As a citizen of Qatar you will require an entry visa to travel to Russia. Visa free regime only works for holders of diplomatic and service passports. The rest of Qatar nationals need to undergo a standard process of visa application. In this article you will find out how to get your Russian visa, which documents to collect for the applications, where to apply, how long and how much will the processing cost you and other useful information. 

Russian visa types available for Qatar citizens

Depending on the purpose of your trip and its duration, as well the the number of entries you will need to make, you can choose out of the main Russian visa types as described in the table below:

Visa type you need	How long you can stay in Russia	The purpose of your trip
Ordinary tourist visa	30 days	Individual traveling as a tourist, or a member of a tour group of no less than 5 people
Guest/ Private visa	90 days	visiting your friends and relatives who are Russian citizens/ attending funerals, tending the sick relatives etc.
Business visa	30 -90 days (a visa can be issued for up to 1 year with stay no longer than 90 days in each 180)	attending business negotiations in Russia, looking for partners, investing etc.; accompanying a family member on a business trip; undergoing a medical treatment; driving a road or air vehicle; as an accredited reporter to conduct journalist activities in Russia; to carry out technical maintenance work for a Russian inviting company
Humanitarian visa	30 -90 days (a visa can be issued for up to 1 year with stay no longer than 90 days in each 180)	For trips with political, religious, sport, charitable, scientific, cultural visits, as well as members of youth exchange programs
Transit visa	3 -10 days	crossing Russian territory on your way to another country
Student visa	90 days and above	studying a course in a Russian school or university
Work visa	90 days and above	working under a contract for a Russian employer; working as a domestic employee; accompanying member of family of an employee; installation and maintenance workers

Select the appropriate visa type and prepare the set of documents for visa application.

Documents for Russian Visa Application

To be able to apply for a visa, you should prepare the list of documents including:

• Valid personal passport for trips abroad. It must have minimum 2 blank pages for visas and be valid 6 months since the date of your visa expiration
• Completed online visa application form. Find it at visa.kdmid.ru fill it in, print on both sides, sign and date
• Color photo for documents sized 3.5×4.5 Glue it in the marked field in your application form
• Copy of tickets to and from Russia
• Copy of travel insurance covering the dates of your trip
• Invitation in the required form issued by the Russian host party. 

• for a tourist visa you will need a travel voucher issued by the registered Russian tour operator. Contact our manager to get one here: info@myvisatorussia.com
• for a private visa you will need an invitation issued by the MIA of Russia upon request of your Russian host
• for a business visa you will need an  invitation issued by the MIA of Russia upon request of the inviting Russian company. Contact our manager to get one here: info@myvisatorussia.com
• for a student visa you will need an invitation issued by the MIA of Russia upon request of Russian educational institution
• for a work visa you will need an invitation issued by the MIA of Russia upon request of your Russian employer (in paper original only)

Please note, the consul might ask for additional documents in case he/she considers something needs extra verification.

Once you have collected all documents you are ready to apply for a Russian visa.

Submit Documents for a Visa to the Russian Consulate in Qatar

Citizens of Qatar can apply for a Russian visa by making an appointment at the Russian consulate in Doha. Please, use the following link to make an appointment: q.midpass.ru/en/

Bring all your documents and be ready to pay the visa fees:

Visa type	Standard processing (up to 20 working days)	Expedited processing (up to 4 working days)
Single entry	327 QAR	654 QAR
Double entry	523 QAR	1046 QAR
Multiple entry	981 QAR	1961 QAR

Visa fees are collected on a non-reimbursement basis. Your passport will be held at the consulate for the whole period of processing. You will be given a notification on the date of issuance of your visa.

Collect your passport and check your visa details

After you get your passport with a visa, carefully check all details. In case you spot any mistake immediately apply for correction.

Please note, that visa types cannot be interchanged when in Russia. 

If you want to have another visa type, you will need to leave Russia and reapply for it from your country of residence. Apart from student and work visas other types are short-term visas, which means you can only stay in Russia maximum 90 days out of every 180. A tourist visa is only issued for up to 30 days.

Don’t forget to take with you in your trip your passport, tickets, hotel booking, copy of invitation from Russia, and travel insurance.

Migration and registration control upon arrival to Russia

When you arrive to Russia you will need to obtain two more essential documents – migration card and registration slip (the latter only required in case your stay will exceed 7 working days). A migration card is a form which you need to fill in at the border point. Normally they are given out by flight attendants or can be obtained at migration control from the officer. You fill two sides of it in block letters in English or Russian with your passport info, purpose of stay (strictly corresponding to your visa type), place of intended stay and dates of your trip. The officer then stamps both sides and takes one side. The rest should be saved with you and carried throughout your trip in Russia. If you lose it, immediately contact the local police office to get the copy. See a sample below

If your stay is longer than 7 working days, you should also make sure to obtain registration at your place of stay. It’s made by the hotel administrator, or by the owner of a private apartment at the local migration service office. Make sure your registration address corresponds to your actual place of stay. If you move, you have to reregister in every new place where you stay over 7 working days. Registration slip looks like that:

Traveling in Russia during the Pandemic

Be aware that all foreign citizens entering Russia after May 1st 2021 should take two PCR tests proving they are Covid negative. Tests can be taken in any of the authorized listed clinics upon arrival not later than 72 hours after arrival (first test, and the second no later than 5 days after arrival). The certificate of PCR test result must be in English and contain the name and seal of the issuing organization. See a sample below:

A number of Russian regions impose self-isolation upon arrival, check with the sanitary office of the region you are visiting beforehand.

Stay safe and have a great trip to Russia!