The Red Square, the Catherine Palace of Saint Petersburg and the Kremlin are just to name a few of the most historical sites in the world. They are all located in mighty Russia. Visiting other countries is one thing, but getting access to experience Russia is in a category all of its’ own. If you are attempting to obtain a visa to Russia, you may want to count the cost first.
Russia is one of the hardest countries to obtain a visa. Recently the Washington Post reported a father’s pursuit to get an expedited Russian visa for his son desiring to take a summer trip to Russia. It was harder than he had ever imagined. The father begins his journey by traveling to the Russian Visa Center in Georgetown because applications must be hand-delivered. As he arrives, the center is very disorganized and difficult. There were no ticket dispensers for people in line. The operation had several different breaks and only accepts visa applications in the morning.
The date of entry into Russia has to be correct or your application will be rejected. This was another experience the father had resulting in him having to go correct the application and resubmit it via express. One of the reasons for the laborious process for obtaining a Russian visa is the outsourcing of the visa processing. As of April 10th of this year, the Russian Embassy’s visa processing is handled by contractor Invisa Logistics Services (ILS). Along with the new company, came special forms that had to say “ILS” and not the previous embassy form titled “WAS” or they would not be accepted. Also any checks or money orders had to be made out to ILS and not the Russian Consulate.
It appears with the transition being so new in April, the people that ran into the processing bumps during the new system seemed to get hurt the most. Aleksander Kovganov, the ILS head, said the office had “some problems” in May, second month the ILS office was in business. He also stated in the report, inspite of all the visa processing problems, “the decision to open this office was made to improve service”. The operation should have worked out the errors now, however, it’s clear that it is best to begin your Russia visa processing month in advance to avoid any delays.
If you need visa processing to Russia or any where else in the country, Washington Express Visas can help. We specializes in Visa Processing and Authentication. Our expedited service provides same day pick-up and specially trained visa processing agents to deliver your visa applications for processing and authentication to every Embassy in the Washington, DC area. Washington Express has been in business for 30 years with offices in Washington DC, Maryland and Virginia. We provide prompt and reliable service- you’ll always speak with a live person. We have the fastest available in the region with a 99% on-time track record. Our messengers specialize in urgent, on-demand delivery and can be trusted. Call us at 1-202-393-3030 today!
References: 7.6.12, Washington Post, Alexander Zemlianichenko Jr-Getting a Russian visa takes a lot of application
