International conference, exhibition, incentive and event delegates from 53 countries visiting St Petersburg will now be able to arrange fee-free e-visas for visits of up to eight days. The new system has been applauded by the Expoforum team, who see it significantly improving the city’s accessibility and appeal for international association congresses as well as corporate events.
Visitor’s to Russia’s conference and cultural capital, St Petersburg can now complete an online process on the website of the consular department of the Russian Foreign Ministry to apply for an eight-day visa. The application can be made no later than four and no earlier than 20 days before the expected date of entry.
This new initiative follows similar schemes previously introduced for travel to Kaliningrad and the Kaliningrad Region as well as Vladivostok and airports across the whole of Russia’s Far Eastern Federal District.
“34 countries already had visa free entry in Russia, the addition of this new service for an additional 53 countries makes entry and travel to St Petersburg easier than ever,” comments Maria Tsedeviyn, International Development Director at Expoforum. “This new system dramatically eases access and travel to our beautiful city. The whole of our venue team is looking forward to the significant impact this will have on our appeal as a destination for international congresses. St Petersburg has always offered great facilities, great hospitality and great access. We now also have easy travel entry and with that fact come significant potential for us to welcome more conference and event visitors than ever before.”
Countries able to use the e-visa system are:
Andorra Austria Bahrain Belgium Bulgaria China (including Taiwan) Croatia Cyprus Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Ireland Italy Japan Korean People’s Democratic Republic Kuwait Latvia Lichtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Malaysia Malta Mexico Monaco North Macedonia Norway Oman Poland Portugal Qatar Romania San-Marino Saudi Arabia Serbia Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland The Czech Republic The Netherlands The Philippines Turkey Vatican