Philippines to Russia? Pinoys can now enjoy FREE E-Visa To Saint Petersburg Starting October 1!

Great news for Philippine passport holders!

Starting from October 1, citizens whose countries were confirmed with a free electronic visa are now eligible to visit Saint Petersburg, as per Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev announcement on Thursday, and the Philippines included.

The list of countries was published on Friday morning. It is the same 53 for which a similar scheme was introduced on 1 July 2019 for Russia’s Far East and Kaliningrad Oblast. All EU countries except the United Kingdom are included on the list.


Last July, Russian President Vladimir Putin had already signed a decree to allow travel to Saint Petersburg and Leningrad Oblast with an electronic visa from 1 October but had not specified which countries would be given access.

Saint Petersburg, Russia. With the launch of the new visa, Russia continues to open its borders to tourism. (Shutterstock/FOTOGRIN)

The visa is valid for stays in St Petersburg and the surrounding Leningrad Region for up to eight days. The purpose of travel can be tourism, business, or humanitarian reasons.


Russia’s ministry of foreign affairs states some its advantage compare to regular sticker visas. An e-visa is issued within 4 calendar days, including weekends and bank holidays.

You can now skip the visit at a consular agency during its business hours – and all you need to do is fill out the application form on the website. Plus! You do not need to pay for anything to obtain an e-visa.

European travelers will soon be able to visit Saint Petersburg and the surrounding areas with an e-visa, the finer administrative details of which should be finalized imminently.

Here is the complete list of the confirmed 53 countries:

1. Austria
2. Andorra
3. Bahrain
4. Belgium
5. Bulgaria
6. Vatican
7. Hungary
8. Germany
9. Greece
10. Denmark


11. India
12. Indonesia
13. Iran
14. Ireland
15. Iceland
16. Spain
17. Italy
18. Qatar
19. Cyprus
20. China (including Taiwan)


21. Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
22. Kuwait
23. Latvia
24. Lithuania
25. Liechtenstein
26. Luxembourg
27. Malaysia
28. Malta
29. Mexico
30. Monaco


31. Netherlands
32. Norway
33. Oman
34. Poland
35. Portugal
36. Romania
37. San Marino
38. Saudi Arabia
39. Northern Macedonia
40. Serbia


41. Singapore
42. Slovakia
43. Slovenia
44. Turkey
45. Philippines
46. Finland
47. France
48. Croatia
49. Czech Republic


50. Switzerland
51. Sweden
52. Estonia
53. Japan

Following a new decree seeking to lighten the bureaucratic load of entering and departing the Russian Federation for foreigners, travelers heading to Russia for tourist, humanitarian or business reasons can visit Peter the Great's former imperial capital by applying online for a free visa, which will be valid for 30 days, and allow an eight-day stay in the Saint Petersburg area. The list of eligible European nationalities has not yet been revealed.


With the launch of the new visa, Russia continues to open its borders to tourism. This follows the introduction of a visa opening the doors to the Kaliningrad enclave, located between Poland and Lithuania.

Photo source by @veverkolog via Unsplash

A total of 53 nationalities are eligible for the latter, while citizens of 18 non-European countries (such as Japan and Qatar) are eligible for the Vladivostok area e-visa.


Generally speaking, travelers can visit Russia by applying for a visa through their local Russian diplomatic missions.

READ: How Powerful is the Philippine Passport this 2019? Here's the Updated list of Visa-Free Countries 🇵🇭

The document is valid for a maximum stay of thirty days, and conditional upon proof of hotel arrangements from an authorized Russian travel company, or directly from a Russian hotel with the reference number and confirmation number for the visa.

Found this article interesting? Share it with your friends! 👍🏼

Share

Source via Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.