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Russian visas harder, not easier to get
from Arch Getty - 5.7.12 - JRL 2012-83

From: Arch Getty <getty@ucla.edu>
Subject: Russian visas harder, not easier to get
Date: Mon, 7 May 2012

Everyone knows that Russia has the most complicated and tiresome procedure of any country for US citizens to obtain a visa. Presumably this is to control the hordes of Americans trying to migrate illegally to Russia.

Oil Well File Photo
file photo

About a year ago, the US ambassador to Russia John Beyrle announced an agreement whereby citizens of both countries would be able to get 3-year visas with a simplified and expedited procedure. Shortly thereafter, Foreign Minister Lavrov and Secretary of State Clinton, with big grins all round, formally announced the agreement. Then... nothing happened. It was announced that the agreement had to be initialed and this took until November of last year. Then another surprise: the Russian side announced that the agreement had to be approved by the Russian Duma. (Russia is the only country in the world where the national legislature must approve even minor visa changes.)

Duma File Photo
file photo
And the hits just keep on coming: a few weeks ago one of the leaders of the Duma announced that because of changes in the Duma's composition resulting from the recent "elections," the matter would have to be postponed until Duma committees could be reorganized. Despite the fact that Putin's party retains a majority, it seems the pesky communists, who are Duma pets incapable of blocking anything, were obstructing the matter. (I guess we're lucky that they didn't follow tradition and blame the Jews, Masons, Jewish Masons, Mongols, sunspots or cosmic alignments for their inability to function.) Further clarifications quickly contradicted this and put forward the outrageous and diplomatically unacceptable position that the Duma would wait until the results of the US elections in November to see if Obama would be re-elected.

That's the "legality" of the matter. But what about practicality? Despite the above, the official line on both sides is that serious efforts are being made to simplify visas. This is simply not true. Let's begin with the longstanding obstructions (and here longstanding means the past 5 years in the constantly changing Russian rulebook.)

First, there is the 2-page form one must fill out to apply for a visa, which asks one to provide, among other things, the full name, address and telephone of every place you attended school or worked, and whether or not you have been "involved in armed conflicts." OK, so maybe they are copying our form.

Second, for some time now one cannot apply for a visa earlier than 45 days before departure for Russia. Given that it takes about 2 weeks for the Russians to generate the invitation necessary to apply for the visa, the subsequent 4-20 day processing time at the Russian consulate is not a realistic option and one is forced to pay double for expedited processing. OK, so maybe they are just greedy.

Third, even if one has a one-year multi-entry visa, one is not allowed to stay in Russia longer than 90 days in any 180 day period. OK, this one defies any reasonable rationality.

Fourth, one must produce a negative HIV test result to get a student visa, but not for a 30-day tourist or 1-year business visa. Does someone believe that students (statistically a very low HIV risk group) are more likely to be infected than other travelers? And, as one wag put it, "Do they really think that a foreigner cannot find sex in Russia in 30 days?!"

More recently, since the gala announcement of simplified procedures last year, three additional changes make it even more difficult. Since last July, one cannot simply download the application form and fill it out. One must use an on-line version. You cannot submit the online form online: you must print it out and send it in, just as before with the old paper form. And, you guessed it, for the first few weeks the site crashed making the required procedure impossible.

Second, the Russian consulate no longer accepts scanned invitations for multi-entry visas. One must have the original expressed from Moscow at considerable extra expense. For some reason, scans are still acceptable for tourist visas and single-entry business visas.

Then, last month, the Russian consulate outsourced the application procedure, making it impossible for humans or travel agents to even approach the consulate with a visa application. One must go through a single company which, for a required additional $30, will accept your paperwork. Of course, the visa requirements on that firm's website contradict, in broken English, the requirements on the consulate's official site on several points.

Wasn't it Karamzin who described the bureaucracy of Nicholas I as "laborious futility?" Little has changed in that regard, except perhaps for a widening gap between what the Russian government agrees to and what it actually does.

Keywords: U.S.-Russian Relations - Russian News - Russia

 

From: Arch Getty <getty@ucla.edu>
Subject: Russian visas harder, not easier to get
Date: Mon, 7 May 2012

Everyone knows that Russia has the most complicated and tiresome procedure of any country for US citizens to obtain a visa. Presumably this is to control the hordes of Americans trying to migrate illegally to Russia.

Oil Well File Photo
file photo

About a year ago, the US ambassador to Russia John Beyrle announced an agreement whereby citizens of both countries would be able to get 3-year visas with a simplified and expedited procedure. Shortly thereafter, Foreign Minister Lavrov and Secretary of State Clinton, with big grins all round, formally announced the agreement. Then... nothing happened. It was announced that the agreement had to be initialed and this took until November of last year. Then another surprise: the Russian side announced that the agreement had to be approved by the Russian Duma. (Russia is the only country in the world where the national legislature must approve even minor visa changes.)

And the hits just keep on coming: a few weeks ago one of the leaders of the Duma announced that because of changes in the Duma's composition resulting from the recent "elections," the matter would have to be postponed until Duma committees could be reorganized. Despite the fact that Putin's party retains a majority, it seems the pesky communists, who are Duma pets incapable of blocking anything, were obstructing the matter. (I guess we're lucky that they didn't follow tradition and blame the Jews, Masons, Jewish Masons, Mongols, sunspots or cosmic alignments for their inability to function.) Further clarifications quickly contradicted this and put forward the outrageous and diplomatically unacceptable position that the Duma would wait until the results of the US elections in November to see if Obama would be re-elected.

Duma File Photo
file photo
That's the "legality" of the matter. But what about practicality? Despite the above, the official line on both sides is that serious efforts are being made to simplify visas. This is simply not true. Let's begin with the longstanding obstructions (and here longstanding means the past 5 years in the constantly changing Russian rulebook.)

First, there is the 2-page form one must fill out to apply for a visa, which asks one to provide, among other things, the full name, address and telephone of every place you attended school or worked, and whether or not you have been "involved in armed conflicts." OK, so maybe they are copying our form.

Second, for some time now one cannot apply for a visa earlier than 45 days before departure for Russia. Given that it takes about 2 weeks for the Russians to generate the invitation necessary to apply for the visa, the subsequent 4-20 day processing time at the Russian consulate is not a realistic option and one is forced to pay double for expedited processing. OK, so maybe they are just greedy.

Third, even if one has a one-year multi-entry visa, one is not allowed to stay in Russia longer than 90 days in any 180 day period. OK, this one defies any reasonable rationality.

Fourth, one must produce a negative HIV test result to get a student visa, but not for a 30-day tourist or 1-year business visa. Does someone believe that students (statistically a very low HIV risk group) are more likely to be infected than other travelers? And, as one wag put it, "Do they really think that a foreigner cannot find sex in Russia in 30 days?!"

More recently, since the gala announcement of simplified procedures last year, three additional changes make it even more difficult. Since last July, one cannot simply download the application form and fill it out. One must use an on-line version. You cannot submit the online form online: you must print it out and send it in, just as before with the old paper form. And, you guessed it, for the first few weeks the site crashed making the required procedure impossible.

Second, the Russian consulate no longer accepts scanned invitations for multi-entry visas. One must have the original expressed from Moscow at considerable extra expense. For some reason, scans are still acceptable for tourist visas and single-entry business visas.

Then, last month, the Russian consulate outsourced the application procedure, making it impossible for humans or travel agents to even approach the consulate with a visa application. One must go through a single company which, for a required additional $30, will accept your paperwork. Of course, the visa requirements on that firm's website contradict, in broken English, the requirements on the consulate's official site on several points.

Wasn't it Karamzin who described the bureaucracy of Nicholas I as "laborious futility?" Little has changed in that regard, except perhaps for a widening gap between what the Russian government agrees to and what it actually does.


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