Business Invitation to Russia

Business visa is issued at the Consulate based on a business invitation for the following purposes: search for new business partners, business negotiations, consultations, meetings, etc. Thus, it is a very popular option for those who travel to Russia regularly for business reasons.

Depending on the type of invitation, citizenship and previous business visas, such visa can be issued for a period of 1 to 60 months and can be of single, double or multiple entry.

A single or double visa allows to have no more than one or two entries, and is issued for 1 or 3 months.

If the visa is with multiple entries, it can be issued for a period of six months to 5 years.

In order to get a business visa, one must obtain a business invitation first. To apply for a business invitation one can address a visa company, which works with foreign citizens travelling to Russia.

Business invitation can be of 3 types: from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and an invitation on the form of an organization.

1. Invitation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs – telex

This type of business invitation is issued only for citizens of Japan, the United States of America, the European Union, Australia and New Zealand for a period of 1 to 12 months.

Telex is quite a convenient type of invitation for those who do not want to dig deep into the business invitation issuing process. All the necessary information about the invitation is sent to the certain Consulate/Embassy the foreign citizen chose. One only needs to indicate the telex code in the visa application form. All information in the invitation and in the visa application form should match.

2. Invitation from the Ministry of Internal Affairs (former FMS)

This type of invitation can be of 2 types: electronic and original on paper.

It is very suitable for those travelers who visit Russia for the first time. The invitation is issued for a period of 1 to 12 months. Original invitation on paper allows submitting document for a visa at any Consulate. However, the paper invitation will need to be delivered firstly, which requires additional time and money.

The electronic format is more convenient. As well as with the telex from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, all the necessary information about the invitation goes to a certain Consulate/Embassy, a foreign citizen only needs to provide the Consular with the invitation number. All information in the invitation and in the visa application form mustshould match.

3. Invitation on the form of organization

Unlike with the first two types of invitation, this one allows to stay in Russia for more than 12 months. It is issued on the letterhead of the inviting organization. Depending on citizenship and previous multiple business visas to Russia, it can be issued for a period of up to 36 and 60 months. This type of invitation is available for citizens of the EU countries, the USA and Japan.