Citizens of 53 countries can now enter Russia’s western-most region on an e-visa

Travel
VICTORIA RYABIKOVA
The region in question is Kaliningrad; the visa is free and valid for up to eight days

On July 1, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs authorized entry into the Kaliningrad region by e-visa, according to its website.

To apply for a visa, potential visitors have to fill out an application form on the website of the consular department of the Russian Foreign Ministry and attach a photo. The application can be made no later than four and no earlier than 20 days before the expected date of entry. The visa is issued in four days, regardless of holidays and weekends.

The visa is issued for a 30-day period for stays in the region of no longer than eight days. The purpose of travel can be tourism, business, or humanitarian reasons. The visa, however, is not valid for travel to other parts of the Russian Federation. It covers only the city and region of Kaliningrad, which form a Russian exclave wedged between Poland and Lithuania, separated from the rest of Russia.

By July 4, more than 2,000 applications for an e-visa to Kaliningrad had been submitted, said Alla Ivanova, head of the regional agency for international and interregional relations.

An identical e-visa regime exists for entry into Vladivostok, via land and sea checkpoints. And since Sept. 1, 2018, the scheme been extended to airports across the entire Far Eastern Federal District.

List of countries whose citizens can apply for an e-visa to Kaliningrad: 

1.

Austria

2.

Andorra

3.

Bahrain

4.

Belgium

5.

Bulgaria

6.

Vatican

7.

Hungary

8.

Germany

9.

Greece

10.

Denmark

11.

India

12.

Indonesia

13.

Iran

14.

Ireland

15.

Iceland

16.

Spain

17.

Italy

18.

Qatar

19.

Cyprus

20.

China (including Taiwan)

21.

Korean People’s Democratic Republic

22.

Kuwait

23.

Latvia

24.

Lithuania

25.

Lichtenstein

26.

Luxembourg

27.

Malaysia

28.

Malta

29.

Mexico

30.

Monaco

31.

The Netherlands

32.

Norway

33.

Oman

34.

Poland

35.

Portugal

36.

Romania

37.

San-Marino

38.

Saudi Arabia

39.

North Macedonia

40.

Serbia

41.

Singapore

42.

Slovakia

43.

Slovenia

44.

Turkey

45.

The Philippines

46.

Finland

47.

France

48.

Croatia

49.

The Czech Republic

50.

Switzerland

51.

Sweden

52.

Estonia

53.

Japan