Originally Posted by
SFOTurtle
This is very helpful and appreciated information. Was there any discussion or questions asked by the man of when the visa would be ready or when you needed it? My wife and I are flying to Canada on Aug. 21 and need our passports for that. We're planning to go to the Consulate tomorrow to drop off the paperwork, which would give them 16 days to complete the visa, which should be enough, but we need our passports back on the 21st and $250 seems like too much for the expedited visa fee.
"Questions of when I needed the visa?" In my case, I wasn't going to any other foreign countries before my trip to Russia, so I wouldn't actually need my passport back until a day or two before the dates requested on my visa application (i.e., in time for my flight to Russia). Anyhow, the consulate guy handed me the slip of paper with the pickup date when I dropped off the application.
But since you have a special situation, you might want to discuss that with them. You are cutting it a bit close. They might even recommend that you pay the expedite fee (times two). I really don't know. Good luck in any case!