Tourist visa to Russia information!

[cambridgealex]

Anybody got any experience getting one of these?

[BulldozerD]

My partner is Russian and last time she took someone back to Russia the visa took a couple of weeks to go through by post via the Russian Embassy but it may be quicker now. Best to look online to see what procedure is now

http://www.visitrussia.org.uk/visaform/how-to-obtain-a-russian-visa/

[BulldozerD]

Think main issue was that she was taking a retired person so didn't have a job. He had to provide some bank statements to prove he could support himself whilst there

[leethefish]

Think main issue was that she was taking a retired person so didn't have a job. He had to provide some bank statements to prove he could support himself whilst there

Alex will be ok then !

[doubleup]

The visa is no problem but you need someone to sponsor you. 

If you do a bit of shortstacking on pokerstars and say "Я Кембридж Алексей" when you win a pot, you should make friends in no time.

[Marky147]

Might be Alex doing the sponsoring

[Woodsey]

The visa is no problem but you need someone to sponsor you. 

If you do a bit of shortstacking on pokerstars and say "Я Кембридж Алексей" when you win a pot, you should make friends in no time.

It's must be 10 years since I was there, but I had to get an 'invitation' from someone there I think, the hotel we stayed at supplied that invitation. Not a clue if its the same now or not.

[doubleup]

The visa is no problem but you need someone to sponsor you. 

If you do a bit of shortstacking on pokerstars and say "Я Кембридж Алексей" when you win a pot, you should make friends in no time.

It's must be 10 years since I was there, but I had to get an 'invitation' from someone there I think, the hotel we stayed at supplied that invitation. Not a clue if its the same now or not.

It was the casino that did it for us, think it is still the same (the invite that is, casino gg'd)

[Moskvich]

Have had to get several, though not for about three years now. Doing it yourself was always possible in theory, but getting appointments at the Russian embassy was pretty much impossible unless you were organised weeks or months in advance. I think they claim to have improved that but can't say from personal experience if it's true. Visa regimes between Russia and UK vary on a tit-for-tat basis, depending on how much we like each other at the time.

I and everyone else who needed them regularly always used to use agencies to avoid the need for invitations and embassy appointments. I used travel-direct.com in Edinburgh a few times with no problems. Tourist visa is £115 from them, which I think is about £40 more than doing it yourself. Find it hard to imagine that it isn't still worth the extra.

No legal live poker in Russia any more unfortunately. Let me know if you find a good underground club please, for future reference...

[Moskvich]

Just saw bulldozers's answer is basically the same thing, just a different agency

[cambridgealex]

OK so chances of me getting one in time for a trip next weekend? Slim?

Thanks for the posts and links guys

[tikay]

OK so chances of me getting one in time for a trip next weekend? Slim?

Thanks for the posts and links guys

If you go the official route, no chance, if you use an "agency", you can get it sorted within 24 hours, but you'll need to proffer several gratuities. For under £200, a visa can be sorted same day, but it means using somewhat dubious channels.

Where exactly in Russia are you hoping to go?

[pleno1]

My partner is Russian and last time she took someone back to Russia the visa took a couple of weeks to go through by post via the Russian Embassy but it may be quicker now. Best to look online to see what procedure is now

http://www.visitrussia.org.uk/visaform/how-to-obtain-a-russian-visa/

post is useless without pics.

[Moskvich]

OK so chances of me getting one in time for a trip next weekend? Slim?

Thanks for the posts and links guys

If you go the official route, no chance, if you use an "agency", you can get it sorted within 24 hours, but you'll need to proffer several gratuities. For under £200, a visa can be sorted same day, but it means using somewhat dubious channels.

Where exactly in Russia are you hoping to go?

This all makes it sound much dodgier than it actually is! Just phone up an agency and see if they can do it in time and for what price. If you'd done it Monday you could probably have had it by the weekend with a standard service. I seem to remember getting one in a day once out of necessity, but had to get a train to Edinburgh and back to get it done.

If there's anything dodgy about it it's between the agency and the embassy and nothing to do with you. And how the embassy chooses to do business is really nobody's business but theirs. You won't have to leave bundles of roubles ina dead-drop...