If you are hosting a training conference in Moscow for one day only, can you get by with a transit or tourist visa? Business Visas seem to require more paper work. Any advice would be helpful.

Whilst I'm no expert, I would think you would be ok.

I've never been asked at immigration what I am doing there. They just sit there and tap and stamp.

Provided you visa is in order (either way) I'm sure you'll be fine.

I travelled to Russia on business numerous times from about 1999-2004. I do know they are as strict as anyone else about getting a tourist visa and actually doing business. You're dealing with the Russian definition of "doing business" and the Russian way of dealing with visa issues. (These days, it's not much different than our country, unfortunately. -- editorial comment!)

I'm assuming you're going to get a letter of invitation from the Russian group hosting you. After that, the biggest cost differential will be in the type of visa you get. I recall (I don't remember the exact cost.) that a multi-entry visa was considerably more expensive than a single-entry visa. I always got a multi-entry, so I'm not aware if there are any choices between the two. If the conference date is fixed and you're confident that you will only be making one trip, you can probably get away with a single-entry visa. In terms of paperwork, I don't remember filling out a form that was longer than a single page.

We used a company here in DC called "Visa Advisors, Inc." I'm looking at my passport right now with their label on the front. I'm sure there are similar companies in your neck of the woods, but if you'd like to contact these folks, their particulars are:

Visa Advisors, Inc
1806 T Street NW
Washington DC 20009
(202) 797-7976

I'm not endorsing them one way or the other because I didn't deal with them directly myself. My only track record is that they got me over & back whenever I needed to go there. I suspect they can answer your questions a lot better than I can.

Definitely use a visa service, saves MUCH difficulty later....

As a frequent Russia traveller, I second that !
Contact www.waytorussia.net, they are the best around, affordable and quick.

If you are there for less than 3 days just get a transit visa. You don't need a letter of invite and processing can cost as little as $100 depending on how much time you give them to process it. I did this at the Kiev consulate three weeks ago to get back into Moscow for a p.m. meeting I had and then left the next morning. You have to fill out an application, provide a picture, show your inbound and outbound ticket, and pay for the visa. Pretty easy. Good for 72 hours though I am not sure if that includes holidays/weekends. Just a suggestion...

Hi - I have done perfectly without a VISA service. Tourist visa though.

I have been to Russia 4 times and have good experience with www.moscow-hotels.net
1 time was on business/private stay visa (long processing time in Russia); 3 times on tourist visa.

They have connection to hotels in Russia and get a lower price than the hotels themselves get and will fix you a tourist visa invitation for free since you booked through them and they can process it if you stay with them.
If you ask them, they will give you additional days than the one you actually stay there: do this! in case you will be delayed at airport, and write on immigration doc you will stay these days; you just leave early... (you can e.g. tell them you will go a day or two to Novgorod since they can't have your business as guest there...)
I can recommend Hotel Rossiya (not finest but certainly good value) a 3* maybe if you take a renovated room. It used to be the world's biggest hotel with between 2 and 3 thousand rooms. It will be demolished in a few years, so it might be your only chance... Also it is 100 yd from the red square and on river Moskva!

According to info on Russian embassy in Norway it is ~80 USD for a 10 day process VISA if from CA, China, UK, IT, Hungary or US . ~15 from baltic states and Georgia. ~110 for Angola, AT, BE, Chile, DE, GR, HK, IL, Jamaica, NL, Philippines, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, CH, UAE, Qatar. ~50 from other countries.
You'd get it same day for about 100 dollars more. I helped a US visitor there once, she got her visa in 5 minutes - for cheaper than in DC with 2 weeks wait.
Additional fees for multiple entries [you need HIV test] (Max 1 year I think)
There also exist double entry visas.

Business VISA must be original and issues by Police Authority.
Tourist VISAs are enough with only fax copy or printout. (pref. fax)

Please fill out your form before going to embassy; download at http://www.norway.mid.ru/webko/anketa-visa.doc

Bring passport valid for +6 months after expiry of visa, tourist confirmation (moscow-hotels) as well as voucher (sometimes it is on same document). This needs to include VISA ref. number (important!)

If you fail just try again ^

PM me if more questions or sample of tourist voucher.

- Ole

Alternately, you can try www.visatorussia.com . I have successfully obtained VISA with this organization too. - Make sure you register your stay when you get to Russia (Not just at the airport)

Since the Russian visa requires that you specify the particular dates of your entry into and departure from Russia, I dutifully obtained a voucher from my hotel with exactly those dates that are consistent with my flights. I completed the visa application, but I turned around on my way to the consulate this morning, because I'm wondering if I should've asked for a few extra days on both ends.

In particular, I'm wondering what will happen if my Delta flight out of Moscow is cancelled -- whether due to strike or outright going out of business. If I can't get another flight on another airline for a day or two, I fear waiting in 12-hour lines to get my visa properly extended. Does anyone have any experience with this kind of situation? I also wonder whether arriving after or leaving before the specified dates would also result in some bureaucratic hassle.

I'll ask the consul, too, but my impression is that I might not get cheerful, helpful counsel.

it never hurts to add a few days onto the start/end of the visa.

as for "I also wonder whether arriving after or leaving before the specified dates would also result in some bureaucratic hassle." if you mean arriving/leavie before/after the dates on the visa then YES, PROBLEM.

you will not be able to enter (and probably not even be allow to board the aircraft) if your visa is not yet valid. and if you try to leave with an expired visa you will be turned back at passport control and told to organize an "exit visa" which is a hassle. (it is possible to do at the airport directly with a consul stationed there- but getting it is unreliable and unpredictable.) so you are much better off adding extra days onto your visa application. the embassy staff wont even question it.

That's helpful, thank you. When you mention that the consul won't question tagging on a couple of days, does that mean I can add days beyond what's on my visa support letter/voucher? Or did you just mean beyond the air tickets I present?

usually they dont care about the tickets (they dont ask to see them) or the hotel voucher. if your support letter is from the hotel, you can say that you plan to change hotels once you're there. (or just make a reservation for a longer period, get your support letter, then change the reservation to a shorter period).

but there is no guarantee...

I've always done this... since the tourist visas have a 30-day limit, there's a fair amount of latitude there.

You're very right there. A friend of mine exited Russia on the Russian/Finnish border hours after midnight on an expired visa. I think he paid 100 USD fine and 50 USD bribe or something like this - no exit visa involved. Successfully returned to Russia two weeks later.
I believe this is not equally easy at the airport.

Be aware! That form will not be accepted at a Russian Consulate in the US for US citizens! You must use the form for US citizens, which is available at http://www.russianembassy.org/consulat/Anketa04.doc.

You probably won't be getting paid (by a Russian company) for your visit to Russia, right? In that case, you should be fine with a tourist visa. No guarantees though.