Russian business visa invitation

An invitation letter from an organization is a document drawn up in accordance with the rules in the name of a foreign citizen, and is the reason for issuing a business visa to a particular foreigner. This document allows you to stay in Russia continuously for 90 days (also the fact that the validity of a business visa can range from several months to 5 years need to be considered). The issuance of the invitation letters can be carried out only by organizations accredited by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.

The accredited organizations can issue the invitation letters on their own branded forms only for citizens of the EU, the USA, Japan and China. This step was taken to expand business relations between Russia and these countries, within the framework of the simplified visa regime.

EU or US citizens wishing to open a Russian visa must apply to the consulate or embassy of the Russian Federation by presenting an invitation on the letterhead of an accredited organization, and also to fill out a visa application form and pay a consular fee.

The invitation on the letterhead of an accredited organization is valid for those citizens of the European Union and the United States, who plan to open a business visa.

The advantage of issuing such an invitation letter is a short term, namely 1 working day, since the process of issuing invitations on the letterheads of the Directorate of the Federal Migration Service or on telex communication will require much more time. However, the main drawback of the invitations, issued on the letterhead of an accredited company, is the fact that there are no inspections by the inviting organization of the lawfulness of the visa applicant during his last visits to Russia. All data will be checked at the consulate or embassy after the visa applicant submits the main package of required documentation.

We advise you to draw up invitations on letterhead of an accredited organization, since Russian consulates working in different countries of the world know these companies, which increases the chance to get a visa.

According to the regulations on the simplified visa regime between Russia and the EU countries, the United States, Japan and China, a business invitation on the letterhead of an accredited organization can be issued only if the foreigner plans to come to Russia with a commercial / business purpose.

The commercial / business purpose involves taking part in business negotiations, signing various contracts, finding new business partners, attending various conferences / symposia / exhibitions, etc.

Citizens who are engaged in scientific, creative or other cultural activities cannot receive a business invitation letters to open an appropriate Russian visa.

These professions include professors, teachers, philologists, deans of the university (they need to draw out humanitarian invitation letters, where the main visiting purpose will be "scientific and technical contacts"), artists, actors, singers (they need to draw out humanitarian invitation letters, where the main visiting purpose will be “cultural contacts”), athletes (they need to draw out humanitarian invitation letters, where the main visiting purpose will be "sports contacts").

Exceptions are the cases when a professor/teacher/philologist plans to visit Russia to attend/participate in a specific conference (in such a situation it is necessary to indicate the name of the conference and the dates of the conference in the detailed description of the main visiting purpose), and only upon these conditions the purpose of the trip will acquire a businesslike character.

The category of citizens who provide technical services (consulting during installation or commissioning, repair or maintenance, and equipment maintenance) cannot receive a business invitation letter for opening a visa to Russia. Such professions include engineers, installers, etc. (they must draw out invitation letters indicating the status of "maintenance" as the main visiting purpose).

The exception may be those situations in which an engineer travels to Russia as a specialist to participate in business negotiations (this information should be indicated in the detailed description of the visiting purpose), and only upon these conditions the purpose of the trip will acquire a businesslike character.

Citizens who travel to Russia as part of a crew (rail, river, sea or air transport) or work in the field of transportation business do not have the right to draw out business invitation letters to open a visa to Russia. These professions include pilots, stewards, etc. (they must draw out invitation letters indicating the status of "member of the crew of the aircraft "as the main visiting purpose), sailors, etc. (they must draw out invitation letters indicating the status of "crewmember ship" as the main visiting purpose), drivers (they must draw out invitation letters indicating the status of "driver" as the main visiting purpose).

Business invitations cannot be formalized by relatives or family members of the holder of the corresponding Russian visa.

As a rule, they mean spouses, children (including minors), aunts/uncles, grandparents and other relatives (they must draw out invitation letters indicating the status of "accompanying family member" as the main visiting purpose).

The Information We Need

In order to successfully issue your invitation, we will need the following information:

• your personal details: surname, name, date and place of birth, passport number, citizenship, place of permanent residence note: passport must be valid for at least 6 months after your visa expiry date
• details of the consulate where you will apply for the visa (country, city)
• cities to be visited in Russia
• your occupation in the country of your residency (type of business, full name of the company, its address, telephone, fax and your position there)
• a clear scanned copy of your passport
• your money (sorry, without your payment for the invitation up-front we can not start processing your order. Please refer to the price guide above)

The Documents You Might Need

Getting the invitation does not mean getting your visa. Please, meet us half-way and submit your visa application at your local Russian Embassy!

This must be done in the country of your residency!

Your visa application might need to include the following:

• Original or a copy of your business invitation. Please note, that multiple visas require the original letter of invitation
• Your passport with at least two blank visa-designated pages (passport must be valid for at least 6 months after your visa’s expiry date)
• Copy of your passport’s ID page(s)
• Two copies of Russian visa application form, filled in and signed by yourself
• One passport-size photo signed at the back
• Health insurance policy Copy of an HIV test certificate (required for a visa of more than 90 days)
• Embassy fee

A word to the wise: The Embassy rules and requirements might vary in different countries. Please ask your local consulate about the latest changes in visa applications. The above list might be a lot shorter (or a lot longer)!

Payment and Delivery

Please, pay us by any of the major credit cards: VISA, Visa Debit, Novus, Bravo, Discover Master Card, Eurocard, American Express.Your payment will be in Russian roubles and will depend on current exchange rates. Please make sure, that the card you are using is issued in the same country where you are currently using the internet.

If the fax copy of the original will do, it will be with you within 24 hours. If your Embassy requires the original, we will post it to you (Westpost service-without guarantee) within 3—9 working days for an additional fee of $30. Sending by express mail FedEx/DHL takes 3—5 working days, please contact us for details and prices . The original invitation also can be picked up in person at one of our offices during office working hours.