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How much does a visa for Russia cost?

You are planning to travel to Russia soon. Whether it's for holidays, tourism or business, you don't know the exact price of a visa for Russia. The price of a Russian visa depends on the type of visa you need and how you obtain it. You can choose between a traditional visa, or the new digital formula known as the e-Visa. The e-Visa is what we recommend, as it is more practical and easier to obtain.

What is e-Visa?

Clearly, this is a revolution in interstate travel. Initiated by many nations around the world, the e-Visa aims to simplify and speed up access to territories for foreign nationals. Following in the footsteps of several other countries around the world, in 2019 Russia developed an e-Visa for stays on its territory. Since 1 January 2021, the Russian government has introduced an unified electronic visa to visit the whole of Russia. Foreign travellers, including French and other eligible nations, can now apply for one.

The Russian e-Visa allows you to enter Russia on a one-off basis for tourism, business, humanitarian reasons or to visit relatives for a period of 16 days. Beyond this period, you will need to apply for a regular visa. The average time taken to obtain a Russian e-Visa is 4 days. This type of visa is recommended for entering Russia, as it allows you to avoid the administrative burden and long waiting times at the embassy, not to mention the additional costs.

How to obtain your Russian e-Visa

You can obtain your Russian e-Visa entirely online. However, it is up to you to choose whether to go through the authorities' website or an agency.

If you decide to use the agency's services, all you have to do is complete a few simple formalities.

In short, you will need to :

  1. log on to the platform
  2. Fill in the form subscription
  3. submit the necessary documents electronically

What's more, you do not need to hold a Russian resident visa. Similarly, you cannot be in Russia with a valid visa when you apply. You will then be emailed your visa in PDF format, which you can then print out and present to the authorities.

For consular fees, an amount of 49 € will be required. You will be looked after here for a maximum of 4 days, and you will also receive help in compiling your files.

Good to know

From 1 January 2021, the Russian government has introduced a unified electronic visa allowing you to visit the whole of Russia.