26 Nov 2008 7 Jun 2010 [174]
 Brunei 14 days 7 Oct 2009
12 Oct 20092 		11 Nov 2009 [175]
14 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period 8 Nov 2017 8 Jan 2018 [176]
 Bulgaria 90 days within any 180-day period 90 days within any 180-day period 5 Mar 2002 7 May 2002 [177]
 Burkina Faso 90 days 2 Mar 2000 2 Mar 2000 [178]
 Burundi 90 days within any 180-day period 6 Feb 2018 30 Jun 2018 [179]
 Cabo Verde 90 days 14 Jul 1995 12 Sep 1995 [180]
60 days1 30 Apr 2019 4 Jul 2020 [181]
 Cambodia 90 days 17 Mar 1988 28 May 1988 [182]
 Cameroon 90 days within any 180-day period 27 Jul 2023 [183]
 Chile 3 months 14 Feb 1995 1 Oct 1996 [184]
3 months 4 Oct 2002 12 Feb 2004 [185]
90 days within any 180-day period 24 Sep 2010 18 Jan 2011 [186]
 China 30 days 22 Mar 2013 26 Apr 2014 [187]
15 days for tourist groups4 29 Feb 2000 9 Nov 2000 [188]
 Colombia 90 days 26 Nov 1997 28 Mar 1998 [189]
90 days within any 180-day period 24 Sep 2010 13 Mar 2011 [190]
 Democratic Republic of the Congo 90 days within any 180-day period 27 Jul 2023 [191]
 Congo 90 days 18 Dec 2014 1 Jan 2016 [192]
 Costa Rica 3 month 16 Oct 1997 1 May 1998 [193]
90 days within any 180-day period 3 May 2018
28 May 2018 		25 May 2019 [194]
 Croatia 90 days within any 180-day period 90 days within any 180-day period 2 Mar 2010 31 Mar 2013 [195][196][197]
 Cuba 90 days within any 180 day period 22 May 2018 21 Dec 2018 [198]
 Cyprus 90 days within any half-year period 8 Jun 2005 20 Jan 2006[199] [200]
 Denmark 90 days within any 180-day period 27 May 2008 1 Oct 2009[201] [202]
 Djibouti 90 days within any 180-day period 6 Feb 2022 1 May 2022 [203]
 Dominica 90 days within any 180-day period 28 Sep 2018 14 Jan 2019 [204]
 Dominican Republic 90 days 9 Sep 2009 9 Apr 2010 [205]
60 days within any 180-day period 26 Nov 2018 15 Dec 2020 [206]
 Ecuador 90 days within any year period 18 Feb 1999 15 May 1999 [207]
90 days within any 180-day period 24 Sep 2010 24 Nov 2012 [208]
 Egypt 90 days 17 Jul 2003 17 Jul 2003 [209]
 El Salvador 90 days 25 Jan 1999
29 Jan 19992 		30 Mar 1999
90 days within any 180-day period 26 Mar 2015 27 Aug 2016 [210]
 Eswatini 90 days within any 180-day period 24 Jan 2023 12 Jun 2023 [211]
 Equatorial Guinea 90 days within any 180-day period 7 Apr 2017 8 Nov 2019 [212]
 Ethiopia 90 days 11 Dec 2002 11 Jan 2003 [213]
European Union European Union countries (excluding Denmark and Ireland)
25 states
 90 days within any 180-day period 25 May 2006 1 Jun 2007;
for Croatia from
1 Jul 2013
 Fiji 90 days1 28 Jun 2013 29 Jul 2013 [214]
 Gabon 90 days 5 Apr 2011 25 Sep 2011 [215]
 Gambia 90 days 4 May 2017 15 Aug 2018 [216]
 Grenada 90 days within any 180-day period 20 Sep 2017 24 Dec 2017 [217]
 Guatemala 3 months 24 May 1999 24 Jul 1999 [218]
90 days within any 180-day period 22 Sep 2011 29 Feb 2012 [219]
 Guinea 90 days 7 Jan 1998 8 Mar 1998 [220]
 Guinea-Bissau 90 days 23 Oct 2019 9 Feb 2022 [221]
 Guyana 90 days 3 Nov 2005 12 Feb 2006 [222][223]
90 days 7 Jun 2017
24 Jul 20172 		17 Nov 2017
90 days within any 180-day period 27 Sep 2015 27 Nov 2015 [224]
 Honduras 90 days 21 Sep 19992 20 Nov 1999 [225]
90 days within any 180-day period 26 Sep 2014 11 Jul 2015 [226]
 Hong Kong 14 days1 23 Apr 2009 1 Jul 2009 [227]
 Hungary 90 days within any 180-day period 90 days within any 180-day period 14 Jun 2001 14 Jun 2001 [228]
 Iceland 90 days within any 180-day period 24 Sep 2008 1 Mar 2010[229] [230]
 India 90 days 3 Dec 2004 28 Mar 2006 [231][232]
 Indonesia 14 days 1 Dec 2006 22 Mar 2008 [233]
 Iran 30 days 29 Mar 1993 29 Apr 1993 [234]
15 days for tourist groups4 28 Mar 2017 1 Jul 2021 [235]
 Iraq 90 days within any 180-day period 2 Apr 2023 23 Jan 2024 [236]
 Israel 90 days within any 180-day period 20 Mar 2008 20 Sep 2008 [237]
 Jamaica 90 days 23 Jun 2000 1 Sep 2000 [238]
90 days within any year period 27 Sep 2018 27 Nov 2018 [239]
 Jordan 90 days within any 180-day period 11 Sep 2017 25 Jan 2018 [240]
 Kazakhstan Unspecified  period 30 Nov 2000 30 Nov 2000[164] [165]
 Kuwait 90 days within any 180-day period 10 Nov 2015 10 Apr 2016 [241]
 Kyrgyzstan Unspecified  period 30 Nov 2000 30 Nov 2000[164] [165]
 Laos 30 days 29 Nov 2004 30 Dec 2004 [242]
30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period 8 Sep 2016 2 Dec 2017 [243]
 Liechtenstein 90 days within any 180-day period 12 Nov 2013 1 Apr 2015[244] [245]
 Macao 30 days1 19 Jun 2012 30 Sep 2012 [246]
 Maldives 90 days1 25 Jun 2019 25 Jul 2019 [247]
 Mali 90 days 27 May 2009 27 May 2009 [248]
 Mauritius 60 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period 23 Dec 2015 10 Apr 2016 [249]
 Mexico 90 days 28 Jan 1997 5 Jul 1997 [250]
 Micronesia 30 days1 21 Sep 2017 [251]
 Moldova Unspecified period 30 Nov 2000 30 Nov 2000[252] [253]
 Mongolia 30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period 3 Sep 2014 14 Nov 2014 [254]
 Montenegro 90 days 30 days 24 Sep 2008 21 Nov 2008 [255]
 Morocco 90 days 15 Oct 2002 15 Oct 2002 [256]
 Mozambique 30 days 30 Dec 2009 30 May 2010 [257]
 Myanmar 90 days 3 Jul 2000 3 Aug 2000 [258]
 Namibia 90 days within any 180-day period 14 Apr 2021 2 Aug 2021 [259]
 Nauru 14 days1 24 Sep 2014 14 May 2015 [260]
   Nepal 90 days 16 Apr 2002 16 May 2002 [261]
90 days[262] 27 Apr 2022
13 Jun 20222 		15 Aug 2022 [263]
 Nicaragua 90 days 28 Nov 19972 13 Jan 1998 [264]
90 days within any 180-day period 28 Jul 2009 3 Jul 2010 [265]
 Niger 90 days within any 180-day period 15 Feb 2022 22 Feb 2023 [266]
 North Korea 90 days 24 Jan 1997 23 May 1997 [267]
 North Macedonia 90 days 30 days 19 Jun 2008 31 Oct 2008 [268]
 Norway 90 days within any 180-day period 8 Jun 2007 1 Dec 2008[269] [270]
 Oman 90 days 3 Feb 2016 27 Oct 2016 [271]
 Pakistan 90 days 4 Jul 1994 3 Aug 1994 [272]
 Palau 30 days1 28 Sep 2018 27 Dec 2018 [273]
 Palestine 90 days within any 180-day period 23 Jan 2020 21 May 2020 [274]
 Panama 90 days 16 Jun 1995
22 Jun 19952 		20 Aug 1995 [275]
90 days within any 180-day period 3 Dec 2014
9 Dec 20142 		8 Feb 2015 [276]
 Paraguay 3 months 20 Nov 1995 2 Feb 1997 [277]
90 days within any 180-day period 25 Sep 2013 20 Oct 2014 [278]
 Peru 90 days 14 Jul 1999 26 Nov 1999 [279]
90 days within any 180-day period 13 Nov 2010 21 Jun 2011 [280]
 Philippines 90 days 3 Aug 2007 22 Dec 2008 [281]
 Poland 90 days 18 Sep 2003 1 Oct 2003 [282]
 Qatar 90 days within any 180-day period 27 Dec 2019 23 Feb 2020 [283]
 Romania 90 days 26 Aug 2002 1 Mar 2004[284] [285]
 Saint Kitts and Nevis 90 days within any 180-day period 21 Sep 2017 21 Nov 2017 [286]
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 90 days within any 180-day period 27 Sep 2018 7 Jan 2019 [287]
 Samoa 60 days1 4 Apr 2017 9 July 2017 [288]
 San Marino 90 days within any 180-day period 2 Dec 2021 [289]
 Senegal 90 days 2 Jul 2015 6 Feb 2017 [290]
 Serbia 90 days 30 days 20 Feb 2009 10 Jun 2009 [291]
 Seychelles 30 days1 2 Sep 2015 14 Dec 2015 [292]
 Sierra Leone 90 days within any 180-day period 17 May 2021 14 Mar 2022 [293]
 Singapore 90 days 17 Nov 2015 2 Jan 2016 [294]
 Slovakia 90 days 29 Dec 2000 29 Dec 2000[295] [296]
 South Africa 90 days 5 Aug 2010 15 Dec 2010 [297]
90 days1 24 Jan 2017
27 Feb 20172 		30 Mar 2017 [298]
 South Korea 90 days 21 Sep 2004 21 Nov 2004 [299]
90 days 17 Oct 2006 31 Dec 2006 [300]
60 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period 13 Nov 2013 1 Jan 2014 [301]
 South Ossetia Unspecified  period[302] 1 Feb 2010 25 Apr 2011 [303]
 Sri Lanka 30 days 13 Aug 2015 24 Oct 2015 [304]
 Sudan 90 days within any 180-day period 24 Nov 2017 4 Sep 2022 [305]
 Suriname 90 days within any 180 day-period 26 Sep 2018 13 May 2019 [306]
 Syria 90 days[307] 19 Mar 2008 2 Jul 2008 [308][309]
  Switzerland 90 days within any 180-day period 21 Sep 2009 1 Feb 2011[310] [311]
 Tajikistan Unspecified  period 30 Nov 2000 30 Nov 2000[164] [165]
 Thailand 90 days 17 Oct 2002 6 Mar 2003 [312]
30 days 13 Dec 2005 24 Mar 2007 [313]
 Togo 90 days within any 180-day period 16 Feb 2021 19 Aug 2021 [314]
 Tunisia 90 days within any 180-day period 28 Jun 2012 13 Feb 2013 [315]
 Turkey 90 days 5 Nov 1999 6 Jan 2000 [316]
30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period 30 days, for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any 180-day period 12 May 2010 16 Apr 2011[317] [318]
 Turkmenistan 30 days 17 Jul 1999 17 Jul 1999 [319]
 United Arab Emirates 90 days within any 180-day period 6 Jul 2018 17 Feb 2019 [320]
 Uruguay 3 months 13 Jul 1999 3 Oct 1999 [321]
90 days within any 180-day period 26 Sep 2011 27 Dec 2011 [322]
 Uzbekistan Unspecified period 30 Nov 2000 30 Nov 2000[323] [324]
 Vanuatu 90 days1 20 Sep 2016 21 Oct 2016 [325]
 Vatican City 90 days within any 180-day period 22 Aug 2017 29 Dec 2017 [326]
 Venezuela 90 days 28 Jun 1993
1 Nov 19932 		1 Nov 1993 [327]
90 days within any 180-day period 26 Nov 2008 6 Mar 2009 [328]
 Vietnam 90 days 28 Oct 1993 20 Feb 1994 [329][330]
 Zambia 90 days within any 180-day period 23 Oct 2019 1 Jul 2020 [331]
 Zimbabwe 90 days 23 Jan 1991
31 Jan 19912 		31 Jan 1991 [332]
Notes:
  1. ^ Agreement include the item "Total period of permitted stay in the territory of the state for a certain period of time is set in accordance with the laws of the state." From 2014, it is 90 days within any 180-day period.
  2. ^ Agreement concluded through an exchange of diplomatic notes.
  3. ^ Agreement between Russia and EU. Article 14 " ...the provisions <of the agreement> shall prevail over the provisions of any bilateral or multilateral agreements or arrangements between the Russian Federation and the Member States..."
  4. ^ Only for group tourism (from 5 to 50 persons) organized by accredited travel agencies in both countries.

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:

Russia has agreements on cancellation of consular fees with the following countries: Algeria (1965), Angola (15 Apr 1985),[370] Iran (15 Feb 1966),[371] Japan (1 Apr 1965),[372] and Mauritania (1967).


Agreements were denounced with Bangladesh,[373][374] Cambodia,[375][376] India,[377][378] Pakistan [379][380] and New Zealand.

Canceled agreements
Country or territory Duration of stay by type of passport Date of signing Effective date Cancellation date Citation
Diplomatic Service category Ordinary
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 90 days 90 days with an invitation
30 days with a voucher 		24 Sep 2007 1 May 2008 20 Oct 2013 [381]
 Bulgaria During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For a private trips with an invitation
Transit without a visa 		2 Nov 1978 6 Jul 1979 1 Oct 2001 [382]
During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For a private trip with an invitation up to 90 days 		3 Nov 1969 24 Jan 1970 6 Jul 1979 [383]
About private trips 20 May 1965 1 Jun 1965 24 Jan 1970 [384]
CIS countries
9 states
(excluding Azerbaijan and Ukraine) 		Unspecified  period 9 Oct 1992 9 Oct 1992;
for Georgia
1 Aug 1995 		3 Dec 2000;
for Turkmenistan
19 Jun 1999 		[385][386]
 China 30 days 29 Feb 2000 25 May 2001 26 Apr 2014 [387]
Yes
Including passport for public affairs 		29 Dec 1993 29 Jan 1994 25 May 2001 [388]
Yes (on duty)
Including passport for public affairs 		15 Jul 1988 14 Aug 1988 29 Jan 1994
Yes 13 Jun 1985 13 Jul 1985 14 Aug 1988
 Cuba 30 days 3 Dec 1993 29 Jul 1994 21 Dec 2018 [389]
During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For a private trip with an invitation 		10 Jan 1985 29 Jul 1994
For tourism trips 7 Jul 1981
24 Sep 1981 		24 Sep 1981 1985
 Cyprus 3 months 5 Jun 1989 5 Jun 1989 20 Jan 2006 [390]
During a term of official trips 90 days 27 Dec 1994 15 Jun 1995 1 Jan 2004 [391]
 Czech Republic During a term of official trips
30 days for all passports 		7 Dec 1994 3 Sep 1995 29 May 2000 [392][393]
 Czechoslovakia During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation
Transit without a visa 		17 Dec 1981 30 May 1982 for  Czech Republic
3 Sep 1995;
for  Slovakia
7 Aug 1994 		[394]
During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation up to 90 days
Transit without a visa 		16 Sep 1969 16 Sep 1969 30 May 1982 [395]
90 days with an invitation 17 Sep 1965 17 Sep 1965 15 Sep 1969 [396]
18 Dec 1962 17 Sep 1965
 East Germany During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation
Transit without a visa 		6 Apr 1979 30 Aug 1979 3 Oct 1990 [397]
During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation up to 90 days
Transit without a visa 		28 Nov 1969 12 Jan 1970 30 Aug 1979 [398]
 Hungary During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For a private trips with an invitation
Transit without a visa 		24 Nov 1978 14 Jun 2001 [399]
During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation up to 90 days 		4 Mar 1969 11 Jun 1969 [400]
 North Korea During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation 		22 Jan 1986 17 Sep 1986 23 May 1997
 Laos Yes 20 Dec 1984 30 Dec 2004 [401]
 Lithuania 30 days for Kaliningrad region 24 Feb 1995 25 Jun 1995 1 Jan 2003 [402]
 Mongolia During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation 		20 December 1979 5 May 1995 [403]
During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation up to 90 days 		26 Jan 1971 23 May 1971 [404]
 Poland During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation
Transit without a visa 		13 Dec 1979 22 May 1980 1 Oct 2003 [405]
During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation up to 90 days 		5 Feb 1970 12 May 1970 22 May 1980 [406]
 Qatar 90 days 18 Jan 2016 14 Aug 2016 23 Feb 2020 [407]
 Romania Yes 11 Mar 1991 24 Oct 1991 1 Mar 2004 [408]
During an office mission
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation up to 45 days 		9 Sep 1983 11 Apr 1984 24 Oct 1991 [409]
During an office mission
For tourism trips with tourist documents
For private trips with an invitation up to 45 days 		30 Jun 1969 1 Jan 1970 11 Apr 1984 [410][411]
Without visas on office affairs
For a private trips with an invitation up to 45 days within year
Transit on private affairs without visa 		4 Mar 1966 23 Jun 1966 1 Jan 1970 [412]
About trips for a visit to close relatives 1963 23 Jun 1966 no text
About visa-free trips of citizens on diplomatic, service, all-civil passports and collective certificates 1956 23 Jun 1966 no text
 Slovakia 30 days for all passports
During a term of official trips 		13 Feb 1995 25 Aug 1995 1 Jan 2001 [413]
1 Jun 1994 7 Aug 1994 25 Aug 1995 [414]
 Ukraine Unspecified  period 16 Jan 1997 10 Mar 1997 1 Jan 2023 [415][416][417][418]
 United Arab Emirates 90 days 27 Jun 2010 31 Mar 2013 17 Feb 2019 [419]
 Vietnam During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with tourist documents
Visa free transit for tourism and official purposes 		15 Jul 1981 14 Aug 1982 20 Feb 1994 no text
 Yugoslavia During a term of official trips
For tourism trips with a voucher
For private trips with an invitation up to 90 days 		31 Oct 1989 26 Apr 1990 for  Croatia
31 Mar 2013;
for  Bosnia and Herzegovina
1 May 2008;
for  Montenegro
21 Nov 2008;
for  North Macedonia
31 Oct 2008;
for  Slovenia
1 Dec 1999;
for  Serbia
10 Jun 2009 		[420]
For tourism trips with a voucher 3 June 1967
27 Nov 1967 		27 Dec 1967 26 Apr 1990
Yes Yes
On duty 		26 Oct 1965 25 Jan 1966

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 (RUS) is not shown at positions 3–5 (i.e. V<RUS). Instead, the first line is formatted as: VSURNAME<<GIVEN<NAMES.

While not necessarily printed on the visa (depending on the embassy), a photo is required in the visa application. The visa application form may be filled online and submitted to the diplomatic mission.[421]

Types of visa

Russian transit visa with entry and exit stamps in a Swedish passport
Entry stamp in the Russian federation issued at Sheremetyevo Airport

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 (for receiving shelter or to obtain citizenship in Russia)[422]
Diplomatic visa

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 1 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 1 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 1 year.
Service visa

A service visa is issued to the foreign citizen having service (consular, official, special) 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 1 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 1 year.
  • to military personnel of armed forces of the foreign states and family members of such persons for a period of up to 1 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 5 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 (or) 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 1 year.
Ordinary visa

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:

  1. An ordinary private visa is issued for a period of up to 3 months to foreign citizens traveling to Russia for a short visit on the basis of an invitation letter. Citizens from certain countries (based on the principle of reciprocity) can receive a visa for a period of up to 1 year.
  2. An ordinary business visa is issued for a period of up to 1 year to foreign citizens traveling to Russia for a business trip.
  3. An ordinary tourist visa is issued for a period of up to 1 month (or on the basis of the principle of reciprocity for a period of up to 6 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 (sometimes for a fee) or through various online services associated with Russian tour operators. An ordinary tourist group visa is issued for a period of up to 1 month to foreign citizens traveling to Russia as a tourist in an organized tourist group (not less than 5 people), of holding a confirmation by an organization in the unified federal register of tour operators.
  4. An ordinary student visa is issued for a period of up to 1 year to foreign citizens traveling to Russia for training in the educational institution.
  5. 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 (rendering services), but no more than for 1 year.
  6. An ordinary humanitarian visa is issued for a period of up to 1 year (or on the basis of the principle of reciprocity for a period of up to 5 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.
  7. An ordinary entry visa to Russia for receiving a shelter is issued to foreign citizens for a period of up to 3 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.
  8. An ordinary entry visa to Russia to obtain citizenship of the Russian Federation is issued to foreign citizens for a period of up to 1 year if holding a decision on recognition of such foreign citizen as a native speaker of Russian.
  9. An ordinary entry visa to Russia to obtain permission for temporary resident is issued to foreign citizens for a period of up to 4 months.
Transit visa

A Transit visa is issued for a period of up to 10 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 4 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

Entry stamp
Exit stamp
Entry and exit passport stamps issued at Saint Petersburg seaport

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 (colour, passport size photo)
  • Tourist invitation
  • Russian Consulate Application Form

The Russian Consulate requires the visa application form to be printed on A4 paper with right and bottom margins of 5mm. A failure to meet these requirements invalidates the 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 (e.g., a note from a doctor or a hospital explaining an illness, missed flight, lost or stolen visa). In some cases, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can issue a Return-Home certificate that is valid for 10 days from the embassy of the visitor's native country, thus eliminating the need for an exit visa.[423][424][425]

A foreign citizen granted a temporary residence permit in Russia needs a temporary resident visa to take a trip abroad (valid for both exit and return). 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.[426]

Visitor statistics

According 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:[427]

Nationality Total (includes all types of purposes of visits)
2020 2019 2018 2017 2016
 Ukraine Decrease 3,648,972 Decrease 8,646,295 Decrease 9,177,272 Increase 9,817,008 Decrease 9,737,405
 Kazakhstan Decrease 1,426,727 Increase 4,324,856 Increase 4,241,244 Decrease 4,137,613 Decrease 4,686,059
 Uzbekistan Decrease 720,041 Increase 2,588,922 Increase 2,354,642 Increase 2,350,007 Decrease 2,116,480
 Abkhazia Decrease 414,927 Increase 600,399 Increase 492,310 Increase 436,368 Decrease 415,606
 Tajikistan Decrease 401,888 Increase 1,557,148 Decrease 1,340,975 Increase 1,350,356 Increase 1,293,270
 Kyrgyzstan Decrease 299,611 Increase 959,130 Increase 859,735 Increase 836,946 Decrease 792,042
 Azerbaijan Decrease 269,807 Increase 1,175,045 Increase 1,145,327 Decrease 1,143,243 Increase 1,156,703
 Armenia Decrease 209,812 Decrease 816,454 Decrease 825,200 Increase 857,212 Decrease 833,577
 Finland Decrease 180,110