Way to Russia Community and Forum

Jtlee007 · Just Starting Joined: 28 Feb 2009 Posts: 1

I have a bit of dilemma, I am going to Krasnodar and fly in on March 19th, 2009 plan on staying with my girlfriend, however I have a tourist visa, and I do not want to pay for a hotel for the entire time period that I am there for! The nice thing is the 19th is a Thursday, 20th is a Friday, and the then weekend comes. I know about the 72 hour rule and I could just delay registering until day 3 which wold be around Monday, since weekends are not included. I leave on the 25th, so I was wondering since I want to stay with her, how can I register my visa, without having to pay a hotel every night! Can I pay just for one night to get my visa registered and stay with her the rest of the time, or will the custom officials look at that weird. Also when I fly to Moscow from March 25-26th, 2009, I will be staying at a hotel, so I probably need to register it again there as well since it is a different city? What is the best way to save money in Krasnodar and not pay every night just to be registered for the time period I am there for! Since hotels will only register you for the time period your staying with them, is it ok to stay the rest of the time with my girlfriend, just as long as my VISA gets registered? My friend said all they care about is it being registered, but I really do not want any problems, but I thinks a bunch of BS to pay for more than one night, in a hotel that I am not even staying at! I didn't know if the mitigation card show the dates of your stay and how imp that was, if they would question my whole time period in Krasnodar? Just the Russians govt way to make money of the Westerns? Someone please let me know the best way to handle this situation it would be greatly appreciated. Jtlee007@aol.com

Jon

krasatulya · VIP Joined: 29 May 2005 Posts: 590

If you can figure this one out, I'd love for you to let me in on the secret, because it must be a secret! My husband is from Krasnodar and I've been there 3 times and have never been able to register my visa. Like you, I stay at a private residence while on a tourist visa. One time I tried to go to the Intourist hotel to see if they would register my visa for a small fee. No dice. The woman not only told me she wouldn't register me, but she then tried to tell my husband that we had to pay her a fine as a result of not registering. We didn't end up paying anything (my husband told her basically the equivalent of "f off"), but I didn't get registered either.

The next time I went I had read on WTR that post offices are now supposed to register tourist visas. This may be the case in Moscow or St. Pete, but no one had heard about this in Krasnodar the last time I was there (July 2008) and the postal workers just gave us a blank stare. We then tried multiple other places and were given the run around. The kicker is that my husband's brother even works for a govt agency and couldn't find anyone that knew what to do.

So, to make a long story short, I have had to bribe the police at the airport 2 out of 3 times in order to leave the country. I definitely don't recommend this, as it causes undue levels of anxiety, but it was the only solution I have come across. For about $35 the police will overlook an unregistered visa (this has always been negotiated by my husband in Russian, so if you don't speak Russian, this might be difficult),

I wish you luck and like I said, if you figure out how to get registered, please be sure to report back and leave some advice for others (specifically me Smile

Good luck and have fun!

Cixelsyd · Frequent Guest Joined: 04 Sep 2008 Posts: 14

I've never been to Krasnodar, let alone had to register there. But I did recently go to a different town that wasn't very big and had to go through the registration process at a private residence.

I had mine done at the registration office, the same place where they renew local passports. Whoever owns the residence where you will be staying will have to bring in some documents showing they own the place etc... I don't know what these documents are exactly, but I'm sure the owner would know.

So along with these documents just go down to the registration office, the process takes a little time but it only costs somewhere around 5$.

If you haven't looked yet, there's a faq on this site about registering at a private residence.

I would recommend registering if you want to come back to Russia in the future. It may not be a problem since you are going to register at a hotel later on, but I would still recommend doing it. I think it takes two offenses but you can get black listed and prevented from getting a future visa; not to mention all the other bad things they can threaten you with.

Here's a link to my whole experience with registering. Just scroll down to the Registering at a Private Residence part.

http://www.waytorussia.net/TalkLounge/viewtopic.php?t=11846

romdur · Frequent Guest Joined: 17 Mar 2010 Posts: 66

waytorussia says about Krasnodarsky Krai (and other places in the northern Caucasus region):

romdur · Frequent Guest Joined: 17 Mar 2010 Posts: 66

BUMP

a lot of posts came in just after my last one, this thread got pushed way down the list ...

Anybody with northern Caucasus visa registration experience?

gaijin · Lounge Lizard Joined: 03 Oct 2007 Posts: 155

Can't see why it would be any different than in Central Russia or Piter. They have post offices too you know, so you can register there. Even electricity, and OVIR offices. And some roads. Can you give a hint why there would be any difference?

romdur · Frequent Guest Joined: 17 Mar 2010 Posts: 66

@gaijin,

gaijin · Lounge Lizard Joined: 03 Oct 2007 Posts: 155

Romdur, your previous post mentioned "Rostov Region, Krasnodarsky Krai, Mineralnye Vody, Pyatigorsk, Krasnovodsk". That is regular Russia (Except Krasnovodsk !!!), just pretty rural. Same for K-Ch republic. Been there, done that, I stick to my previous answer.
Now you mention Chechnya and Ingushetya. It is probably different there.
But OP mentionned Krasnodar. KRASNODAR !!! For crying out loud, that's not even Caucasus stricto sensu, and it's a rather big city!

To the OP : You can probably find a hotel where someone will register you for some fee, maybe even without staying a night (although staying a night will make it easier).
That solution would save trouble to the person you expect to register you (he or she needs to have permanent registration in Krasnodar). Since you have 3 days, try a couple hotels on the first or second day then go to OVIR / post office with your friend if you have no success with hotels (or if they ask for too much).

@krasatulya : that bribe is about the amount of the fine, so yeah it's not such a big deal anyway. You have to be very unlucky or clumsy to be controlled 3 times there in a month (yes, in that region that is much more controlled than Piter / Moscow).
Nobody has heard of Post office registration in Piter / Moscow either, but if you show them the text of law that states that they are supposed to do it, it can help.
Your experience at the hotel shows that you should have tried more than one hotel, and go for the cheap ones first.

romdur · Frequent Guest Joined: 17 Mar 2010 Posts: 66

@gaijin,

You wrote, "Been there, done that..." I take this to mean that you have registered a visa in this region at an OVIR or post office. Please post, in which towns did you register? Actual experience is what I'm looking for here: Thanks!

gaijin · Lounge Lizard Joined: 03 Oct 2007 Posts: 155

Passport control officers check the immigration card only. I've never been been controlled the registration at the airport passport control. Yes in northern Caucasus there are often some cops randomly controlling passports in the airports (before check-in), but no it's not such a big deal, as the maximum cost is about 30 euros, 60 if you are very unlucky and get controlled twice. If you get controlled, being nice and smily (and patient...) with the cop is better than the opposite.
Doing silly things such as talking very loud in English (but many Americans seem to be unable to speak quietly), wear obviously western clothes, use back packs, wear baseball caps or fanny pack, show cameras... will greatly increase your chance of being controlled. Observe simple rules and you'll be controlled once maximum.
Still yes it's better to do the registration, which I have done at OVIR in Cherkessk (not with a touristic visa), which is far from being as developped as Krasnodar. Frankly speaking it's a shit hole (but if you like nature the region is perfect...). That was much before the post office thing, so in a time when nearby K-B republic was considered very unstable, and with frequent (almost constant) controls at the borders (and it took some patience to cross them without registration - even within the 3 first days).
If you have a touristic visa, a cheap hotel should take a little bribe (the price of one night for example) to register you for the whole stay.

gaijin · Lounge Lizard Joined: 03 Oct 2007 Posts: 155

Another hint : what can be a bit different in that region compared to Moscow / Piter is that you can more easily find some organisation that can make an invitation (up to 3 months without problem) for you and register you : a factory can invite you as consultant, a university can invite you as lecturer, a laboratory as invited scientist, whatever... just think about people you know, and who they know. You'll probably find someone who'll agree to make the invitation for 20-30 euros and register you for the same price (maybe a bit more in Krasnodar, but not much, and it depends if it's a friend, or a friend's relative etc.).

marinak · Just Starting Joined: 10 Jul 2009 Posts: 2

Hey guys, first of all, i would like to express my happiness for finding this site. I was born in Krasnodar, but lived all over the world. I left Krasnodar at age 8 and i have yet to return. My mother and sister still live there. Unfortunately i no longer speak Russian, but perfect English. I am a US citizen and I rarely talk to my mother because i always need a translator. The laws changed in 1992 or so, so I am considered an ex-patriot since i haven't been there for 20 years Sad

. I really want to see my family. I sent my mother all my passport and ID info for her to get a letter of invitation. It has been 3 weeks and I still have not received it, yet she claimed to have mailed it. My flight leaves Aug. 8th. I don't want to piss around with this invitation letter. I was going to apply for a tourist visa through http://www.russia-visa.com, who also claim to provide you with the invitation for a tourist visa. However, i am a student and do not have money to spend on hotels when in fact I will be staying with my mother. I have a US passport, but I am worried about the whole 3 day registration rule and I will be staying there for 2 and a half weeks. I am really excited to reunite with my family after 20 years, but I am also worried. I hope that I can get back home safe, and also be able to re-enter Krasnodar whenever I feel. I contacted the embassy, and those people are just too rude and unhelpful. I was wondering, besides all you guys have posted, is there anything else I should worry about? My mother is meeting me at the airport, but just in case i need to take a cab, is it dangerous, do you get harassed? I am 6 foot tall, but that doesn't matter....lol.....please help Smile

Thank you

romdur · Frequent Guest Joined: 17 Mar 2010 Posts: 66

Greetings, marina:

I am newly learning about this situation, but I will tell you what I know. Other people will, I hope, correct any mistakes I make here! Probably your first problem (and if it is a problem, your biggest) is your Russian birth.

If you did not officially renounce your Russian citizenship (which apparently is a big job taking a long time), then as I understand it, the Russian Federation considers you still to be a citizen. Becoming a citizen of another country did not terminate your Russian citizenship.

1. If your Russian citizenship WAS already terminated (by a pile of paperwork with the Russian government), and you can find documents to prove this to the Russian consulate, then you can easily get a tourist visa, and your only problem would be registration, as discussed on this thread.

2. If you have a valid Russian passport (from your post, it seems that you don't), then you could travel to Russia using that passport, and return home using your U.S. passport.

If either of these conditions is true for you, you can stop reading now!

THE BIG PROBLEM

If neither 1 nor 2 applies - that is, if you have not renounced your citizenship, and you don't have an up-to-date Russian Federation passport, then you probably can't make this trip Sad

If this is your situation, I suggest contacting your consular office - unfortunately, your experience ("those people are just too rude and unhelpful") is not unique - do your best to explain your situation, and ask whether you can get a tourist visa. The answer is probably no (the stated policy is that Russian citizens can only travel to Russia using Russian documents), but maybe it is worth the frustration of spending a few hours asking.

If you have the big problem, you can visit Krasnodar by next summer, but you will need to start working soon, because the process will probably take a good number of months.

You would begin the process by making a big decision, which direction you want to go - renouncing your citizenship so you can travel as other Americans do in Russia, or renewing your passport, so you can perhaps enjoy some benefits of traveling in Russia as a citizen (I think this would be a big help if, for example, you wanted to make a long-term stay there).

Either way, the Russian government will require numerous forms and documents, and a lot of the necessary papers will need to come from Russia. Fortunately, your mother can help you quite a lot with this, but expect it to take a lot of time, and much communication.

If I grasp the situation correctly, and your August trip cannot happen, then I am truly sorry - hopefully you could recover at least some of the value of your plane ticket, perhaps to use for going to Russia next summer.

Because every problem can also be an opportunity, you have good time in hand to relearn Russian. I am sure you will pick it up much faster than I! And I believe this would greatly add the enjoyment of your eventual reunion with your family.

Best of luck, and please post back or PM me with your progress.

gaijin · Lounge Lizard Joined: 03 Oct 2007 Posts: 155

@Marinak : you can also take a shot applying for a visa with your US passport. The idea is that even if you get rejected, only the US Marinak will be rejected, and the Russian Marinak can cross the border without trouble (don't forget to take both passports with you, if you want to come back...)

If US Marinak is rejected a visa, then when you apply for a Russian passport it's unlikely that the passport service guy goes to the visa service office to ask if they refused a visa to you. But just in case (and if they anoted something in your passport) you can lose your current US passport, get a new one and voilà! you're a new person, and you can apply for a passport without worrying. That's what people who need to go to Arab countries do when they have an Israeli stamp on it...
I base this idea on the fact that for the visa service of a consulate, a different passport means a different person. So between 2 services ...

If the rule is that Russians can travel in Russia only with Russian documents, and that your place of birth might lead to some questions eventually resulting in the rejection of your application, it is also true that the application of the rules greatly varies from one consulate to the next (some consulate never bother asking for some document that is officially necessary, others will be OK with copies when the rule demands the original...), this is why you can take a shot if you really want to go this year.

marinak · Just Starting Joined: 10 Jul 2009 Posts: 2

Yea....Russians and their rules....I heard so much crap about it..they told me i was not a citizen anymore because i have not lived or been there in over 10 years....I was like fine! But good news, i spoke to my mother today (with a translator) Sad

and she said that she will have the invitation letter by the 15th of July....apparently it takes a month (have no idea why) but she got a little hook up....my flight leaves on Aug 7th, i told her to express mail it, which she had some difficulties understanding....lol.....ummm, so i don't know how long it takes with express, but i sure ain't willing to wait 10 days with the regular snail mail......I told her if i do not recieve it, for whatever reason by the 25th, i will go ahead and do a tourist visa......I sent them a copy of my passport and there was no problemo.. Smile

also, I'm not sure about all the rules are about me being an ex-pat, and not being able to enter the country.....i left when it was the USSR (1989) and Krasnodar had changed some laws in 1992....my mother still had me "residing" on paper in Krasnodar, but once again, Russians can get pretty annoying with documentation, etc., etc.,...... But, more than likely, i'm going to try to get my mom over here with a greed card.....I just can't deal with this anymore.......but I just pray that everything goes right, so i can see my mom and return for school on time Smile

"sigh"

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