Way to Russia Talk Lounge

jetsetjunkie · Just Starting Joined: 24 Apr 2004 Posts: 8

I applied for visa support via your website and while I have had no problem with receiving it and all that, the Russian embassy here in Singapore requires a cover letter from a Singaporean travel agency. This agency will only issue the cover letter if my hotel accomodation is booked with them for the entire trip! I don't want to do that. So:

First of all: What was in the visa support I received? I thought there is a "hotel confirmation" of some kind? Am I lacking something here, or is this cover letter regulation a weird requirement of the embassy here in S'pore? I get the impression that others have had no problem using your website's visa support!

2. The embassy in Singapore refuses to process my visa without the cover letter from the Singaporean travel agency. However I will be in Sweden for a month in June before going to Russia. Can I, as a Singaporean citizen process my visa in Sweden?

Thanks for helping with my queries.

Frustrated.
Crying or Very sad

WayToRussia · Posted: Sun May 16, 2004 7:00 pm Post subject:

Hi,

The visa support obtained through our site contains both invitation confirmation (or cover letter) and a hotel booking.

It might be the case that the Russian consulate in Singapore has some strange agreement with local travel agencies (to pump money out of tourists), because the documents you receive through this site are always enough.

I will contact the visa support agency on Monday to clarify the issue. I will also ask them if you can try in Sweden. But I'm sure you can do it in Finland -- many people from USA do it there.

D

jetsetjunkie · Just Starting Joined: 24 Apr 2004 Posts: 8

Thank you very much for your help.. I also think that the travel agency has a monopoly on Russian tour packages here in Singapore. Sucky.

But anyway, thank you. It would be very nice if you can help me ask the agency about the validity of their letter in Sweden. It would be very very helpful! Thanks a million in advance!!

WayToRussia · Posted: Mon May 17, 2004 9:46 pm Post subject:

Hi, I contacted the agency, they told me that the rules in Sweden are so that you can apply for visa only if you have temporary residency there (which, I think, you won't have, cause it's too much hassle).
The agency told me that you can contact them by email or fax provided and they will be able to send you original copies of the cover letter and invitation, this may help.

If this doesn't help there is a clear breach of the law on the side of the Russian consulate, so, you could either try to go there again and talk to another person or show them the laws (see our Russian Visa section at http://waytorussia.net/RussianVisa/ )

I also think you may be able to get a visa in Finland or Estonia, because many US citizens go there on so-called "visa run" to renew their long term Russian business visas and they don't need to have residency permit there.

WayToRussia · Posted: Thu May 20, 2004 4:15 pm Post subject:

Here's what I received from our visa experts:

jetsetjunkie · Just Starting Joined: 24 Apr 2004 Posts: 8

I'm not sure about Malaysia, but I'm from Singapore Smile

All this information has been very helpful. I emailed the embassy in Sweden and they said it is possible for me to apply there. So if there are no other requirements, I hope the visa support letter from your site will allow me to get that visa!

Thanks again!