Requirements for Private stay visa

Invitation for single/double/multiple entry visa up to 1 year (one of the following)

— original invitation issued by Federal Migration office - see sample here

— copy of electronic invitation - see sample here

Invitation for 3 year - multiple entry visa

— notarized written statement (original only) from the hosting individual - see sample here The host individual could be either a Russian citizen registered on the territory of the Russian Federation, a Russian citizen residing in the Unites States (with a legal status in the US), or a US citizen who has the permit to stay on the territory of Russian Federation for more than 90 days (i.e. work permit, common student multiple entry visa, diplomatic visa of the employee of the USA diplomatic missions or consulates on the territory of the Russian Federation). Invitation must be in Russian.

— copy of host’s INTERNAL ("Vnutrenny") Russian passport (the first page with the passport holder's information and the page with a stamp with this person's registered address in Russia ("propiska”).

— copy of host’s Russian foreign ("zagran") passport.

— if the hosting individual is a Russian citizen residing in the Unites States, in addition to the documents listed above a copy of a document confirming his/her legal status in the United States (Green card, US passport, or long term US visa)

— if the hosting individual has dual citizenship and different last names (maiden vs married) in his/her Russian and US passports, a copy of a marriage certificate is required to prove a change of last name.

Please note: Russian Consulate in San-Francisco has added a new requirement to private visa invitations prepared by Russian citizens residing in the USA. The Consulate now requires that in addition to the notarization, the invitation needs to be apostilled. You can get an Apostille seal from your Secretary of State.

If you're born in formerly USSR: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan,Turkmenistan, Ukraine, or Uzbekistan, please submit the documents confirming the absence of Russian citizenship, such as:

— a copy of your old Soviet passport that has departure stamp dated prior to February of 1992 and indicates that you immigrated for permanent residency - all pages;

— a copy of the visa to the country where you immigrated, in case your Soviet passport was confiscated upon departure (ei. Israel Visa);

— a copy of the document issued by Russian consulate or Embassy that verifies renouncement of your Russian citizenship, in case you renounced it officially;

— a copy of the passport issued by another country (including former Soviet republics) with departure stamp, in case you left that country and were a citizen of that country at the time of your departure - all pages.

— a letter from the Social Security Administration stating that the SSN was issued before February of 1992 (Please, note that this letter is not always accepted by the Russian Consulate as a sufficient Proof of absence of Russian citizenship and should be submitted only if other documents listed above are not available) - see sample here.

— a copy of the letter from the Consulate of any other former Soviet Republic (example Belarus) that verifies renouncement of citizenship of issuing country, in case you renounced it officially;

— a copy of Naturalization certificate issued before February of 1996;

— a copy of Naturalization certificate issued after 1996 if “Former Nationality” lists any country but Russia or URRS;

— for Meskhetian Turks – copy of old Soviet passport with “Temporary residence” stamps (all pages) and copy of the letter issued by Embassy of the United States with applicant’s picture and RS number - see sample here