| Author |
Message |
Buzz
Just Starting
Joined: 09 Jul 2004
Posts: 2
|
 Posted: Fri Jul 09, 2004 2:35 pm Post subject: Renewal of my wife's Russian passports (internal & exter |
 |
|
Hi
My wife, baby daughter (5 months old) and I are currently living in London. My daughter and I are British citizens. My wife is Russian from St Petersburg. We been advised by the UK authorities that we need to return to Russia to apply for a UK re-entry visa following our marriage two years ago as she had originally overstayed her tourist visa over here (ie. to do things properly). Our solicitor has advised as we will satisfy all the current criteria for the re-entry visa.
We are planning to return to St Petersburg in the next few weeks, but have the following questions...
(1) My wifes internal and international passports have both expired. Does she have to return to Russia to reapply for the internal passport (her existing one was issued before August 2000)? How long is this likely to take? Following this, how long will it take for her to get her international passport? She apparently found out today that there has been a recent reduction in the availability to get passports revewed using a fast track service via tourist agents - is this true?
(2) If this is likely to take a long time, I would like to get one year multiple entry visas for both my daughter and I. Is it possible or necessacary to get a business visa for my daughter? British children have to have their own passports.
(3) The prices quotes by some of the UK visa agents for multiple entry visas is very high (£399!) in addition to a single entry visa (£99) if we want to leave soon (without waiting the 4-6 weeks for the multiple entry visa). Would it be easier for her to obtain Russian citizenship there and travel in/out using that?
(4) How long is it likely to take to obtain my wifes UK reentry visa, bearing in mind she overstayed by around 2 years.
If anyone has any experience and can help answer any of these questions, it would be much appreciated.
Thanks |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
waytorussia
Just Starting
Joined: 17 Mar 2010
Posts: 2
|
| Posted: Fri Jul 09, 2004 6:36 pm Post subject: |
|
|
(1) If your wife has a legal status in UK (at least a temporary stay permit), she can try to apply for a new passport in the Russian embassy in Longon (Kensigton Palace Gardens, 5, open 9.00 to 11.30 mon-fri). She won't be able to travel to Russia otherwise, if she doesn't have a valid travel ("foreign" - "inostranny") passport. She will need to bring her old passport with her, as well as any papers she has that prove her Russian nationality (which she still has, by the way, even though the passport has expired).
2) If you want to be able to travel frequently to Russia in the next year, you need a multiple entry business visa. Your daughter needs a separate one as well, if she is NOT in your passport. You can apply for business visa support through this site (see http://waytorussia.net/Services/VisaSupport/Business.html ) and then you will need to get your visas in the Russian consulate. It's better if you do it separate from your wife getting the new passport, to avoid any additional questions (and problems) from the Russian consulate.
(3) I don't understand the question, but your wife already has a Russian nationality, she didn't lose it just because her passports have expired.
(4) This depends on the UK embassy in Moscow. Usually you can get a visa in one day there, if all the documents are in order. It will help immensely if you go there with her and if you both can provide as many documents as possible to prove your relationship, marriage, residency in UK (utility bills, contracts), your UK bank statements (recent ones), some kind of proof about your income, a birth certificate for your daughter, etc.
If the authorities in UK embassy have any additional questions, the process might take much longer. As your wife has breached the UK immigration laws, I think it is most probably that the procedure will take longer. Usually, if a person is refused a UK visa, he can file a complaint, and it is reviewed within 1 month, so I would say at worst this process is going to take 2 to 3 months. The fact that you have a small daughter together will help you a lot.
The web site of the UK embassy in Moscow is: http://www.britemb.msk.ru/index.htm (In English)
That's all I can say, hope something helps. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Buzz
Just Starting
Joined: 09 Jul 2004
Posts: 2
|
| Posted: Fri Jul 09, 2004 7:56 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Firstly, thanks for your prompt and helpful reply.
I think that I probably omitted some information in my previous post and as such some of your points were not as we expected...
(1) My wife went to the Russian Embassy in London and was told that she could not renew her internal passport from here. Apparently, had this not expired, she could renew her international one here which would take about four months. They told her that they would give her a written authorisation to return to Russia (valid for 10 days). We are a little worried about the amount of time that we might have to spend over there to get this done.
I was actually interested to find out if there is any way to have any of the tourist agencies in Russia renew both her internal and international passports without her having to travel there from London...or alternatively get an idea of how long this is currently taking?
2) I will have a look at your link for visa support - thanks.
(3) I was interested in finding out about the time it would take in St Petersburg to get Russian citizenship and travel documents sorted out for our daughter as opposed to my wife. Do you know how long this might take?
(4) 2 to 3 months sounds reassuring - it will give me sufficient opportunity to experience St Petersburg and Russia. I may have to return to London for periods to look after my business there - my wife and daughter may stay with her friends. What is it like for children in St Petersburg...weather, travel etc? |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
waytorussia
Just Starting
Joined: 17 Mar 2010
Posts: 2
|
| Posted: Fri Jul 09, 2004 9:07 pm Post subject: |
|
|
(1) Ok, now I understand. 10 days is indeed a very short period. It takes at least a month to renew a Russian internal passport. There is no express service for it, the only way I heard people were trying to get it faster would cost about $600, but nobody used it, because it was a kind of bribe, so 1 month is a minimum (the cost is 50R = £1), she will just need her Russian internal passport (the old one) with a registration stamp in it (propiska). If she doesn't have it, this is a big problem, and I don't know what to do then.
Perhaps the 10 days limitation can be prolonged in a local OVIR (registration) office, but only at the area where your wife has propiska (registration).
The foreign (travel, international) Russian passport is much easier to get. There are a lot of travel agencies in St. Petersburg that specialize in that. There is express service, which would get her the foreign passport in 5 days for $200, or she could wait 2-4 weeks and get it for $50-$100. Officially, it would cost about $10, and the waiting period is about 1 month (through a local OVIR office).
Maybe you could try to find an agency that could make a foreign travel passport for your wife without her having to present her internal passport, but then I'm afraid that the British embassy requires an internal passport as well to process the documents.
(3) I don't know about that. Usually the Russian citizenship is a very long and tedious process. It could take anywhere from 1 to 5 years to obtain it, even if your daughter's mother is a Russian. I would advise to look after your wife's documents first, as it might be too much queues and problems otherwise at once.
(4) I think St. Petrsburg is better for adults than for children (cafes, restaurants, clubs, but not too many children playgrounds), but I'm sure if your wife has friends there, they will be able to help her find some nice activities. There are a lot of nice parks and smaller towns around St. Petersburg (accessible) for a weekend at the countryside, which can be good as well. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
wavetossed
WayToRussified
Joined: 27 Jun 2004
Posts: 339
|
| Posted: Sat Jul 10, 2004 2:14 am Post subject: Consulate info |
|
|
First of all, read everything on the website of the British Consulate in Saint Petersburg here http://www.britain.spb.ru/visa/faq.html
Remeber that when you are in Russia, you will be asking the British government for a visa so the only relevant laws are British and EU laws. And the only standards of service are exactly the same as in Britain or anywhere in the EU.
When you are dealing with your wife's pasport and zagranpasport the the only relevant laws and customs are those of Russia, St. Petersburg and the government people you are dealing with. I believe that St. Petersburg is not as strict about the propiska as Moscow, for instance.
The ten day limit probably only applies to entry to Russia, i.e. you have to travel within 10 days. Once in Russia, your wife is a Russian citizen in her home country and can stay as long as she wants to, no problem. The only problem is that her pasport has expired and needs to be renewed. As long as the authorities believe that she really is the person that she says she is, then she will get a new internal pasport. The only question is time. May I suggest that you take her and the old passport to a hairdresser/beauty shop and ask them to do a makeover, hair, eyebrows. No sense in giving the authorities a potential excuse for delay because she has dyed her hair or whatever.
I expect that she will need to renew her pasport before applying for a zagranpasport. And during the period when she is waiting for her internal pasport to be renewed she will be vulnerable to being hassled by the militsionery if she is stopped because she will probably have some kind of makeshit temporary documents which they are not familiar with. Best if you stay with her until that is sorted.
I suggest that you find her a place to stay with a friend and then shower that friend with gifts of appreciation rather than an apartment. And then you should go back home and earn a living to pay for the plane tickets when you fly out to see her for the weekend. Plan to use up all of this year's holiday time in St. Petersburg.
If you want to get VIP service for her then you really need some local St. Petersburg person to go and make direct inquiries. Possibly the British Consulate will help you with this if they aren't too busy or refer you to a local agent who manages the VIP service. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
admin has posted "Kult Club" 35 sec(s) ago: "They call themselves "the first chill-out cafe in Moscow", but it looks like they..." read more
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in