Russia, the largest country in the world, has just opened its borders to Filipinos wanting to visit the country. The Philippines is fortunate to be one of 53 countries granted visa-free access to travel certain parts of the territory, namely Kaliningrad, St. Petersburg and Leningrad – both within the Baltic Sea.
Note: visa-free access does not include travel to Moscow, site of the colorful St. Basil’s Cathedral, or the Russian Far East which includes Vladivostok…
For the specified areas, all it takes is to fill up an e-visa application form which is free for citizens of qualified countries. After submitting the form online through this official site: https://evisa.kdmid.ru/en-US, an applicant only has to wait within 4 calendar days to get notified of his or her e-visa. Afterwards, you can print this and show to immigration or border service when you travel to Russia!
Holders of the e-visa are required to comply with the following conditions:
1. E-visa is a single-entry visa and issued for 30 calendar days from the date of its issuance. The permitted stay in the Russian Federation with an e-visa is up to 8 days starting from the date of entry. E-visa validity and/or the permitted stay under it cannot be extended.
2. Purpose of travel must be for business, tourism or humanitarian reasons (including sports, cultural, scientific and technological). For reasons other than these, people are advised to apply for traditional (non-tourist visa) in the local Russian consulate.
3. E-visa applications must be lodged not earlier than 20 days and no later than 4 days before the intended date of entry into the Russian Federation.
4. Passport must be valid for at least 6 months from the date of e-visa application and must have enough free space for border crossing stamps. Prepare a passport-style color photograph taken against a white background (ratio: 3.5 x 4.5)
5. Travelers are required to have a medical insurance valid in the Russian Federation’s territory for the entire period of stay.
St. Petersburg is a beautiful destination in Russia famous for such attractions as the Hermitage Museum, Palace Square, Church on the Spilled Blood, Summer Gardens, Ostrovsky Square etc.
Because of the cold weather, tourists are advised to travel during the warmer months of late May to early October.
Aside from the Philippines, countries qualified for an e-visa to Russia’s Kaliningrad and St. Petersburg regions are the following –
Austria
Andorra
Bahrain
Belgium
Bulgaria
Vatican
Hungary
Germany
Greece
Denmark
India
Indonesia
Iran
Ireland
Iceland
Spain
Italy
Qatar
Cyprus
China (including Taiwan)
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
Kuwait
Latvia
Lithuania
Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
Malaysia
Malta
Mexico
Monaco
Netherlands
Norway
Oman
Poland
Portugal
Romania
San Marino
Saudi Arabia
Northern Macedonia
Serbia
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
Turkey
Finland
France
Croatia
Czech Republic
Switzerland
Sweden
Estonia
Japan
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