Job Discussion Forums

sohniye · Joined: 15 Mar 2011 Posts: 90

Hi everyone,

I am seeking just a bit of advice from other American teachers who had to jump through the visa hoops. I want to see if my understanding of the situation is correct.

I am waiting for my degree and other paper to return with an apostille. Once I receive those I am supposed to send them to Russia, so my invitation letter can be processed.

When returned to me I can then send my visa application, payment, and passport to my relevant embassy.

I am a little worried about sending my passport away in the mail. According to my advisor this whole proccess could take around two months.

What has your experience been?

Thank you Smile

spiral78 · Joined: 05 Apr 2004 Posts: 11534 Location: On a Short Leash

It's pretty standard procedure to send your passport off to an embassy for a visa to be added. Mine had to be courier-ed to Toronto a few years back when I needed a Russian visa, and I've also gone through this process for visas to other countries.

Normally, it takes a relatively short time for the Embassy to process your visa and return your passport (mine's never been gone more than 10 days max). If you don't want to pay for courier service (my Russian employer handled all costs in my case), then for sure you want to send it via registered and insured post.

Sashadroogie · Posted: Sat Oct 15, 2011 5:40 am Post subject:

The sending of your degrees to Russia so as to get the letter of invitation is new to me. Are you sure this is what you need to do? Normally, qualification documents need to be submitted to the embassy when applying for the visa itself. I'd be more concerned about that step than sending your passport to the Russian Embassy in the US

smithrn1983 · Joined: 23 Jul 2010 Posts: 320 Location: Moscow

I also didn't know you had to send apostilled copies of your degree to get a letter of invitation. This was not the case when I applied for my visa.

Also, check with the embassy, or consulate, in the U.S. before sending them your passport. Last I checked you have to use a specific courier service for this, or they won't accept your documents. Your other option, of course, is to take your application documents and passport to the embassy or consulate in person, which is what I did.

From the time you drop off your documents at the embassy, it takes less than a month for you to be issued your visa, and it can be done in three days if you pay for expedited processing.

mackayscanland · Joined: 15 Mar 2009 Posts: 39

Sohniye,
I am starting to research this and you need to google CIBT!!!

Americanartistist · Joined: 15 Oct 2011 Posts: 31

I have been here since 2003, so I try keep an eye on things like this. One of the new laws passed last August is every teacher must provide a clean police record for here in Russia, I assume expats will also have to provide a clean record for the police where ever they come from (US teachers will be required to provide a report from the FBI now). Russians are starting to get strict with degree qualifications, so the school may very well want to see a official diploma with the necessary stamps to make it legit so it can be checked out before issuing an invitation.

I know in the past schools have been lax in verifying diplomas and certificates, however I think this will be changing. I have heard that schools now can be fined and lose their license to operate if they do not start verifying if the degree and certification is legit or not.

This is only what I have heard from students I have with connections in the Duma, maybe true, maybe not, in the past their info has been reliable.

I have been following this forum since before I moved to Moscow and used to be a member, but my computer screwed up and I lost all my passwords. I was working at 4 different schools at one time when I first came here, so that really left little free time for looking at forums. I have permanent residence which is not as hard as some think it is and I now have my PIE (private individual entrepreneur) registration, so when I work for a school now, they sign my contract instead of me having to sign my life away with their contract. However, enough about me,

I do think there are some serious changes coming in the private education field and if what I have heard about BKC now requiring all teachers to provide background checks from the police here in Moscow, I think that could be taken as a sign of these changes coming about because BKC hardly ever checked anything before.

I think it would depend on the school requesting your diploma as to if this is legit or not, is it one of the bigger Mcfranchise operations or one of the smaller Russian owned jobs? I have worked with a couple of the Mcfranchise operations and many of the Russian operations and in my opinion the smaller Russian schools are the best, but I do not work for just anybody, so I know how to check these schools out.

Best of luck
JD

sohniye · Joined: 15 Mar 2011 Posts: 90

Thank you everyone, your insight helps a lot! Very Happy

I am not sure if anyone else had to go through my particular embassy but it's worth asking. Did anyone else have issues with getting in contact with their embassy, namely the one in Seattle?

Maybe I am freaking out but since the visa and procedural rules seem to change frequently but I cannot seem to get anyone on the phone---so I sent them an email three days ago and still no answer.

Did anyone else experience this? Did anyone else find that they needed to send their applications to a councilate other than the one they are (were) assigned to?

Americanartistist · Joined: 15 Oct 2011 Posts: 31

was in 2003, at that time everything could be done by email, now it has to be done eith in person or by a registered representative. You have to understand visa issuance is a low priority for every embassy. So issues like this are put on the back burner, it is always best to visit any embassy in person or have somebody do it on your behalf. Too bad Biden when he was in Russia last turned down Russia's offer to do away with visas between the US and Russia, sure would have made things a lot easier. But take a look at the embassy web page, at least the one located in Washington is pretty clear about visa requirements and issues, or it was the last time I looked. Do not get discouraged, this is only a taste of the government hoop jumping you will have to do here, however, everything usually works out for those who do not give up.
JD

Sashadroogie · Posted: Fri Oct 21, 2011 7:08 am Post subject:

Don't know if this is fully relevant to the topic at hand, but I think it is worth reminding posters that nearly all visa application forms have first to be submitted online these days and then printed off and sent to the visa office with other docs. Nothing more soul-destroying than to arrive at the nearest embassy early in the morning only to discover that you needed to have submitted online and in advance.

I presume this is the same procedure in the US.