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Travel Advice —

For the latest travel advice from the Foreign & Commonwealth Office including security and local laws, plus passport and visa information please click here.

Please note that the advice can change, and you should continue to check all advice until you travel. 

The FCO advise against all but essential travel to:

• within 10km of the border with the Ukrainian Kharkiv Oblast
• North Ossetia, Karachai-Cherkessia and Kabardino-Balkaria (including the Elbrus area)

Entry Requirements 

You must ensure you have a valid passport to travel on. 

To enter Russia, you’ll need to get a visa before you travel. Make sure you allow enough time to get your visa. The Russian Embassy advised in March 2018 that it takes around 20 business days (4 weeks) to process most visa applications. 

You will require a letter of invitation to support your visa application, which will be provided by our local supplier. To obtain the letters of invitation required, you will need to send the following information to the local tour company (details will be provided on your voucher).
Last name
First name
Middle name
The date of birth
Passport number
Nationality 
Gender

Once you have received your letter of invitation, you will need to apply for a visa.

We would recommend visiting the following website as the visa application process provided by the Russian Nation Tourist Office.

http://www.visitrussia.org.uk/visa/tourist-visa.php

Standard Service – 7 working days - £115
Express Service – 2 working days - £210
(prices correct at time of print, subject to change)

As part of the visa application process, all applicants based in the UK aged 12 or over will need to visit a visa application centre to submit biometric data (scanned fingerprints). These are located in London, Manchester and Edinburgh. The Russian government has also announced plans to introduce biometric fingerprinting for all foreign nationals, including British nationals when entering Russia. No dates have been confirmed for this.

On receiving your visa you should check the details carefully including the validity dates and passport number to make sure they are correct. Make sure you’re aware of the terms and conditions attached to your visa before you travel. You should adhere to the validity and conditions of your visa while you’re in Russia, as the authorities strictly enforce all visa and immigration laws.

Immigration Cards

You must sign an immigration card every time you arrive in Russia. This will be given to you at passport control. The card is in 2 identical parts. One part will be retained by the Immigration Officer. You should keep the other part safe as you’ll need to submit this at passport control when you leave Russia. Should you lose it, your departure from Russia could be delayed. There are also many hotels and hostels that will not accept guests without an immigration card.

Health 

For information about important health advice and any vaccinations required please visit www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice and https://travelhealthpro.org.uk/countries. 

If vaccinations or other preventive measures are required, you will need to visit your health professional at least 8 weeks before your trip. 

You can normally bring prescription and over the counter medication into Russia for personal use. However, if your medication contains narcotic or psychoactive substances (details available on the Rossiyskaya Gazeta website in Russian), you must carry a prescription in your name which has been translated into Russian and then notarised. Notarisation services in the UK are available from a Notary Public.

Please note that passport, visa and health requirements can change. It is every traveller’s responsibility to ensure they have a valid passport, any required visas, and all the necessary vaccinations/health requirements as well as adequate insurance.

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