Belarus and Russia signed the Treaty on mutual recognition of visas

31.07.2020

During the negotiations that took place on June 19, 2020 the Heads of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Belarus and Russia signed the intergovernmental Treaty on Mutual Recognition of Visas and Other Issues Related to the Entry and Exit of Foreign Citizens and Stateless Persons on the Territory of the States that are Parties to The Treaty on the Establishment of the Union State (hereinafter – “the Treaty”).

After the Treaty enters into force:

  • Foreign citizens and stateless persons who enter, exit, stay or transit in the visa regime, having a visa of one of the states, as well as a valid identity document, will be able to freely enter, leave, stay or transit through the territories of Belarus and Russia during the validity period of such a visa.
  • Foreign citizens and stateless persons who enter, exit, stay or transit in a visa–free regime on the basis of an international agreement, having a valid identity document, will be able to freely enter, leave, stay or transit through the territories of the states for a period determined by an international agreement or a national legislation.
  • If one country has a visa–free regime, while the other country requires a visa for entry, exit, stay or transit, foreign citizens and stateless persons, having a valid identity document, will have the right to enter, exit, stay or transit on the basis of and during the validity period of the visa.
  • If foreign citizens and stateless persons have a residence permit, a temporary residence permit or a document for attending international events, they will have the right to enter, leave, stay or transit through the territories of the states during the validity period of such documents. However, an identity document is required in any case. The exception is areas that require a special permission to visit.
  • Foreign citizens and stateless persons who have received permission to enter, leave, stay for the purpose of employment, training, temporary or permanent residence, will have the right to study, work, temporarily or permanently reside only on the territory of the state that issued the relevant permits.

Entry of foreigners will be carried out:

  • through checkpoints that states must send to each other within 60 days, and
  • from the territory of another state by rail, by air, by strictly established roads (there are only 6 of them, they are located in the Vitebsk, Mogilev, Gomel, Pskov, Smolensk and Bryansk regions).
  • The period of stay is calculated from the date of entry into the territory of one of the states from the territory of a third state (i.e. from the date of marking in the identity document on crossing the state border). These marks are mutually recognized by the states in order to control the length of the stay.
  • Foreign citizens and stateless persons must:
  • upon arrival, register (register for migration) within the time and procedure established by the national legislation of the states,
  • comply with the law and regulations of the state in which they are located.
  • The agreement does not apply to those foreign citizens and stateless persons whose entry into the territory of one state is restricted in order to ensure the national and other interests of one state, but they are allowed to enter the territory of another state.
  • At the same time, states have the right to refuse entry or shorten the period of stay, if necessary, for example, in order to ensure defense capability, state security, public order or protect public health, for other purposes, as well as to unilaterally suspend the Treaty in whole or in part.

The Treaty enters into force 30 days after the date of the receipt of the last written notification of the completion of domestic procedures necessary for its entry into force.