Slovakia is a state that attracts tourists with its attractions and a special culture. It is often visited by tourists from Russia who want to see something new and interesting.
Do Russians need a visa to Slovakia? Yes, I need it. This state is a group of Schengen countries, which necessitates a special permit for entry into its territory. How to get a visa to Slovakia yourself? What list of documents should be attached to your request and what features does this procedure have? About all this further.
Where to get a visa?
A visa is issued to Slovakia at visa centers and state consulates located in Russia. You can contact them at any time, both for consultation and for providing a package of documents.
You can obtain a Slovak visa in Moscow by contacting one of the largest centers throughout Russia, located at Nizhny Susalny lane, 5, building 19. You can also visit the state embassy located on 17/19 Julius Fucik Street for this purpose.
As for the residents of St. Petersburg, for them, on weekdays, the doors of the Consulate General of Slovakia are open at 21/2 Orbeli Street.
In addition, in Russia there are separate visa centers located in different cities of the country. However, in the application process, it should be borne in mind that to consider urgent applications, as well as applications for a national visa, you should contact the embassy and consulate, since the centers do not deal with such issues.
Price
When applying for a Schengen visa to Slovakia, you must pay the service fee. Its size directly depends on the person for which permission to enter is requested. Its amount does not depend on the period for which the visa is issued.
So, in order to obtain a visa to Slovakia, an amount of 60 euros must be paid. For minors, its cost is lower - only 30 euros.
In addition, in the process of submitting documents, it is necessary to pay an additional fee, which is charged for processing the information provided by the tourist - its size is 12 euros.
The rules define certain categories of people who are completely exempt from paying the visa fee. These include children who have not reached the age of 6, applicants and schoolchildren planning to study in Slovakia (or current students), as well as pedagogical staff conducting their labor activities in this state. In addition, a visa fee is not levied on people who plan to visit the country for the purpose of treatment, as well as their accompanying persons. Visa processing is free of charge for people who are close relatives of EU citizens (parents, grandparents, spouses, children and grandchildren).
Type C visa
The most popular among tourists is the visa to Slovakia for Type C Russians. This permission to stay within the state allows tourists to stay in the country for no more than 90 days and gives the right to a one-time trip to Slovakia.
It is provided in all visa centers of the state, as well as travel agencies, which can become intermediaries between the diplomatic mission of Slovakia and travelers. However, using the services of agencies, it should be remembered that the cost of their services is quite high, and in some cases it is best to apply for a visa to Slovakia on your own.
The visa application procedure consists of several stages. First of all, a tourist must visit the official website of the diplomatic mission and make an appointment with an indication of a specific date and time. After that, he needs to come to the representative office with the collected package of documents during this period, consult and leave an application for a permit to stay in the country. As practice shows, consideration of documentation for a visa to Slovakia in the visa center is carried out within 7-10 days, and subject to the need for a quick review - three calendar days.
Documents
To apply for a visa to Slovakia, you need to submit a certain package of documents, a list of which is indicated on the official website of the country's diplomatic mission in Russia, and you can always clarify it by consulting with visa officers. There is a standard package of documents, which must be submitted to the commission. In addition, subject to the special purpose of the trip, tourists may be requested an additional list of documents and their copies.
The standard package of documents should include the original passport and a photocopy made from his page, which contains the personal information of the owner. Some requirements apply to the passport, including its validity period (not more than 10 years and not less than 3 months after the date of the planned arrival in Russia), as well as the presence of at least a couple of blank pages. In addition, copies of Schengen visas that have been received over the past three years (if any) are required to be requested from the diplomatic mission. In addition to the passport, it is imperative to submit a copy of the passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation made from pages containing personal information, registration information, as well as 14 and 15 pages, and it does not matter at all whether there are any marks on them.
In addition to the general package, a photograph taken in accordance with the established requirements of 3.5 × 4.5 cm must be attached. In addition to all of the above, the tourist must provide proper confirmation of the purpose of the trip to Slovakia, as well as information regarding his financial viability, which may be presented in the form of a salary certificate for the last 12 months, bank statement, etc.
Confirmation of the intentions of the applicant for a visa to Slovakia to return home should also be present. In practice, it can be expressed in providing copies of return tickets for an airplane or any other type of transport. An excellent option for this is the cadastral extract from the register that the traveler has personal real estate in Russia.
In the general package of documents, medical insurance must also be submitted, the total amount of which is at least 30,000 euros, confirmation of payment of the visa fee, as well as an application form and an application with permission to process the provided personal information.
Documents for applying for a child visa
Do I need a visa to Slovakia for a child? Yes, I need it.
In the event that a trip with a child is planned, then additional papers should be provided to the general package of documents. All of them must be notarized. First of all, a certified copy of the birth certificate should be attached to the documents.
In the event that one of the parents leaves with the child, it is mandatory to provide permission for the export of a minor citizen from the second parent. This permission must be notarized. If its receipt is unrealistic due to the death of the parent or for any other reason, then confirmation must be provided in the form of a copy of the relevant document (court order on the deprivation of parental rights, death certificate, etc.).
Also, without fail, parents must attach copies of their Schengen visas to the general package of documents (if visas are requested at one time), as well as confirmation that a joint trip is planned (booking tickets, hotel rooms, etc.).
Transit visa
Do you need a visa to Slovakia if you stay in this country is required for a very short time and only as part of transit to another state? Yes, I need it. The procedure for obtaining it is quite simple. A ready-made version of the document allows the traveler to be exclusively at the airport or other transportation hub.
To obtain this type of permit, you must submit to the visa center a pre-issued permit to the country to which you are transit, as well as a copy of your passport (the original will also be requested). In addition, the applicant must personally fill out a visa application form for Slovakia, the form of which can be downloaded from the official diplomatic mission website. Of the basic requirements for its completion, we can distinguish such as accuracy and reliability of data (full compliance with what is presented in the passport).
To confirm that the transit to a third country will actually be made, the tourist must provide information on the availability of transport tickets to this state for a certain number.
Documents for obtaining this type of visa can be submitted both personally and through another person for whom you need to pre-issue a notarized power of attorney.
Guest Visa
In order to obtain a guest visa to Slovakia for Russians, you should contact the embassy in person. This type of entry permit is issued exclusively for those persons who have an invitation from a person who is a citizen of Slovakia.
When submitting a request for the issuance of such a visa, a person must provide all personal information regarding the inviting person, as well as his place of residence and the period during which he is planning to stay.
As for the period during which a permit of this type is valid, it may not exceed 30 calendar days.
Working
This visa to Slovakia can be characterized as labor or business. It is provided only to those who plan to visit the state for the purpose of labor or private business. Often it is issued in order to attend seminars, business conferences, as well as other events of this type.
In order to obtain such permission to stay in the state, in addition to the standard package of documents discussed above, the tourist must provide information on the proposed place of work, position, and also the size of the salary. In addition, the applicant must have a permit to conduct work, which is issued in a separate manner, as well as an official letter from the employer, drawn up on a letterhead indicating the details of the company or company.
To obtain this type of visa, many resort to the help of intermediaries, which often become lawyers. This is due to the fact that often requests of this nature are denied.
This type of visa can also be issued for people who are planning to receive education in institutions of Slovakia. Representatives of this category of citizens of the Russian Federation should take care in advance of the availability of a special letter from the educational institution, drawn up in an official way, in which it will be said that the student is assigned a place to study. For current students, student documents or a certificate of admission to the university can be confirming documents. Such a residence permit can also be obtained by planning to attend short-term courses in Slovakia - for this it is necessary to indicate the place of their conduct, the cost of training, as well as the total duration.
Medical
It is advisable to apply for this type of visa to persons who plan to carry out treatment in Slovakia or undergo a rehabilitation course. This is due to the fact that when indicating such a purpose of the trip, it is necessary to provide documents confirming it. Examples of such can be referrals by qualified specialists, a letter from a clinic in Slovakia indicating the need for treatment. In addition, tourists must provide information on their financial viability to pay for the prescribed treatment (as a rule, this is an extract from a bank account about the presence of a certain amount on it).
The rules for applying for this type of visa indicate that not only future patients, but also persons accompanying it can become its holders. In order to confirm this fact, information regarding the availability of transport tickets booked for the same number can be attached to the general package of documents.
National Visa (D)
In case of planning a long visit to Slovakia, Russians need a type D visa, which also has a different name - national. To receive it, a much larger package of documents should be provided than for type C, however, it gives the right to stay in the state for a period exceeding 30 calendar days, from 90 days to one year. To provide it, you should contact the Slovak Embassy only.
A type D visa is issued only after the submission of a certain package of documents and its consideration. It necessarily includes a completed application of a standard form (standard for all Schengen states), a copy of a passport, as well as an identity document of a citizen of the Russian Federation. In addition to paper copies, scans of the listed documents should also be attached to this package.
In the standard package of papers provided for obtaining a Class D visa for visiting Slovakia, it is also necessary to include a pair of high-quality photographs of 3.5 × 4.5 cm in size, where the person will occupy the majority, as well as medical insurance.
In addition to all this, it is necessary to add a package of certificates that confirm the absence of a criminal record, about the availability of the necessary amount of money, as well as from the place of work (indicating the position and salary). The documentary path should also confirm the true purpose of the trip indicated in the questionnaire.
Having a Class D visa, its holder has the right to stay in transit in other states of the so-called Schengen zone, but for no more than 90 days in total. This condition is valid only if Slovakia remains the main place of stay during the entire period of the Schengen visa.
Biometrics
Today, all persons who wish to obtain permission to enter and stay in Schengen countries are required to undergo a biometric procedure. It is carried out on a special device, which is available in all visa centers and other missions of the Slovak diplomatic mission in Russia. This procedure involves fingerprinting from the applicant’s hands, as well as the creation of a high-quality digital photo.
All persons who have not reached the age of 12 years, adults in respect of whom it was previously performed, and also persons who cannot undergo physical disabilities (for example, the absence of hands or fingers, etc.) are exempted from undergoing such a procedure. .
If a refusal was received
In the event that the applicant is refused a Schengen visa to Slovakia, he has the right to re-apply. He will have to once again deal with the collection of documents and re-pay visa and service fees. Before resubmitting the request, all violations that were previously committed should also be addressed.
What are the most common causes of failure? First of all, you need to know that entry into the Schengen countries is prohibited for people living in the North Caucasus, as well as those who have a criminal record. In addition, a negative response to the request can be received by persons who are not officially married, who have insufficient funds for accommodation, or those who violated the visa regime earlier.
Special attention in the process of reviewing the submitted documents is given to the correspondence of the data provided in the questionnaire with those indicated on the pages of documents proving the identity of the citizen. Also, a refusal is often received by persons who provide an incomplete list of required documentation. That is why, before submitting the entire package, it is advisable to consult with a specialist in advance regarding the required information.