So when applying for heh three year visa, how do you secure dates. I see the mention of 45 days prior to the trip etc. I am fairly open in my travels and could go in 3 days, 3 weeks or 3 months or 2 years. I just want to get the visa and be able to travel when I can.

My plans were already set. I'm not sure if you can have it open ended because it asks for your first date of entry on the application. Call the company though and they should be able to tell you as I would think other tourists would want the same flexibility.

I've got an interesting question...if one books a room using points at one of the visa support hotels and the hotel sends the document for the visa, if you go to refund/redeposit the points does the hotel send something back to the Russian gov't?

A related piece of information is that the Starwood hotels in both St. Petersburg and Moscow have a free Visa Support service, but they require you to give them your credit card number and the agency working on their behalf will charge you a hefty fee ($60-$85) if you cancel the reservation after the Visa Support paperwork has been processed per your request.

If I send in the application for visa through USPS/FEDEX to the nearest Russian consulate, what mode of payment do I use for the $160 visa fee - cashier's check/CC/personal check? Any official word on that on their website that I might have missed?

[QUOTE If I send in the application for visa through USPS/FEDEX to the nearest Russian consulate, what mode of payment do I use for the $160 visa fee - cashier's check/CC/personal check? Any official word on that on their website that I might have missed?[/QUOTE]

Per the Consulate web site....Money Order or Certified Bank Check made out to the Russian Consulate for visa processing. Please note that we do not accept cash, credit or debit cards, personal or company checks.

I just received my 3 year visa with no hassles. They received my passport on the 6th and I received it on the 26th, 13 business days total as promised.

Great news! Just put a reservation on hold yesterday and 45 days out will be the week after next. Time to get busy!

I am happy about all you guys who have already received the visa or are in the process of getting one. Per the Russian Consulate's web site, the Visa application has to be submitted/picked up in person, or through a visa service agency. I think I am going to opt out of two long drives to the nearest consulate and use one of the visa service agencies after all. It seems like they are doing a good job of obtaining the visa in a reasonably short amount of time.

I recently used VisaHQ and the service was great. The lady who handles Russian visas seems to have a relationship with the outsourced company that the Russian Embassy uses so she was up to speed on their expected waiting times and current requirements. VisaHQ can issue you an invitation letter, but I got one from my hotel for free and it worked fine. Took 17 calendar days in total (13 calendar days with the Russian Embassy contractor).

I just got Visa Support Letters for our May trip from the W in St. Petersburg. They did specify that if we cancel the reservation, we'll owe them for the service. They did not ask for my credit card (though they have it from the reservation process.)

Anita

question
 

Sorry for what might be an absurdly stupid question.

If I don't live in a city with a Russian embassy, do I HAVE to use an expediting service?

Anita

Russian consulates won't accept invitations by mail, so the answer to your question is yes, unless of course you don't mind travelling to a city with a Russian embassy and either staying there until the visa is issued, or travelling back to collect it.

Thanks for the confirmation!

Anita

Sorry, I did not see your posts earlier Anita. Per their website, it does seem that either you apply/pick-up in person, or use one of the several services (Post #23 above). The form that W in St. Petersburg sent me to apply for visa support services from them, did have a line for the CC # to be entered with the understanding that there would be a charge only if the reservation was cancelled. But I am going to let gotorussia take care of the whole thing to avoid all the hassles.