In this article, you will find everything you have to know about electronic visas to Kaliningrad and St. Petersburg.
It has just gotten easier to travel to Russia, as you can get an E-Visa! The document allows you to travel to Russia as a tourist, a business person, or for humanitarian purposes. Thanks to the convenient online application process, you no longer have to give your passport to anyone else, as you can now do everything online. Currently, an e-visa can be issued for the Far East (Vladivostok), Kaliningrad and St. Petersburg.
E-Visa to St. Petersburg
Available since October 1, 2019! You can travel to St. Petersburg with an e-visa. You won’t have to show an invitation to Russia or prove your willingness to return upon entry. This makes it much easier to go to St. Petersburg; the application process has become simpler than ever before. This is a perfect opportunity for you to start your Russian adventure in St. Petersburg! A St. Petersburg e-visa is available to most EU citizens.
E-Visa to Kaliningrad
Since July 1, 2019 the Russian Federation has been issuing electronic visas to Kaliningrad. Citizens of 18 and another 53 countries, including the Germans, can now apply for an e-visa to Kaliningrad. However, you will have to enter and leave the country via the designated border checkpoints. Note that as an EU citizen, an e-visa will not allow you to go beyond Kaliningrad Oblast. To continue your journey to a neighboring country, e.g. to Russia, you’ll need a regular tourist visa.
How to get the E-visa to Russia?
Since July 1, 2019, the Russian Federation has been issuing electronic visas to Kaliningrad; e-visas to St. Petersburg will be available starting from October 1. Citizens of 18 and another 53 countries, including the Germans, can now apply for an e-visa to Kaliningrad. However, you will have to enter and leave the country via the designated border checkpoints. Note that as a German/EU citizen, an e-visa will not allow you to go beyond Kaliningrad Oblast or St. Petersburg. To continue your journey to a neighboring country, e.g. to Russia, you’ll need a regular tourist visa. You can order an e-visa to St. Petersburg online from us starting from October 7.
Benefits of the electronic visa
- faster processing
- no extra costs, as we accept online applications
- no invitation or other documents required
- cheap, as you only pay for our services
- receive travel approval conveniently by e-mail
- no language barriers
Further details
- Duration of stay: up to 8 days in the location of the destination
- Entry: single
- Validity: 30 days of issuance
- Application deadline: no earlier than 20 days and no later than 4 days before entry
- Visa to be sent digitally by email
- Extension: not possible
Who Can Apply for an E-Visa to Russia?
As an EU citizen, you can now apply for an e-visa to Kaliningrad or, starting from early October 2019, to St. Petersburg. The procedure also applies to other foreign nationals. Below is the list of eligible states:
- Andorra
- Bahrain
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- China (including Taiwan)
- Denmark
- Germany
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Greece
- India
- Indonesia
- Iran
- Ireland
- Iceland
- Italy
- Japan
- Qatar
- Croatia
- Kuwait
- Latvia
- Liechtenstein
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malaysia
- Malta
- Mexico
- Monaco
- the Netherlands
- North Korea
- North Macedonia
- Norway
- Oman
- Austria
- the Philippines
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- San Marino
- Saudi Arabia
- Switzerland
- Sweden
- Serbia
- Singapore
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- The Czech Republic
- Turkey
- Hungary
- Vatican
- Cyprus.
How Long Can You Stay in Russia with an electronic visa?
An e-visa allows single entry. You cannot stay for longer than 8 days in the location of your destination. You can choose the date of entry yourself, just make sure that you enter within the 30-day validity period. You can enter St. Petersburg or Kaliningrad within 30 days of the issuance. The visa will expire if not used within that timeframe.
Where Can You Stay in Russia on E-Visa?
An e-visa is only valid for Kaliningrad Oblast, Russian Far East (Vladivostok), and St. Petersburg. To continue your trip to any other city in Russia, e.g. to Moscow, Kazan, or the Baikal area, you’ll need a regular tourist visa.
What Documents Do You Need?
It’s easy to apply for an e-visa to Kaliningrad or St. Petersburg with us online. Just send us the three documents listed below by email. We will do the rest for you.
- Application
- Passport-size photo
- Passport (scan)
How to Apply for an E-Visa to Russia
You can apply for the e-visa by yourself by clicking here and filling the online application. If you don’t have time to do that by yourself, or you’re not sure about the information you need to introduce, we get the e-visa for you.
Fill in the small application form here, upload a photo and a passport scan, and we will do the rest for you.
Where Can I Cross the Border with the electronic visa?
E-Visa to Kaliningrad: Checkpoints
Airport:
-Kaliningrad Khrabrowo (KGD)
Seaport of Kaliningrad:
-Baltiysk
-Svetly
Railway checkpoints in:
-Mamonovo
-Sovietsk
Road checkpoints in:
-Bagrationovsk
-Gusev
-Mamonovo (Grzechotki)
-Morskoye
-Pogranichny
-Sovietsk
-Chernyshevskoye
E-Visa to St. Petersburg: Checkpoints
Airport:
-Pulkovo (LED)
Seaport of St. Petersburg:
-Vysotsk
-Seagates of St. Petersburg
Railway checkpoints based in:
-Vyborg
-Ivangorod
Road checkpoints in:
-Ivangorod
-Torfyanovka
-Brusnichnoye
-Svetogorsk
The maritime checkpoints in Vyborg, Ust-Luga, and Brusnichny have not yet been equipped to allow e-visa holders in. Passengers on the high-speed train (Allegro) from St. Petersburg to Helsinki cannot currently use e-visas. However, this may change in 2020. The intention behind the system is to attract more tourists and future investors to the economically weaker regions in Russia’s Far East.
Regular Tourist Visas for all EU citizens
If your country of residence is not part of the Russian Electronic Visas Programme, or if the e-visa restrictions do not suit your traveling needs, you will have to go for a regular tourist visa to Russia.