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Registering your visa in Russia
According to Russian law, your Russian visa must be
registered within 72 hours of your arrival (excluding weekends and
official holidays).
So, if you stay in Russia more than three working
days, or you are involved in a civil ceremony such as
getting married, then you need to register your visa.
We will send you a guide on
registration when you order your visa.
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 What is visa
registration?
Registration of visas is a form of migration control within Russia
managed by UFMS (Federal Migration Service Organisation). It is not
aimed specifically at tourists or business people, rather its general aim is to
control illegal immigration from the former Soviet Republics into the Russian
Federation, though as the law is all encompassing, foreigners including
tourists are also required to register.
Basically, registration involves placing a stamp either in your passport
or on your migration card and
obtaining a registration slip. The stamps and registration slip show the period you are registered to stay in any one place. In
addition to the dates it will also contain the name of the hotel, accommodation
or apartment, where you are staying and the name of the sponsor
organisation.
Please be aware that the Russian militia often stop people
to check their passports and travel documents, especially around
train stations, metro stations, bus stations and areas such as the
Kremlin so remember to take your passport, migration card and
registration slip with you every time
you leave your hotel or apartment. There is nothing unusual in this and there
is nothing to be worried about if you are stopped, so long as you have
registered correctly.
If you are stopped by the Militia for any reason, they will check that you are
registered to be in the city / town and that the dates are valid.
What will happen if I
don't register?
Remember, your Russian visa is an exit as well as entry visa, and if you don't
register then technically it may lead to serious problems with the authorities
including fines, detention, deportation and even prevention of leaving the
country.
In practice, more often than not, if you have not registered your visa within
the time required by Russian law you will be exposing yourself to "fines" by
the local militia or other officials who may stop and check your passport.
If you have registered your visa correctly, or you had no need to register your
visa when stopped by the Militia - for example if you had only arrived the day
before - and you are told you need to pay a "fine", stand your ground and say
"no", you have not broken the law, they are just looking for a bribe. If they
persist, insist that you call your embassy to inform them you are the subject
of police harassment, this will in most cases put them off.
If you are stopped by the Militia and you have not registered your visa within
the proscribed time, the maximum fine prescribed by Russian law
is now about $30.00 and, regardless of what the Militia say, at this point it is
highly unlikely that you would be deported (the Militia do not have the
power to do this) - as it is only a civil not a criminal offence. They can, if
they choose take you to the Militia station for up to three hours to record
your details and check you up and if they choose after this apply for your
deportation. Because of this, we have heard of people who have paid
up to $500
in "fines" as it is very difficult, if not impossible, to say "no" when faced
by a couple of burley, unsmiling and armed militiamen in a foreign country and
threatened with a trip to the local police station and the possibility
deportation procedures!
When leaving Russia through passport control at an international airport,
crossing a land border or flying internally through a regional airport if you
do not have correct registration then there is a chance that you can be fined
(up to £1,000.00). In extreme situations you may also be deported "on the spot"
and if this happens you will not be allowed to enter Russia for five years.
It is important to understand
that if you are "officially fined" (that is your details have been taken and
you have been given a receipt) twice for breeches of registration rules then
this information will be recorded and be made available to the Russian
consulates worldwide. In such a situation you may be blacklisted from obtaining
a Russian visa for five years.
The best way to avoid such unpleasant situations is to register the visa as
soon as you arrive.
OK, so now
I'm worried, what should I do?
Don't worry, registering your visa is fairly straightforward, just click on the
questions below to find out what to do.
Can you tell me more?
If you still have more questions please feel free to look at our
Frequently Asked Questions, our
Forum or, contact us
directly and we'd be delighted to help.
Finally, remember that while we keep this guide as up to date as possible
and include feedback from clients where relevant, you should be aware; that it
is not a comprehensive guide to all cities and situations; that Russian Federal
visa and registration rules change on a regular basis, often without notice;
that some registration authorities in the regions may also implement their own
version or they may simply refuse to register your visa even if they should. If
you encounter registration problems while you are in Russia, please get in
touch with us immediately
and we will do our best to resolve these through our Russian offices and
partners.
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I'm staying in a hotel,
how do I register?
If you are staying in a hotel, the hotel will register your visa (tourist or
business) for you on arrival and may make a small charge of up to $5. They may keep
your passport while they do this, so don't leave the hotel until you have it
back, you will have problems if you are stopped by the police without it.
Once you have received your passport and registration back from the hotel, do
check that the dates they have put on it are correct.
I have a
visa, I'm staying in Moscow or
St. Petersburg but I'm not staying in a hotel, now what?
- If you are staying in Moscow, then our Moscow office can register your visa for you. You will need to
contact them on arrival in
Moscow to arrange to take your
documents to them within two working days of arrival, currently this will be:
- Your passport
- Your migration card - that you will receive on entry into Russia
- A photocopy of your passport page, your migration card and visa (if
required you can do this at our office)
- For tourist visas 750 Roubles registration fee (if you have not pre-paid for this
service with your order)
- For business visas 1,000 Roubles registration fee - please
note that for business visas the maximum period we can register the visa
for is 90 days, if you require registration longer than this then you
will need to "de-register" and then register again before your first
registration expires
- We will then complete the required forms with you and submit these to the local UFMS
- You will need to return to our office to collect your migration card
and registration document or we can arrange for a courier to deliver
this to you.
- When you leave Russia, the working day before you depart you should return the
tear off strip to our our office so we may return this to the UFMS for you to
"de-register" your visa. Remember, that if you do not de-register your visa then
you may face fines when leaving Russia or difficulty obtaining another visa for
your next trip. If you re-enter Russia again, even using the same visa then you
will need to register your visa again.
- Please note if you fail to register within the three working
day window and want to register after this there is a fine of £150.00
levied by the Moscow UFMS - so if you are registering in Moscow through
our office then we request that you visit us within two working days of
arrival to avoid this.
- If you are staying in St. Petersburg, then our partner
office can register your visa for you. You will need to
contact them on arrival in
St. Petersburg to arrange to take your
documents to them, currently this will be:
- Your passport
- Your migration card - that you will receive on entry into Russia
- A photocopy of your passport page, your migration card and visa (if
required you can do this at their office)
- For tourist visas 900 Roubles registration fee (if you have not pre-paid for this
service)
- They will then complete the required forms with you and submit these to the local
UFMS
- You will need to return to our partner office to collect your migration card
and registration document.
- When you leave Russia, the day before you depart you should return the
tear off strip to our our office so we may return this to the UFMS for you to
"de-register" your visa. Remember, that if you do not de-register your visa then
you may face fines when leaving Russia or difficulty obtaining another visa for
your next trip. If you re-enter Russia again, even using the same visa then you
will need to register your visa again.
- You may complete the required forms yourself and take these to the
relevant UFMS office.
- For tourist and private visas the office will be the local UFMS to
the place that you wish to be registered
- For business visas the office will be the central UFMS of the city
- A photocopy of your passport page, your migration card
and visa
- A copy of your landlords/hosts passport and registration
- You will need to take your host with you to complete the
notification of arrival form
- When you leave Russia, the day before you should return the tear off
strip to your host so they may return this to the UFMS for you to
"de-register" your visa. Remember, that if you do not de-register your visa then
you (and your host) may face fines when leaving Russia or difficulty obtaining another visa for
your next trip. If you re-enter Russia again, even using the same visa then you
will need to register your visa again.
I'm not staying in a
hotel and I'm not staying in Moscow or St. Petersburg, what should I do?
If you are not staying in Moscow or St. Petersburg and you are not staying at a
hotel, you will need to register your visa with the local UFMS (Federal
Migration Service Organisation). While it may not be necessary, some places
require that we can provide
you with an official letter requesting UFMS officials to register your with
your other documents. Please make sure that you select "Registration support letter required"
when you order your visa, and, when you receive your passport and visa:
Send us by email to
registration@realrussia.co.uk
or fax to +44 (0) 207 900 3633
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A scan, or clear fax, of your visa
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The full address of the private apartment that you will be
staying at and the person who will be your host
We will then prepare your registration support letter and send it to you by
email usually the same day we receive your details.
Please note that this is not the registration itself, it is a letter
requesting registration. Print out the letter and when in Russia take this to
the local UFMS along with your passport and migration
card (which you received on entry to Russia). You will be asked to complete a
notification of arrival form - which is entirely in Russian, so it would be advisable that
if you are not comfortable with the language that you take a Russian speaking
friend or relative with you. The UFMS should then register your visa,
experience shows that if all documents are correct it will usually takes about
15 minutes (after you work your way through the queues which can take
several hours).
The registration will take the form of the completed tear of registration slip
from the
bottom of the notification of arrival form, and, in some cases a stamp on your
migration card and / or passport.
If you have a business visa and you require registration over 90 days, you may
also be required to provide the results of a HIV test, this usually would be
carried out in Russia and the UFMS would direct you to a local clinic who
can usually prepare the test certificate within 24 hours.
When you leave Russia, the day before you should return the tear off
strip to your host so they may return this to the UFMS for you to
"de-register" your visa. Remember, that if you do not de-register your visa then
you (and your host) may face fines when leaving Russia or difficulty obtaining another visa for
your next trip. If you re-enter Russia again, even using the same visa then you
will need to register your visa again.
As an alternative to registering with the UFMS, often in many provincial cities
you can find a "friendly" hotel who will register your visa for you for a fee,
even if you are not staying there. Some insist that you stay a night or two (or
at least pay for the room) before registering your visa, while other just make
a flat charge. This depends on the city and region, though typically is
between
$20 to $50. If you choose this option, please do so only if you are having difficulty
registering at the local UFMS in time or for some other reason.
I have a private visa,
how do I register?
While a private visa (that is a visa raised with a private invitation sent from
friends or relatives in Russia to you in the UK) can be an exercise in
frustration to obtain, often taking several months and often costing twice as
much as a simple tourist visa, a major benefit is that it is very easy to
register to a private address (e.g. not a hotel) for up to a 90 day visit.
Simply take your passport and migration card to the local UFMS office when you
arrive in the town or city that issued the invitation and they will register
the visa for you. You do not need to take a copy of the invitation document or
anything else, all information is encoded on the visa. The hardest part can be
actually getting someone to be interested in registering the visa for you,
especially during the summer or holiday periods, but persevere and ensure that
you get registered within three working days.
Are there any cities
that are difficult to register in?
Most cities throughout Russia are relatively painless to register in, and, if
you are staying in a hotel you should have no problems at all.
However, if you are staying in one of the following "restricted" cities and not
staying in a hotel, then you will need to get a registration support letter
from us (see above) and if the OVIR will not register your
visa, go to our local partner office who will register your visa for you.
Please note that the partner office will make a charge for this which is
payable directly to them.
You should also ensure that you have listed the city as one to be visited when
when you request your visa from us and that you have a copy of your visa
support documents with you when you arrive.
You can download a printable list of our partners in these cities by
clicking here.
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ASTRAKHAN
While Astakhan is not technically a
"restricted city" the local authorities request additional
documents for registration if the individual is not staying
in a hotel registered for foreigners. For
registration periods over three days the inviting organisation needs
to provide:
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A copy of the passport
of the General Director
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A company letter stating
that the inviting company will take all responsibility
for the invited person during their stay in Russia.
These conditions are not
possible for our or almost any other Russian company to provide
and you should consider this information when organising trips to
this area. |
BARNAUL
Salut
Natalia Alexandrovna Korkina
Tel/fax: +7 (3852) 510924
While Barnaul is on the list, reports
from clients indicate that the local OVIR and authorities are very
welcoming to tourists and other foreign travellers in the area and
if not staying in a hotel you may use the standard
registration support letter. However, in the case of any
difficulties, please contact our local partner for assistance.
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GORNO-ALTAYSK
OOO "Aguna"
Samaeva Lubov Nikolayevna
Tel/fax: +7 (3882) 222413
aguna@mailgorny.ru
The cost of registration is 300
Roubles.
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HABAROVSK
Welcome Tours
Sergei Hromykh
Tel/fax: +7 (4212) 305603, 32679, 783344
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IRKUTSK
Baikal-Discovery Ltd.
Alexey Nikiforov
Tel/fax: +7 (3952) 243715, 619835
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KALININGRAD
Ksenia-Tour
Oksana Leonidovna Zarinnaya
Tel/fax: +7 (0112) 916225, 916164
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KAMCHATKA and PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKY
As of 01.02.2007
this region is now only allowed to be entered by foreign nationals
who receive a special permit from the local authorities. It is not
possible to request business or tourist visas to allow entry alone,
the visa must be accompanied by the new permit, which can take up to
three months to process.
If travelling on a tourist or
business visa then a scan of your visa should be sent to the local
FSB before you enter the region.
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KAZAN
Kazan Intour
Olga
Tel/fax: +7 (8432) 920 555
Tourist registration costs 50 Euros and business
registration 4,200 Roubles.
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MURMANSK
Guliver-Rus / Andrey Akulayev
Tel: +7 (8512) 459000
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NIZNI NOVGOROD
Vip-Travel
Elena Alexandrovna Yashina
Tel: +7 (8312) 19-48-69, fax: 18-09-55
If you are flying directly into Nizhnii
Novgorod from outside of Russia, for example from Vienna, and wish to use a
tourist visa, this now requires a special voucher. Processing time is one
business day and the cost is an additional £45.00 on top of the standard
visa charge. Please make sure that when ordering you select Nizhnii Novgorod as
your arrival city, and enter "flying direct" into the comments box. You may pay
for the additional charge with either a cheque or postal order made to "real
russia limited", or cash.
This new voucher does not apply if you are
using a business visa, or travelling to Nizhni Novgograd from a Russian
city.
Please note that all foreigners staying in the
city of Nizhni Novgorod for more than 7 days are required to have an
HIV test in order to obtain local registration. This test is to be processed in
the UK and an International Medical Certificate obtained or in Nizhny Novgorod
at 20E, Minina Street. Phone numbers: (8312) 195-483 or 199-549. This also
applies to people staying at hotels.
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NOVOSIBIRSK
While Novosibirsk is not
technically a "restricted" city, we have had reports from clients who have had
difficulty registering their visas with the local OVIR. As we currently do not
have a partner in Novosibirsk you should either register before you arrive (for
example in Moscow), or, check in to a local hotel. We have been informed that
the "Siba Hotel" will register your visa for the full duration of your stay for
the cost of one night for their cheapest room. If you have had problems
registering in Novosibirsk while staying in a private apartment and
successfully managed to register your visa, please let us know by posting a
message to our forum.
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OMSK
Pyat’ Zvezd
Buzoverov O.V.
Tel/Fax: +7 (3812) 535555
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PETROZAVODSK
Nordic Travel
Konstantin
Tel: +7 (921) 7002543, fax: +7 (8814) 2558201
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PETROPAVLOVSK–KAMCHATSKII
Polus-M
Oleg Yuryevich Morozov
Tel/fax: +7 (4152) 258530, 115011
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PIATIGORSK
Piatigorsk-Intur
Nona Bagrationovna
Tel/fax: +7
(87933) 63411
It is very important
that you have a copy of your visa support documents if entering Piatigorsk or
the surrounding area through the airport at Mineralnye Vode that you
have a copy of your visa support documents with you otherwise you will have
extreme difficulty with the authorities including repeated fines and even
detention or deportation.
Tourist registration costs 500 Roubles.
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ROSTOV-ON-DON
Maverik
Ivan
Tel/fax: +7 (8632) 698057
We also have received the following information from
Tony J (thanks Tony) with regards to registering in Rostov-on-Don:
"It turns out there's a little hotel that's happy to
register anybody for 600 roubles - no need to stay there. And they'll leave the
registration date open-ended so you can fill in whatever ending date you want.
Here's the details: Starry Rostov (Old Rostov) ph.262-52-94 Rostov-na-Donu,
Turgenevskaya 32."
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SAMARA
Intourist-Samara
Varvara, Elena
Tel:
+ 7(864) 310 00 00
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SAHALIN
Sahalin Travel Group
Alexander Dashevski
Tel: +7 (4242) 727288
If you are travelling to the
Uzhno-Sachalinsk / Sakhalin region note that this is a place of
restricted passport control.
The Sakhalin local Authorities
(Migration Department) exercise close control over all building
sites, plant facilities, and other places where foreign citizens can
work. If the Authorities find a foreign citizen working there on a
business visa invitation processed by some "non local" company they
will deport these people. At the same time the Sakhalin Authorities
will apply sanctions to the company that processed business
invitations and also to the Sakhalin company that invited the
foreign citizens for work.
Certainly, foreign citizens can enter Sakhalin on business visas
provided by Real Russia if they intend to take a part in meetings,
negotiations, conferences, etc. but not for work!
As such we may contact you to confirm
the exact nature of your business in the region to avoid any
potential problems.
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STAVROPOL
Pyatigorsk Intour
Andrei
Tel:
+7 (8652) 947 218
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VLADIMIR
While Vladimir is not
technically a "restricted" city, we have had reports from clients who have had
difficulty registering their visas with the local OVIR in the surrounding areas
when staying at private apartments as well as some difficulties in Vladimir
itself.
As we currently do not have a registration
partner in Vladimir you should either register before you arrive (for example
in Moscow), or, check in to a local hotel. It is recommend that if possible you
request your registration support letter before you travel to
Vladimir to avoid any potential problems at the OVIR. If you have had problems
registering in Vladimir while staying in a private apartment and successfully
managed to register your visa, please let us know by posting a message to our
forum.
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VLADIVOSTOK
Voyage-Torg-Service
Valeriy Chupin
Tel: +7 (4232) 454465, fax: 459483
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| VOLOGDA
While Vologda is not technically a
"restricted city" the local authorities only allow hotels to
register their foreign clients for a maximum of three (3) days. For
registration periods over three days the inviting organisation needs
to provide:
-
A copy of the passport
of the General Director
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A copy of invited
persons passport
-
The registration form
with the original inviting company stamp
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A company letter stating
that the inviting company will take all responsibility
for the invited person during their stay in Russia.
Conditions one and two are
not so bad.
Condition three is
difficult and would involve additional costs as our companies are based in Moscow and St Petersburg and
the registration form would need to be couriered about Russia to get
the stamp.
Condition four is not
possible for our or almost any other Russian company to provide
and you should consider this information when organising trips to
this area.
Update July 2007: A client reported that
his hotel in Vologda registered him for three days at a time each time
his registration "expired". |
How long can I stay in
Russia when I have registered my visa?
If you have a one or three month visa (tourist or business), you may stay in
Russia for the validity period of the visa.
Multiple entry business visas may be registered for a maximum of six months
during a single visit as long as this is within the validity of the visa.
Foreign nationals with one year business visas will have to leave Russia within
six months of their entry, even if only for one day. Please remember that you
will need to renew your registration if you re-enter Russia.
Please note that effective 01.06.07 according to new Russian migration laws
and dependant upon your nationality there may be restrictions on how long you
can stay in Russia during any specific periods and this restriction if it
applies will be written into the visa. Currently EU passport holders (excluding
the UK and Denmark) are
restricted to a maximum of 90 days in a 180 day period.
Do I only have to
register my visa once?
In theory you should register your visa when you arrive in a city, or town
within three working days. So, if you arrive in Moscow and stay for 4 days and
move on to St. Petersburg for 4 days then you need to obtain a registration
stamp in both cities.
If you are not staying in a city or town for three working days then there is no
"technical" need to register, however, if you have the chance to do so easily
then you should do so as it avoids any potential problems with "gaps" in your
registration.
Where you have been travelling between cities you should keep copies of any
tickets to show the period of the journey if requested to explain gaps in the
registration.
What if I am travelling
and don't have a chance to register?
If you arrive in Russia and then continue to transit to your final destination
without the chance to register your visa, for example arrive in Moscow on a
Saturday and taking the Sunday train from Moscow
through to Vladivostok which takes over 6 days, then you should keep
copies of your plane, rail or other travel tickets and show these to any
official who asks to show why you could not register.
When you arrive at your final destination or if you have a chance en-route then
please ensure that you register your visa as soon as possible.
What is the
migration card?
When you cross the border into Russia, for example by by air from London into
Moscow or overland by train from Helsinki into St Petersburg, then you will be
given a migration card which you will need to complete. The card is in two
parts; part "A" and "B" and both parts need to be completed (in block capitals)
before you go through passport control.
Part "A" of the card will be kept by passport control on entry and part "B"
is returned to you with an entry stamp on it - do not loose this card and keep
it with your passport at all times. When you leave Russia you need to present
passport control with part "B" of your migration card containing your entry
stamp, and, if required your registration stamp(s) from the hotel or UFMS.
If you have failed to register your visa correctly or lost your migration
card, then you may have problems with passport control when leaving Russia
including fines of up to £1,000.
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Part "B" of a migration card showing an entry
stamp |
UFMS registration stamp on the rear of part "B"
of a migration card |
In some cases, the migration card may only be in Russian and not have an
English translation and you may find the following sample form below useful.
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Sample migration card only in Russian with English
translation of text |
What is the
notification of arrival form and registration slip?
The notification of arrival form is is a form is required if you are not
staying in a hotel and is filled in either in our office in Moscow or St.
Petersburg if we are registering your visa for you, or at the local UFMS if you
are registering your own visa. The form is entirely in Russian and if you do not
speak Russian then it would be useful for you to have either your hosts or
Russian speaking friends help you to complete it. A sample of the form may be
viewed by
clicking here and remember that if you are printing this out for use later
that it needs to be double sided on a single sheet of paper with the "tear off"
registration slip aligned on each side.
The form contains personal information and data about you, your trip to
Russia, your passport and visa details, the address and details of your
receiving party (hosts) and details of your inviting organisation.
When this information is completed, at the UFMS they will tear off the bottom
part of the form and give this to you, this forms your registration and you
should keep it with your passport and migration card at all times.
When you leave Russia, the day before you should either return the tear off
strip to your host or our office so they may return this to the UFMS for you to
"de-register" your visa. Remember, that if you do not de-register your visa then
you may face fines when leaving Russia or difficulty obtaining another visa for
your next trip. If you re-enter Russia again, even using the same visa then you
will need to register your visa again.
Tear off registration slip showing "host" or "receiving
person details" and UFMS stamp.
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