Russian visa for citizens of Lithuania

Are you going to visit Russia to travel, study, work, visit relatives or friends? In this article you will find lots of useful information on how to get your visa, which documents you’ll need, where to apply for it and answers to all related questions.

Do Lithuanian citizens need a visa to Russia?

Yes, they do.

Unless you are a holder or diplomatic or service passport or member of some official delegation which has the visa-free entry right.

Mind, that you should obtain your visa prior to your trip, because you cannot get a visa in Russia or on the border. 

It may sound pretty challenging and some travelers can even change their mind and choose some other visa-free country of destination. You don’t need to do that!

We analyzed the entire process of visa application and offer you a simple 5-step guide to your Russian visa. You’ll love our guide and find how you can get your visa by yourself without the need to buy package tours or pay agent’s commissions. 

Read on and if you have questions left you can always get your free consultation by contacting our email.

Step 1. Decide on your travel dates and identify which visa type you need

Below you will find a description of the main Russian visa types. Select the one which matches your travel purposes, duration of your trip and other points. 

You don’t need to buy tickets to apply for a visa, but you have to determine the approximate travel dates, period of stay and number of entries you are going to make.

Here’s an overview of Russian visa types and further on you’ll find a more detailed description

Visa types	Validity period	Travel purpose
Tourist visa	30 days	tourism and leisure
Private visa	90 days	private guest visits. Not recommendable: see why here
Business visa	30 -90 days (up to 5 years max)	conducting business in Russia, looking for partners, negotiating, investing etc.
Transit visa	3 -10 days	crossing Russian territory on your way to another country
Student visa	90 days and above	studying a course in a Russian school or university
Work visa	90 days and above	working under contract for a Russian employer
Electronic visa	8 days	short tourist, business or humanitarian visits

Russian Tourist visa for Lithuanian citizens

Period of stay: maximum 30 days. 

Number of entries: single, double

Purpose of traveling: 

• Visiting the sights
• Attending cultural events, festivals, concerts, exhibitions, auctions.
• Driving independently through the country on your own vehicle (Auto tourism)
• Coming for short medical examinations, consultations (Aim tourism)
• Attending brief business events (Aim tourism)
• Traveling to Russian ports on cruise liners (if you go as part of organized group, you can stay up to 72 hours visa-free)

Basis for visa: Tourist confirmation, issued by a registered Russian travel agency. 

Russian Private Visa for Lithuanian citizens

Duration of visit: up to 90 days

Number of entries: single, double

Purpose of traveling:

• Coming on a guest visit to see your Russian relatives and friends 

Basis for visa – invitation provided by the MIA (Ministry of Internal Affairs) of Russia following a petition from the Russian host

Russian Business and Humanitarian visa for Lithuanian citizens

Duration of stay: you cannot stay longer than 90 days in every 180. A visa can be issued from 1 month to 1 year (1 year visa can be obtained, if you had two previous Russian visas in the last year).

Number of entries: single, double, multiple

Purpose of traveling:

• Conducting negotiations with Russian partners
• Attending business meetings, fairs, exhibitions and other events
• Signing contracts, agreements, purchasing goods and services for business, investing into projects
• Providing maintenance support work (Technical Maintenance sub-purpose)
• Carrying out short-term commercial activities (Commercial sub-purpose)
• Establishing or renewing cultural, sports, socio-political, religious, charity ties (Humanitarian type)

Basis for visa: Either of these:

• Written invitation provided by the host Russian organization on their official business letterhead signed and sealed;
• Official invitation supplied by the MIA of Russia following a request from the Russian host company 
• Telex directive supplied by the MFA of Russia following a request from the Russian host company

Russian Student Visa for Lithuanian citizens

Duration of visit: 

You can stay 90 days and longer, depending on your study course. Initially, you will get a 90 days visa, but it can be prolonged by the educational establishment on the territory of Russia.

Number of entries: single, multiple 

Purpose of traveling: 

• Studying at a Russian University
• Attending language and other courses

Basis for visa: Official invitation supplied by the MIA of Russian upon petition of a Russian educational institution.

Russian Work visa for Lithuanian citizens

Duration of visit:

You can stay 90 days and longer under your civil labour contract. You can get a standard work visa for 90 days ad extend it i Russia if necessary, or visa for Highly Qualified Experts for 3 years at once.

Number of entries: single, multiple

Purpose of traveling: 

• Paid work for a Russian employer

Basis for visa: original invitation supplied by the MIA of Russia following a request of the Russian employing company.

Russian Transit Visa for Lithuanian citizens

Duration of stay: if you pass through Russia by air you can stay up to 3 days, if by road or railroad – up to 10 days

Number of entries: single

Reasons for traveling: 

• Traveling through Russia to another country of destination

Basis for visa: Tickets for entry and departure from Russia

Important: Travelers who make flight connections without the need to leave transit zone, do not need visas. Please check with your airlines whether you require transit visa to make your connection.

Important: Passengers following to Belarus or Kazakhstan with connection in Russia require transit visa

Russian E-Visa for Lithuanian citizens

Duration of visit:you can spend in Russia no more than 8 days out of 30

Number of entries: Single

Purpose of traveling: 

• Short tourist, business or humanitarian visits to one of the three regions: Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Region, or The Far East and Vladivostok, or Kaliningrad and Kaliningrad Region. Traveling to other regions isn’t allowed on E-visa. You can enter and leave only through the same border point.

Basis for visa: Application filled online 4 days prior to your trip. It’s printed out and shown at the border. 

Step 2. Prepare the necessary documents for your visa application. Get our help with visa support

Have you figured out which visa type you need? Great! Now it’s time for some paperwork. You will need to collect the following list of documents:

• Your international passport in original. Make sure it has minimum 2 blank visa pages, and will be valid at least 6 months more after your Russian visa expires. Please, also make a copy of the bio page of your passport

• Invitation from Russia. Read on the inviting authorities in Step 2. Request your Russian host to provide you with the required invitation. 

We can help you with: 

An official tourist confirmation for your tourist visa: Get tourist invitation letter

An official business invitation made in 1 to 20 working days for your business visa: Get business invitation letter

• Visa application form which you fill online. 

For regular visas complete the form at visa.kdmid.ru print it on both sides of the paper, sign, and date.

For E-visa, request professional help with filling the form here: http://visando.com/apply-evisa 

E-visa applications must be filled on the kdmid site not later than 4 days before your trip.

• Personal color photo 3.5 x 4.5 taken recently within the last 6 months, on white background, without shades or hats. Read more on visa photo specifications here: Visa photo specifications. Glue your photo into the marked field in the visa form, don’t use stampler or adhesive tape.

• Insurance policy for travelers to Russia, for the whole period of your stay. The policy can be in English or Russian, and contain details of the insured person and insuring organization, it should be signed and stamped.

• For Work and Student visa, if you are going to stay in Russia more than 90 days, you’ll also need an HIV-negative medical certificate, valid for 3 months submitted in original.

Remember you can apply for your visa not earlier than 3 months before your entry to Russia.

Step 3. Apply for a visa and pay the visa fees

As a citizen or resident of Lithuania you can apply for a Russian visa at one of these organs:

• at a Russian Consulate in Vilnius or Klaipeda by booking an appointment on the website of the consulate and submitting the documents in person 

• at an official Russian visa center in Vilnius in person on Mon-Fri from 9 till 15:00 without prior appointments

Consulates accept individual applicants, but it’s recommended to apply via the visa center, because they were created to facilitate the process. 

	pros	cons
Apply via the Consulate	You’ll only pay the consulate fee and be fully responsible for the entire process	You’ll have to wait for the appointment to submit your documents
		Your documents won’t be checked, if you make some mistakes or fill the forms incorrectly, you’ll be just rejected a visa.
		You’ll need to collect your passport with visa as there’s no delivery service available
Apply via the Russia visa center	you can apply at working hours without any prior appointment	You’ll need to pay service fee apart from the consulate fee
	your documents will be checked by the manager to avoid rejection due to mistakes you can order delivery of your passport back to you as well as use other additional services	If you order any extra services you’ll have to pay extra fees for them

Find the directions and contacts of the consulates and visa centers here: Russian Embassies and Cosulates. The choice is up to you.

Whichever way of application you choose, you’ll need to pay the visa fees, which are non-refundable.

The consular fee amounts to 35 EUR for standard processing in 4-20 days, and 70 EUR for expedited in 1-3 days.

Russia visa center charges extra 21 EUR for their services. You’ll have to pay another 10 EUR if you want a courier to deliver your passport to your place after the visa process is finished.

Step 4. Get and check your visa

After receiving notification that the visa process has finished, you can get your passport back from where you’ve applied. Don’t forget to take your ID and the receipt from visa fees you’ve paid during submission.

Carefully examine your Russian visa stamp. It contains this information:

If you spot any mistakes don’t hesitate to apply for correction at the issuing organ.

If everything is okay, prepare for your trip and have a safe travel!

Step 5. Pass immigration control and get registered in Russia

After you arrive to Russia, remember to collect two more required documents:

• Migration card
• Registration

When you arrive obtain and fill in the migration card. Get it from flight attendants on the plane, or from the immigration officer at control point. The document has two parts with identical fields, one will be stamped and given back to you by the immigration officer, another he’ll keep for the record. Don’t lose the slip, and carry it along in your passport during your stay in Russia. You’ll need to return it when leaving the country.

Registration is required if you plan to stay longer than 7 working days in Russia. Get it from the hotel management, or ask the owner of your apartment to register you at the local post or police office.

I hope we’ve clarified the issue of getting a Russian visa, and following our guide you’ll be able to obtain your visa and happily travel to Russia.