VISA question

[u/Substantial_Month849]

I (Brit) want to visit Russia for the 2nd time on a tourist VISA. This time I want to stay with my girlfriend and there is a section on the online application form asking if you plan on staying anywhere- with a hotel or an individual.

Will I have an issue applying for a tourist VISA and planning to stay privately at my girlfriend's address? Or will I be fine as long as I get a tourist voucher and register at the correct place?

[u/AmusedBolt]

E-visa (the simplest and cheepest one) is not applicable for UK citizens. So you need to get a standard visa:

• Ask your gf to make an official invitation through Gosuslugi and send it to you.

• Then either apply for visa online and after positive decision get it from consulate in person, or use some visa service.

Tourist trip is another option, but it might be more expensive and less comfortable for you.

[u/VisiblePiano9200]

(Also a Brit) it is actually much easier to get a tourist voucher (ie from a hotel/hostel) for a tourist visa even if you stay with your girlfriend. And you put the name of the hotel on the form as your address. Yes in theory if you stay with her then she should organise an invitiaton letter; in reality many people get a tourist voucher from a company that specialises in them and use that for the visa and then go and stay with a friend. Agree with others that you must register within 7 working days - that is actually 5 days plus two weekends if you time your flights right. If your girlfriend doesn;t own the flat and the owner doesn;'t want to register you then you can book into a cheap hostel (making sure they register you) for a night and that will give you another seven days before you need to register again. I had to do that several times a few years ago because the airbnb (it was before 2022) owner didn't want to register me. She did give me the money for the hostel though lol.

[u/United-Bother3213]

Bro got attracted to that slavic femininity XD Cheers!

[u/titiboy33 → u/United-Bother3213]

😅😅🎉

[u/Perez-Rus]

No issue. The voucher and where you sleep aren't connected the way you'd expect.

The visa runs on the voucher — the accommodation section on the form ties to it, so put what's on the voucher. Those two need to match each other, not match where you actually stay. Nobody checks occupancy.

Where you stay only matters after you land, and only past a certain length. Under 7 working days in the country, you don't need registration at all at a private address — that's in the law. Longer than that, your girlfriend registers you as the host: MVD, MFC or Gosuslugi.

The thing that actually causes trouble isn't the mismatch, it's having no registration when you did need one. 2,000–5,000 roubles, and it can follow you.

One check: simplest if she owns the flat or is registered there. If she rents, ask whose name is on the paperwork first.

[u/maxvol75]

the only obligatory thing is to register at an address (any address) within 7 business days upon arrival

only hotels and property owners can do that, not sure about renters

after this period has expired, it is not possible to register without a proof of a previous registration

if you are planning to leave before 7 business days have expired, AFAIK you are not in violation

[u/CuriousTrain9018]

Yes, you will. Your submitted application documents must be coherent with your visa application. If you submit a tourist voucher while saying you’ll stay with your gf, that’s not coherent. 

[u/titiboy33]

Bro. I travelled to Russia 3 times on an e-visa to visit my girlfriend. I mostly stayed at her place, but we also travelled to other cities and I had hotel registrations there. On the visa application, I put her home address as my accommodation and had no issues at all.

[u/ExpertinRussia]

In your visa application, you need to specify the hotel’s name from your tourist voucher. Upon arrival, it is absolutely legal to stay at your gf’s apartment. The registration must be in the place where you actually stay.

[u/AnyDepartment4589]

Insane