Kind Regards

Brian.

I forwarded on you message to our consular services team who have detailed the following process:

We would apply for the invitation through our ground agents (who operate our tours). The invitation will come through to us by email with the following details;

Travel dates

Passport details

Name of the person.

The invitation is written in Russian. This is then used to support the Russian visa application.

It wouldn’t possible for us to get an invitation without a booking being made.

Kindest regards,

Julia

Thank you for your replies and the information. The issue of fingerprinting made me curious, as I had browsed through the Russian embassy website in Ireland in some detail, at the weekend, and no mention is made of this.

I have done further research and have found out that the fingerprinting requirement has been introduced by the Russian authorities on a pilot basis at the moment for those applying to embassies/consulates in the UK, Denmark, Myanmar, and Namibia only. Currently, those applying in Ireland and elsewhere will not need to fulfill this requirement.

The process does seem somewhat lopsided, as one seemingly has to book and confirm an itinerary/accomodation before applying for a visa.

Julia, may I trouble you on one further point please? As JY can provide the invitation for Irish residents too, which would be a terrific help, could I get a basic idea of how this process unfolds? I spoke with the embassy earlier and they advise an invitation must state my name and passport number in addition to the accomodation and itinerary details referred to in my original post. Is it simply a matter of providing these details to JY after booking to allow you to complete the invitation with the required details and return to me?

Thanks very much for your help. Apologies for the questions, I'm afraid I have a tendancy to be ultra thorough.:(

Kind Regards

Brian.

Thanks for your post - I also live in Ireland and am considering the Russia tour for a couple of years down the road so it is very helpful to have this information. I've visited a few countries over the last couple of years with JY that have required a visa (India, Vietnam, Cambodia, China and Jordan) and as I live in Ireland JY were not able to get the relevant visa for me. On two occasions I got the visa myself (India, China) by downloading the visa form from their country's embassy website and going the the embassy in Dublin myself. For Vietnam, Cambodia and Jordan, there is no embassy in Dublin, so to make things as easy as possible for myself, I used Trailfinders (Dawson St, Dublin) to get the visas for me. They charge quite a high fee but it was worth it not to have the worry of sending off my passport etc myself.

It's good to know that JY can issue the invitation letter, which should make the visa application fairly straightforward!

Hope you decide to book and have a great tour - if you go, please write a review when you get back!

Cheers,

Bob

I forwarded your query on to our Consular services department and they have said that as of the 10th December requirements for a Russian visa changed and now all travellers must visit the Russian Embassy to have their fingerprints taken. And yes, we can arrange the letter of invitation.

Kindest regards,

Julia

I am new to Just You and am considering, amongst other options, the trip to Moscow and St. Petersburg later in the year. I have always been interested in visiting Russia though have never had the opportunity to go there.

My question concerns the application process for obtaining a Russian tourist visa. I am not UK resident so I understand from browsing the forum that I would have to organise this independently through the Russian Consulate here (I am In Ireland).

I believe as part of the process, I would need some form of invitation/visa support.

My question is as follows - if I were to book this trip through Just You, does Just You provide the "invitation" which can be used as part of the visa application or, as a non-UK resident, would all of this have to be organised entirely by myself? If so, I am unsure of how this invitation might be obtained which is something I would need clarity on before committing to booking, given the costs involved.

The website of the Russian consulate states the following with regard to this;

Tourist visas: a standard «tourist confirmation» and a «tourist voucher» issued by a host Russian Travel Agency or Hotel registered at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The documents must contain an applicant's name, passport number, dates and points of arrival and departure, cities to be visited, agency's reference (or registration number) officially provided by the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The stamp and all the details should be clearly readable. Note that a hotel booking only is not sufficient for a visa application.

Thank you very much for your help and keep up the good work. This forum is a mine of valuable information and insights.

Kindest Regards

Brian.