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sputnik
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 02 Jan 2005
Posts: 141
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 Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2005 6:21 pm Post subject: registration problem when staying at friend's place |
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I am going to russia on the 29th, to Omsk. I'll be staying there at my girlfriend's apartment.
Because so far i still haven't received my required original of the private invitation thanks to slow mail, i am looking for an alternative visa type.
My Dutch travel agent mentioned they could help with a business visa, as they claimed getting a tourist visa for a period longer than 2 weeks would be nearly impossible.
This would bring up the problem though that, my agent having no office in omsk and the business invitation coming from a moscow company, the visa registration would require the help of a willing hotel, where i could book a night or so and ask them to register me..
Asking about a possibility to registerthe visa at ovir, my girlfriend reminded me that they were relaxed last time(when traveling on private visa), but my travel agent, on the contrary, mentioned that going to ovir would cause problems in my situation.
what would be the best way/place to get my registration done?
also, the business visa option leaves me with doubt as what to fill in on the migration card then when arriving in omsk. the moscow inviting company's adress or another?
it also leaves me in doubt whether i should opt for the business visa at all...
if anyone has a good advice on this, id' appreciate it highly... |
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ashton
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 08 Apr 2004
Posts: 80
Location: US
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| Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2005 6:47 pm Post subject: |
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I have always used a tourist visa for any length of time up to two months and never had a problem. I have never bothered with a business visa as it usually takes longer to get the actual invitation.
Either way you are going to have to register with OVIR when you get there, if you are not staying at a hotel, so I would just go for the cheaper and quicker of the two and get a tourist visa. |
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wu687
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 18 Jul 2003
Posts: 199
Location: Victoria BC, Canada
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| Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2005 6:59 pm Post subject: |
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| How do you get a tourist visa for two months, I thought that they had a 30 day limit? |
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sputnik
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 02 Jan 2005
Posts: 141
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| Posted: Thu Jan 13, 2005 8:57 pm Post subject: |
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yes, i would prefer a tourist visa too. it is only that every travel agent i called here so far in the netherlands says that it is impossible to get one for a longer period than 2 weeks.
what bothers me most about the situation though is the registration. will it be okay to go to ovir for registration when i have no hotel booking for omsk and my inviting party is actually a moscow one? :S |
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wavetossed
WayToRussified
Joined: 27 Jun 2004
Posts: 339
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| Posted: Sat Jan 15, 2005 12:15 am Post subject: |
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Personally, I think you should get a business visa. You will have less problems when you leave if you aren't properly registered.
Basically, here is what to do.
1. Get a business visa. Best to do it through this site.
2. Ask your Omsk contacts to supply a letter from the owner of the apartment stating that they agree to allow you to stay there. There is a sample letter in the visa support section of the site.
3. A day or two before leaving, call the moscow office of the visa support company and tell them what you are doing. Fax them a copy of your passport photo page and the business visa page including both parts of the card stapled next to the visa. Also fax a copy of the landlord's letter.
4. When you arrive in Omsk, call the moscow office and give them a fax number to send you a letter. Try an Internet cafe or ask your friend to find someone with a fax machine.
5. Go to the OVIR office with the letter from the landlord (original copy) and the fax from the Moscow office. They should register you there and stamp the thin piece of paper that you got at the airport passport control. This thin paper is the real migration card.
6. If this does not work and OVIR refuses to register you, then spend a night in a hotel and get them to stamp the thin piece of paper.
I stayed in a small town in the Ural mountains and the OVIR office there wouldn't register me because they had never seen such a situation before. I think you will have better luck in a large regional city like Omsk. In my case, I stayed one night in a hotel, got the stamp on my migration card, and the passport control never asked any questions when I left the country. Of course, I had a business visa, and when I left Russia, I was wearing a shirt and tie so that I looked like a business man. |
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sputnik
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 02 Jan 2005
Posts: 141
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| Posted: Sat Jan 15, 2005 4:38 pm Post subject: |
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thanks wavetossed,
it sounds good to me. if somehow the letter from the moscow office might fail, i'll look for a hotel that'll want to take care of the necessary stamp.
a tiny question as i'm still quite green 
what to put on the immigration card? the adress of the moscow (inviting) company? the moscow travel agent or the omsk adress?
i won't be going to moscow |
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wavetossed
WayToRussified
Joined: 27 Jun 2004
Posts: 339
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| Posted: Sun Jan 16, 2005 12:29 am Post subject: |
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I think I put a hotel name on the migration card to make it seem normal for passport control. In fact, if you know the name of the hotel where you will register for a night, then just put that down.
When I got the card on the plane I realized that the address of the apartment was in my suitcase so I couldn't put that down. |
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swp4lfe
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 23 Nov 2004
Posts: 94
Location: Philadelphia PA
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| Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2005 12:02 am Post subject: |
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| I also had to wait for my Invitation for private stay. MY girlfriend mailed it first class and it only took 4 days to arrive. Normally it takes 14 days for me to recieve any mail from her. I went to moscow and registration wasnt a problem for me. I stayed for 19 days and i registered on my 14th day there. I was lucky tho they were closed for holidays. I dont think my migration card asked for a address. I dont remember tho because i was half asleep from jet lag. Also on the migration card it ask for nationality. I put down Italian instead of american and when i got stopped by Russian Army (quite a interesting story) they were wondering why i put down Italian. So make sure you fill it out correctly. |
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deskware7
Frequent Guest
Joined: 07 Jun 2004
Posts: 67
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| Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2005 1:55 am Post subject: |
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| swp4lfe wrote: | | when i got stopped by Russian Army (quite a interesting story) |
So, let's hear the story! Start another topic if you need to. |
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sputnik
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 02 Jan 2005
Posts: 141
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| Posted: Thu Jan 20, 2005 8:28 pm Post subject: |
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quite an interesting story indeed!
i'm usually more precise, so unless i leave the plane in a very drunk state, i expect my nationality and adress to be ok on the card 
i guess it's the same with all bureaucracy: just be sure to write down a consistent story altogether. |
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