Visa & Registration

RUSSIAN STUDY VISA

Russian study visa is issued only for students who come to Russia for exchange or education (full-time or part time study, language courses, individual language or research training). This is the best kind of visa, but only applicants who were accepted and plan to study at a Russian university, school or another educational institution are eligible to apply for it. If you are thinking about studying in KSMU, you must submit all required information to KSMU, and the Centre of International Education and Cooperation (CIEC) will take care of the paperwork (read more). CIEC of KSMU is responsible for arranging the invitation form to you. CIEC will submit all your data to the immigration officials and have your student invitation form ready in about 2 to 6 weeks. After that CIEC will send you the visa invitation by post or by fax. This invitation form is the document which proves the purpose of your visit and study in Russian Federation. With the visa invitation you can get your study visa stamped in Russian Embassy/Consulate.

Usually, the study visa is extended for the entire study period. As such, with the university’s invitation, students can apply for and obtain a single-entry study visa which can be renewed for the entire study period upon arrival to Kazan.

Remember, It’s your responsibility to apply for the correct visa in your country before leaving home! KSMU is only responsible for correct visa invitation !

ATTENTION !!! INVITATION LETTER IS NOT YOUR RUSSIAN VISA !

REGISTRATION

Your Russian Visa should be registered upon arrival to the Russian Federation.

According to the Russian law passports of all foreign citizens regardless of visa type are subject to registration.Your Russian visa must be registered within 72 hours upon your arrival (excluding weekends and holidays). If you arrive on a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, your visa must be registered on the first working day after your arrival.

During first three days after your coming (better do it on the first day) you must visit the Center of International Education and Cooperation (CIEC) of Kazan State Medical University with your passport, Russian visa and migration card (was recieved in airplane). Afterwards the KSMU Admissions Office staff will provide passport registration assistance in Department of Internal Affairs to individuals who entered the country on a student visa obtained through an invitation from Kazan State University.

If you are staying at a hotel, the hotel will register your visa. A small registration fee can be assessed. If you stay at a private apartment, your visa must be registered by your landlord. Please have the landlord apply at the local police precinct (in Moscow) or FMS office (commonly known as OVIR) in other cities. He will need to fill out a notification form indicating your passport and migration card details. A landlord can also send notification form by registered mail to the postal address of the local police precinct/FMS office.

Please note that not registering your Russian visa may lead to serious problems: detention by police, fines on departure, prevention from boarding the plane, etc. We strongly advise you to come to CIEC of KSMU on the first day after your coming to Russia to register your Russian visa to avoid possible consequences.

MIGRATION CARD

According to the visa regulations in Russia, all foreigners complete special migration cards, which they will obtain when crossing the Russian border.

The migration card contains personal data, term of stay in Russia, purpose of visit and the intended place of residence. All visitors are required to present this card to the university in order to complete migration paperwork. Foreign visitors are required to fill in the name and address of the inviting company. It is illegal to stay in Russia longer than three days without registering the visa at the address of residence. Thus, visitors now need to make sure to have the full name and address of the company that obtained their visa support letter (invitation) upon arrival to Russia. This information is included in the visa support documents. Visitors should copy it down for further reference.