How to Get Russian Visa in the United States

Businessmen and citizens of the USA are always welcome in Russia. You can make business trips, private visits or come to Russia as a tourist – and for all these stuff you need a Russian visa. The visa issuance for American nationals has its features depending on purposes of a trip and a visa type. The article below presents all the information about obtaining a visa including the description of the necessary documents.

Visa to Russia from USA

Since the visa-free regime hasn’t yet established between Russia and the USA, you need to obtain a permit to enter in any Russian consulate in the territory of America. Russian visa for American allows planning visit for different purposes such as tourism, business management, education or meeting with relatives.

In the material presented below, you will find all the information about visa insurance for American and necessary expenses.

The choice of a visa type will be directly influenced by the purposes of the alleged trip so the migration legislation of the RF allows you to obtain:

• Private visa for visiting relatives living in Russia
• Business visa for businessmen planning development of the business relationships or cooperative economic projects with Russian partners
• Tourist visa for those who want to explore Russian architecture, history, and other cultural subjects
• Work visa for prospective employees of Russian companies
• Study visa for using an opportunity to gain education in Russia

It’s important to know that the issuance of the particular type of visa doesn’t provide you with an opportunity to use it for other purposes. For example, you can’t seek for a job by tourist visa. Reveal of such violations may lead to administrative responsibility.

In order to go through the procedure of issuance successfully and finally come to Russia, the citizen of the USA has to have an invitation from the receiving party or apply to special services.

We will issue any visa documents for American nationals including different kinds of invitation. All we have to do is to provide us with your data and then come to the consulate with full document set.

How much does the visa cost? Pay attention that for some countries including the USA the consular fee is enlarged. The visa cost amounts:

• Standard processing procedure – 90 dollars
• Fast processing procedure – 180 dollars

How much will it cost if you apply to our company? The price will be little higher but you will totally forget about all issuance troubles and formalities.

Russian tourist visa for citizens of the USA

One of the most popular purposes is tourism. It can be distinguished:

• Traveling in a tour group
• Traveling by a personal car
• Tourist hunting
• Other purposes

Russian tourist visa is issued for a period up to 30 days; however, the period of stay is defined individually, while considering documents. As a rule, it coincides with the duration indicated in a tourist invitation.

If Russian visa is issued as a part of a tour voucher, its cost will be included in the price of tourist services. In this case, to get a permit you just have to come to the consulate and present the following documents:

• Profile (application)
• Color photos
• Tourist invitation in a form of a copy or original
• Valid passport of the USA citizen
• Medical insurance valid within the whole time of the visit
• Receipt confirming the payment of a consular fee

 

Pay attention, that visa issuance for citizens of the USA will observe standard rules in spite of trip purposes. However, the package of documents can differ in every case by the type of an invitation (transit visa or work visa also require extra forms).

Arrangement of the tourist invitation to Russia for American nationals

Tourist visa to Russia can be issued on the ground of a tourist invitation. As a rule, it is arranged by the company providing tourist services. The invitation consists of two documents:

• Tourist voucher (paper indicating the fact that you have the contract with a tour company)
• Confirmation of guaranteed residence, material and medical help for the foreigner

In cases of independent trips, citizens of America have to issue invitation without the tour company’s help. So we’ll be happy to help you to obtain it within hours just on the ground of your appliance (passport copy and description of trip purposes). You can receive the invitation in a form of a copy or original (by Express Mail) and apply to the consulate in time.

Russian private visa for the USA nationals

What type of visa do you need if you plan to visit your relatives in Russia? That should be a private visa issued for a period up to 90 days. In order to make it, citizens of the USA have to provide the standard document package and a private invitation.

The key aspect of a private visa is a preliminary plan of the route provided while issuing an invitation. Also, the receiving party has to confirm that a foreigner will be supplied by the residence, medical and financial insurance for the period of stay in Russia.

Obtaining of a private invitation is quite difficult so in cases of any troubles we recommend you our consultants’ help. We can issue all the documents fast and in a proper way (by the Migration Service of the MIA); also we provide an American national with an opportunity to make his trip as planned.

 

Arrangement of the private invitation to Russia for American nationals

The issuance has the specific details. The receiving party must apply to the migration authority of the MIA, While applying, provide the following documents:

• Request for an invitation
• Passport copies from both receiving party and citizen of the USA
• Route description
• Letter of guarantee about presence of the residence for a foreigner as well as medical and financial insurance
• Obligation to pay expenses on deportation in case of any violations of the visa regime

After checking the documents, the migration authority gives a citizen an official invitation form that should be sent to the foreigner.

The visa legal regime requires foreigner’s registration after coming to Russia. It can be held by the MIA authorities or by the hotel where the Irish national stays. The violation of this rule may lead to the obligation to pay the fine and even to foreigner’s deportation.

Russian business visa for American citizens

For business contacts it’s better to arrange a business visa that provides you with an opportunity to engage in the entrepreneurial activities in Russia. This permission can be issued in different forms: single-entry visa, re-entry visa or multiple-entry visa.

Duration of the permission can be up to one year; however, a foreigner has no right to stay in Russia for more than 90 days in half a year.  

Arrangement of the business invitation to Russia for citizen of the USA in a form of a letter

In order to obtain a business visa for American nationals, you need to have a business invitation from the receiving party. If Russian company receives foreign businessmen constantly, it can be accredited in the MFA of the RF and get an opportunity to arrange invitations independently, without the additional approval.

In this case, an invitation will be issued on the same day as the appliance so that you can apply to the consulate in time and get a visa quickly. In you need a fast and reliable variant for your business goals, ask our specialists for help and we’ll resolve all your visa problems.

Arrangement of the business invitation to Russia for American nationals in the form of the AFMS

Standard order implies that the receiving party applies to the AFMS. Receiving organization has to provide the ordinary document set and indicate purposes, timing, and the route alleged (5 cities per one trip maximum).

An invitation will be issued in a standard form of the AFMS. If the receiving party is presented by a private person, the visa is issued for up to 30 days. While applying for a multiple-entry visa, the USA citizen can claim on a one-year visa (if there are no previous violations of the visa regime).

Arrangement of the business invitation to Russia for American nationals by Telex

The USA citizens can get a business visa to Russia presenting a business invitation received by the consular department through special Telex channel. In this case, the verification of documents will be carried out by the authorized RF MFA services.

The business invitation isn’t being delivered to the applicant. Instead of it the invitation goes directly to particular RF consulate in America. A businessman needs to provide full document package to consulate’s employees.

Our company will help you to issue an invitation by any of the methods above. In order to get our assistance, you need to fill in the feedback form on our web indicating foreigner’s personal data.

Russian work visa for American nationals

The peculiar type of permission documentation is a work visa and a permission for a job (for foreign nationals). The specific of its issuance implies official procedure for Russian employers, observing the rules of quota arrangement and registration in migration authorities.

Work visa can be issued for up to one year and prolonged in future. Each time of prolongation an American specialist needs to abandon Russia and provide a new invitation to the Russian consulate.

Arrangement of the work invitation to Russia for American nationals

The procedure consists of several important stages lying on the receiving party. The usual arrangement implies:

• Request to the local authorities to include foreign specialists to the quota
• Notification to local employment agency about hiring an external specialist
• Registration in the AFMS as an employer/organization hiring foreign specialists
• Getting a work permit in the Migration Service
• Request to the AFMS for a work invitation for a citizen of Spain

Only after all this, you can apply for a Russian work visa to the local consular body.

After hiring a foreigner and signing an employment contract with him/her, the company sends the information about recruitment to the AFMS authorities where this company has been registered.

If you need any kind of help or assistance while getting a visa for an external employee, apply to our consultants. We will decide any problem with getting the proper documents, work permission, and others. To get full information fill in the feedback form on our web or call our specialists using the hot line phones.

Russian Consulates in the USA

Any visa type requires the appliance to one of the Russian consulates located in America. This system is presented by:

 

The Embassy of the Russian Federation in the United States of America

	Address: Embassy of the Russian Federation, 2650 Wisconsin Ave., N.W., Washington D.C., 20007, USA.
	Phone number: (8-10-1-202) 298-57-00, 298-57-01, 298-57-04.
	Fax: (8-10-1-202) 298-57-35.
	E-mail: russianembassy@mindspring.com
	Web: www.russianembassy.org

Consular Department of the Embassy

	Address: 2641 Tunlaw Rd., NW, Washington, DC 20007.
	Phone number: (8-10-1-202) 939-89-07, 939-89-13, 939-89-18.
	Fax: (8-10-1-202) 483-75-79.
	E-mail: passportunit@gmail.com
	Reception hours: From Monday till Friday, 9.00 a.m. – 6.00 p.m. (by appointment)

Consulate General of the Russian Federation in San Francisco

	Address: 2790 Green Street, San Francisco, CA, 94123, USA.
	Phone number: (8-10-1-415) 928-68-78.
	Fax: (8-10-1-415) 929-03-06.
	E-mail: consulsf@sbcglobal.net
	Web: www.consulrussia.org
	Reception hours: From Monday till Friday, 9.00 a.m. – 5.00 p.m. (by appointment)

Consulate General of the Russian Federation in Seattle

	Address: 600 University Street #2510 One Union Square Building Seattle, WA 98101.
	Phone number: (8-10-1-206) 728-02-32, 728-19-10.
	Fax: (8-10-1-206) 728-18-71.
	E-mail: consul@seanet.com
	Web: seattle.mid.ru
	Reception hours: From Monday till Friday, 8/30 a.m. – 5.30 p.m., break from 12.30 p.m. till 1.30 p.m. Reception hours for visitors: 9.00 a.m. – 12.00 p.m. – passport and notary issues 2.00 p.m. – 5.00 p.m. – visa issues

Consulate General of the Russian Federation in Houston

	Address: 1333 West Loop South, Ste.1300, Houston, TX 77027.
	Phone number: (8-10-1-713) 337-33-00 ext. 309.
	Fax: (8-10-1-713) 337-33-05.
	E-mail: info@rusconshouston.org
	Web: www.rusconhouston.mid.ru
	Reception hours: From Monday till Friday, 9.00 a.m. – 12.00 p.m.

Consulate General of the Russian Federation in New York

	Address: 9 East 91 Street, New York, NY, 10128, USA.
	Phone number: (8-10-1-212) 348-17-17, 348-57-62, 348-09-26.
	Fax: (8-10-1-212) 831-91-62.
	E-mail: mail@ruscon.org
	Web: www.newyork.mid.ru
	Reception hours: From Monday till Friday, 9.00 a.m. – 12.30 p.m.

Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations

	Address: 136 East 67th St., New York, N.Y., 10065, USA.
	Phone number: (8-10-1-212) 861-49-00, 861-49-01, 861-49-02.
	Fax: (8-10-1-212) 628-02-52.
	E-mail: mission@russiaun.ru
	Web: www.russiaun.ru/