Russia residence - my journey

[NothingToHide]

Here is the whole application process, which I recently completed.
While you might complete it by yourself, it would be a monumental task even for a Russian speaking person, and you risk to waste days on it. Therefore, it’s highly recommended to hire a local facilitator. With mine I completed the whole process in one day, while others say that you need at least one week.

1. Visa Requirement

To apply for this type of residence permit, you must enter Russia with a specific visa designed for this purpose. A regular tourist or business visa will not work.

2. Documents to Prepare

Before arriving in Russia, you need to gather and prepare the following:

- Birth certificate
- Marriage certificate (if applicable)
- Police clearance certificate from your country of citizenship
- Police clearance certificate from the country of residence (if different from your citizenship)
- Photocopies of all pages of your passport

Once you have these, send scanned copies to a translation service in Russia. Only translations made in Russia are accepted by the authorities; foreign translations are not valid.

Important: being originals of all documents with you.

You also need 4 photos 3.5x4.5 cm, matte finish, white background. Shiny photos or light grey backgrounds will be rejected.

3. Upon Arrival in Russia

At the airport, you will receive an immigration paper: keep it safe, you’ll need it for document submission.

Get a Russian SIM card as you need a local number for the application process.

Undergo medical tests at an approved lab (I went to Leninskiy Prospect 17):

View attachment 8737

View attachment 8735

You must register your presence at a residential address (apartment or house) in the city where you plan to live and work. This is mandatory for the residence permit application.
If you rent, it might be difficult to obtain such registration as the owner’s cooperation is required and for some reason (long story) most owners don’t like to do that, even if it’s obligatory.

4. Submitting Your Documents

The process takes place at the immigration department for your place of registration.

View attachment 8738

Here is the step-by-step breakdown:

1. Initial document check. Bring all your documents (translations, filled-in forms, medical results). If something is missing, they will tell you.
2. Pay fees. Expect to pay 16,500 rub + 1,920 rub (actual fees may change).
3. Preliminary review. Another office will double-check everything and provide the date and time for formal submission.
4. Document submission. When your turn comes, police officers will review your application in detail. They may ask you questions like:
What are your plans for life and work in Russia?
What traditional Russian values are important to you?
5. Fingerprinting. Once cleared, you go to another office for fingerprints.
6. Final database check. A more thorough fingerprinting and background check will be conducted to ensure you have no criminal records.
7. Final submission & confirmation. Return to the previous office, sign a few documents, and receive a confirmation paper stating that your application has been submitted.

View attachment 8736

5. Waiting for Approval

The review process takes up to 4 months. If everything is in order, you will receive a phone call.

Thank you for sharing your experience. I’m flying to Moscow in a few days to apply for the permit and haven’t prepared much since I’m not great with planning. Everything seems as expected, but it’s nice to have confirmation of the process, especially since there’s so little information about the permit and few people sharing their experiences with it.

 

[JohnnyDoe]

Thank you for sharing your experience. I’m flying to Moscow in a few days to apply for the permit and haven’t prepared much since I’m not great with planning. Everything seems as expected, but it’s nice to have confirmation of the process, especially since there’s so little information about the permit and few people sharing their experiences with it.

You are welcome.
I hope that you have a good helper in Moscow. If not, let me know and I will be happy to give you contacts of my guy (who can’t be found online).

 

[41632584]

Here is the whole application process, which I recently completed.
While you might complete it by yourself, it would be a monumental task even for a Russian speaking person, and you risk to waste days on it. Therefore, it’s highly recommended to hire a local facilitator. With mine I completed the whole process in one day, while others say that you need at least one week.

1. Visa Requirement

To apply for this type of residence permit, you must enter Russia with a specific visa designed for this purpose. A regular tourist or business visa will not work.

2. Documents to Prepare

Before arriving in Russia, you need to gather and prepare the following:

- Birth certificate
- Marriage certificate (if applicable)
- Police clearance certificate from your country of citizenship
- Police clearance certificate from the country of residence (if different from your citizenship)
- Photocopies of all pages of your passport

Once you have these, send scanned copies to a translation service in Russia. Only translations made in Russia are accepted by the authorities; foreign translations are not valid.

Important: being originals of all documents with you.

You also need 4 photos 3.5x4.5 cm, matte finish, white background. Shiny photos or light grey backgrounds will be rejected.

3. Upon Arrival in Russia

At the airport, you will receive an immigration paper: keep it safe, you’ll need it for document submission.

Get a Russian SIM card as you need a local number for the application process.

Undergo medical tests at an approved lab (I went to Leninskiy Prospect 17):

View attachment 8737

View attachment 8735

You must register your presence at a residential address (apartment or house) in the city where you plan to live and work. This is mandatory for the residence permit application.
If you rent, it might be difficult to obtain such registration as the owner’s cooperation is required and for some reason (long story) most owners don’t like to do that, even if it’s obligatory.

4. Submitting Your Documents

The process takes place at the immigration department for your place of registration.

View attachment 8738

Here is the step-by-step breakdown:

1. Initial document check. Bring all your documents (translations, filled-in forms, medical results). If something is missing, they will tell you.
2. Pay fees. Expect to pay 16,500 rub + 1,920 rub (actual fees may change).
3. Preliminary review. Another office will double-check everything and provide the date and time for formal submission.
4. Document submission. When your turn comes, police officers will review your application in detail. They may ask you questions like:
What are your plans for life and work in Russia?
What traditional Russian values are important to you?
5. Fingerprinting. Once cleared, you go to another office for fingerprints.
6. Final database check. A more thorough fingerprinting and background check will be conducted to ensure you have no criminal records.
7. Final submission & confirmation. Return to the previous office, sign a few documents, and receive a confirmation paper stating that your application has been submitted.

View attachment 8736

5. Waiting for Approval

The review process takes up to 4 months. If everything is in order, you will receive a phone call.

Could you tell something about how you brought money in? Did you carry cash or used crypto to exchange into Rubles? Perhaps some tips on what to do or not?

 

[JohnnyDoe]

Could you tell something about how you brought money in? Did you carry cash or used crypto to exchange into Rubles? Perhaps some tips on what to do or not?

You can bring in as much cash as you want, if it is over $10k you have to declare it.
You can of course exchange crypto, there are a few places where you can do that, but I can’t recommend any as I’ve never used them.
I have been doing business in Russia for some time and I have my own connections, so money is not a problem.
Remember, only in the EU+CH/UK you are a criminal until proven otherwise. The challenge is moving money out of these places, not into Russia.

 

[aragon]

@JohnnyDoe What do you think of Russia's tax code so far, and have you reached the stage of having to submit your first tax returns?

 

[JohnnyDoe]

@JohnnyDoe What do you think of Russia's tax code so far, and have you reached the stage of having to submit your first tax returns?

I have not received the permit yet, that should happen in May-June. I’m not an expert of Russian taxation though.

 

[Velvet]

There is no way it can leak.

In Russia everything is leaked, most of government databases are leaked and get leaked from time to time. Usually when database is leaked, there is torrent file going around, also a lot of telegram bots and other services where you can access all the data. As you are new there, so far you are safe, but there is a high chance that fact of you having Russian residency will be public information in the future.

Converting USDT to cash in Russia is very easy and safe, no kyc, plenty of reputable exchangers, some have offices in Moscow City, some communicate only online and courier will bring you any cash amount you need. These type of exchanges are very popular among population and work like a swiss watch.

 

[friedrich5000]

Converting USDT to cash in Russia is very easy and safe

What fee can you expect for converting crypto -> RUB or RUB -> crypto? 3-5% or more ?

 

[John Spectre]

What fee can you expect for converting crypto -> RUB or RUB -> crypto? 3-5% or more ?

3-5% it's a fee in EU.

Today's fee with good exchanges are:
Crypto to fiat - exchange will pay you ~1% premium above exchange rate
Fiat to crypto - exchange fee around ~1-2%

 

[Velvet]

3-5% it's a fee in EU.

Today's fee with good exchanges are:
Crypto to fiat - exchange will pay you ~1% premium above exchange rate
Fiat to crypto - exchange fee around ~1-2%

Mostly this, but sometimes can go up to maybe 3%, also depends on the amount. The same russians organize exchanges anywhere in the world, EU usually 3-5% as @John Spectre wrote. It's like russian hawala.

 

[jorge]

It’s so simple, thanks to the EU and its “Western values”:

EU says Russia is bad.
EU forbids doing business with Russia.
EU forbids going to Russia.
EU forbids talking good about Russia.

Therefore:

Russia is good.
Doing business with Russia is lucrative.
I go to Russia.
I like Russia.

Still happy to be in Russia, business is going well ?

 

[JohnnyDoe]

Still happy to be in Russia, business is going well ?

1. I have not received the permit yet
2. I have been doing business in Russia for a long time
3. This is a permit, not an obligation to reside