Russian Tourist Visa Requirements for Citizens of Benin
Citizens of Benin who intend to come to Russia to explore its culture and sights should contact the Russian Embassy for a tourist visa. The Embassy will request the following documents: plane tickets, hotel booking confirmation, medical insurance and a letter of invitation.
Read more: Russian Tourist Visa
If you are a citizen of Benin, you can get your tourist visa invitation from any travel company having a special reference number. The number proves the company is registered with the Russian Federal Register of Tour Operators. The procedure of obtaining this document will take about an hour. Invitations for tourist visas are routinely printed on the travel company's official letterheads. They include two documents called tourist voucher and tourist confirmation. They need to be stamped and signed by an authorized person.
The document must include the following information: the list of the cities you plan to visit, your travel dates and how many entries to Russia you request. Please note this stage will not involve any checks or verification of the data you will provide. Therefore, it is possible your visa application will be refused by the Russian authorities, even if you have an invitation available.
Holding a tourist visa, foreign citizens are allowed to stay in Russia for a maximum of 30 days. The number of entries granted by the tourist visa can be either one or two.
Arrange an invitation for a Russian tourist visa for citizens of Benin
Go to Issuing a Tourist Invitation Price $69.00
Private (Visitor) Russian Visa Requirements for Citizens of Benin
Citizens of Benin who plant to come to Russia and stay ath their relatives' or friends' place, need to contact the Russian Embassy and apply for their visitor (homestay) visa. Before scheduling an appointment, a letter of invitation must be executed. Individuals and legal entities, who are residents of Russia, should handle the process of arranging the invitation and then send it to the invited person by mail.
Ask the friend or relative to apply at the local FMS office for a letter of invitation to attach to your visa application. They will need to provide the following papers: copy of the your travel passport, copy of their national passport, certificate of their income, a receipt confirming the payment of the state fee and a letter of guarantee. The letter of guarantee should mention that the host or sponsor will accommodate and support you during the entire period you will be staying in Russia.
Find out why: Why not apply for a private visa?
Read more: Russian Private Visa
Your host or sponsor will need to make sure you will not overstay your visa, otherwise they will be required to pay for your deportation out of their pocket. Russian authorities consider Benin an unsafe country. This is why anyone who invites a national of Benin will be requested to attend an interview with an FMS official. It normally takes up to 30 days for the FMS to review an application for issuance of an invitation letter.
Legal entities can also invite foreign visitors to Russia. For that, the representative will need to contact an FMS office and provide the required documents. They will be processed within the 17-day time frame.
Following the period for consideration, the application will either be approved or declined. if approved, a visitor visa invitation will be issued. Otherwise, the applicant will receive a letter of refusal with the reasons stated. In the case of a successful outcome, a private Russian visa valid for up to 90 days may be issued. It can be single- or double-entry.
Arrange an invitation for a Russian private visa for citizens of Benin
Business (commercial) visa for citizens of Benin
If you are a citizen of Benin and seek to visit Russia to find new business partners, you must obtain a business visa. For that, a special type of invitation is needed. The host or sponsor, who is a resident of Russia, can arrange the invitation.
Read more: Russian Business Visa
The business visa invitation letter can be obtained by either of these ways:
- Russian Business Invitation Letter from organization (possible to get Online);
- Russian Invitation Letter from FMS;
- Telex Russian Invitation;
Only those organizations that have a permission from the Russian authorities can issue invitations for foreign citizens. The invitation letter must be filed along with other documents to support your application for a business visa.
To arrange a business visa invitation authorized by the FMS, the inviting party needs to file an application at a local FMS office. As soon as the application will be submitted, an identification procedure will be carried out to prevent unlawful foreign citizens from entering into Russia. If no facts of violation of immigration rules will be found and no other reasons for rejection will be invoked, a business visa invitation will be issued on the original FMS form.
There is also an option to apply for a very special kind of invitation, a Telex invitation. It is essentially an electronic message sent from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Russian Embassy in Benin via secure channel. Telex invitation is a more convenient way to get a Russian visa, as it involves zero paperwork and no mailing services are required. The applicant will need to forward the Telex number it to you. You will need to provide it to the Consulate when applying for your visa. No documents are required for that method.
Read more: What is the Difference Between Telex And the Original Invitation?
A business visa may be issued for a period of up to 1 year (its duration is is determined by the invitation). Business visas can be single-entry, double-entry or multiple-entry.
Arrange a letter of invitation for a Russian business visa for citizens of Benin
Go to Issuing a Business Invitation
Arrange an FMS invitation for a business Russian Visa Requirements for Citizens of Benin
Go to Issuing a Business Invitation
Arrange a Telex invitation for a Russian business visa for citizens of Benin
Go to Issuing a Business Invitation
Work Russian Visa Requirements for Citizens of Benin
Citizens of Benin, much like any other foreign nationals, must follow a certain procedure to obtain a Russian work visa. First, they need to find a Russian employee who will handle the necessary documents. To employ international workers, any employee must be in possession of a special permit.
Read more: Russian Work Visa
To hire a foreign worker, the employer is obligated to arrange a work permit and a visa invitation. As soon as they are obtained, both documents should be sent by mail to Benin. If you a national of Benin who seeks to be employed by a Russian company, you need to submit the relevant documents at the Russian Embassy before planning your trip to Russia.
A Russian work visa offers a unique opportunity to reenter the country as many times as needed during the entire period of its validity. This type of visa can be renewed without exiting the country. Work visas are issued for a term of 1 to 3 years.
Arrange an invitation for a Russian work visa for citizens of Benin
Russian Electronic Visa from Benin
An electronic visa (hereinafter referred to as "e-visa") is a new type of a visa document. A visa invitation to Russia is not required for obtaining an e-visa. To obtain an e-visa to Russia use our “E-visa to Russia” service.
An e-visa can be only single-entry. The permitted stay in Russia on an e-visa is up to 8 days from the date of entry within its validity period.
The validity period and/ or permitted stay on an e-visa cannot be extended. To obtain an e-visa a foreign citizen needs a digital passport photo and a completed application form containing full and valid data at the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.
Read more: Electronic visa to Russia for foreigners
In compliance with the Russian Government Regulation, Benin is currently not listed among the foreign states eligible for an e-visa.
We recommend citizens of Benin obtaining a common tourist visa for a stay up to 30 days.
Russian Consulates in Benin
Citizens of Benin can apply for their visa at the following consular offices:
Locations of the Russian Consulates in Benin
-
Embassy of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Benin
- Address: Benin, B.P. 2013, Zone Résidentielle Rue 241, Cotonou, Benin
- Phone Number: (8-10-229) 21-31-28-34.
- Fax: (8-10-229) 21-31-28-35.
- Email: benin@mid.ru
- Website: http://www.benin.mid.ru
Frequently Asked Questions
- Tourist Visa - e.g.: tourism, sightseeing;
- Business Visa - e.g.: conferences, business negotiations;
- E-Visa - e.g.: short-term visits;
- Work Visa - e.g.: employment in a Russian company;
- Private Visa - e.g.: visiting friends in Russia (though a tourist visa is cheaper and more effecient??).
To obtain a Russian visa you need:
- Fill in our online order form and get a Visa invitation to Russia
- Refer to our Complete Step-by-Step Guide to Russian Visa Application, use your personal data and information from the Invitation to Russia
