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In modern Belarus, the tourism sector is becoming increasingly important, and legislation in this area seeks to simplify the procedure for obtaining a Belarusian visa and reduce its cost. Mutual international agreements allow tourists from many countries of the world to get acquainted with the sights of the Republic of Belarus without obtaining a visa at all, and foreigners, in whose country there is no Belarusian embassy, can now receive a visa directly at the airport.
Visa-free entry to Belarus
Most foreign tourists will have to apply for a visa to the Republic of Belarus, however, there are separate agreements that allow citizens of certain countries of the world to visit Belarus without a visa.
These foreigners include Azerbaijanis, Argentines, Armenians, Brazilians, Venezuelans, Georgians, Israelis, Kazakhs, Qataris, Chinese, Cubans, Kyrgyzstanis, Macedonians, Moldovans, Mongols, Emirates, Russians, Serbs, Tajiks, Turks, Uzbeks, Ukrainians, Montenegrins, Ecuadorians.
For all other citizens, the border with Belarus can be crossed only when accompanied with a visa, with the exception of two possible options for visa-free entry.
These options apply to citizens from 80 countries:
1. Australia;
2. Austria;
3. Albania;
4. Andorra;
5. Antigua and Barbuda;
6. Argentina;
7. Barbados;
8. Bahrain;
9. Belgium;
10. Bulgaria
11. Bosnia and Herzegovina;
12. Brazil;
13. Vanuatu;
14. Vatican;
15. Great Britain and Northern Ireland;
16. Hungary;
17. Vietnam;
18. Haiti;
19. Gambia;
20. Germany;
21. Honduras;
22. Hong Kong;
23. Greece;
24. Denmark;
25. Dominica;
26. India;
27. Indonesia;
28. Ireland;
29. Iceland;
30. Spain;
31. Italy;
32. Canada;
33. Cyprus;
34. China;
35. Korea;
36. Kuwait;
37. Latvia;
38. Lebanon;
39. Lithuania;
40. Liechtenstein;
41. Luxembourg;
42. Macau;
43. Macedonia;
44. Malaysia;
45. Malta;
46. Order of Malta;
47. Mexico;
48. Micronesia;
49. Monaco;
50. Namibia;
51. Netherlands;
52. Nicaragua;
53. Zealand;
54. Norway;
55. Sultanate of Oman;
56. Panama;
57. Peru;
58. Poland;
59. Portugal
60. Romania;
61. Samoa;
62. San Marino;
63. Saudi Arabia;
64. Seychelles;
65. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines;
66. Singapore;
67. Slovakia;
68. Slovenia;
69. USA;
70. Uruguay;
71. Finland;
72. France;
73. Croatia;
74. Czech Republic;
75. Chile;
76. Switzerland;
77. Sweden;
78. El Salvador;
79. Estonia;
80. Japan.
Citizens of these countries can travel within Belarus without a visa when crossing the border through Minsk National Airport. This rule does not apply to foreigners arriving from Russian airports.
The second way to get to Belarus without a visa for tourists from these countries under consideration is to visit the Grodno-Brest zone. Such a zone is understood as a combined recreation area of the Grodno and Brest regions.
The period of stay in Belarus in connection with a visit to the Grodno-Brest zone should not exceed 15 days.
A feature of this visa-free regime is the obligation of a tourist to purchase a tour in advance from a certain company, which has the right to organize such visa-free trips to Belarus.
In order to travel to Belarus using such a visa-free regime, 14 checkpoints are suitable, including the Grodno and Brest airports.
Despite the absence of the need to obtain a visa, a visa-free regime still requires a foreigner to have the following documents:
• Passport valid for at least 90 more days;
• The certain amount of money – around 50 rubbles for each day of stay in the country (for a month – around 1200);
• Insurance for the entire stay from 10 thousand euros.
Citizens of unfavourable countries in terms of migration are required to have a Schengen visa with a mark of entry into their territory and return tickets.
Obtaining a visa upon arrival at the airport
Visiting Belarus for tourism purposes is possible only with a short-term visa, which can be obtained upon arrival or in advance at the representative office of Belarus.
A visa upon arrival can be issued only at the department for the entry of foreigners of the main consular department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (UVV GKU MFA), which is located at the National Airport of Minsk ("Minsk-2").
In order to obtain a tourist visa upon arrival in Belarus, you will have to send the originals of visa support documents by mail or through a representative to the employees of the UVV GKU in advance (3 days or earlier). After that, these documents are stamped.
If it is possible, it is recommended to pick up the documents through a representative and send them to the tourist so that he does not have any difficulties when boarding a flight to Minsk.
Upon arrival in Belarus, a foreigner who has sent documents to the airport in advance will be able to freely obtain his visa at any time of the day.
Obtaining a visa at the consulate
The most optimal option for obtaining a Belarusian visa is to apply to the Belarusian consulate in the country where the foreigner lives, if, of course, there is one there.
In this case, the same documents are required as for obtaining a visa at the airport:
1. Visa application form with a photograph of the established form;
2. Passport, in which there are at least 2 blank pages, and the validity of which is more than 90 days from the date of entry into Belarus;
3. Medical insurance for the entire period of stay in the country;
4. One of the documents of visa support, which include:
• A document from a travel agency, sanatorium, other health-improving organization registered in Belarus. Such a request must be made on a letterhead with a seal and in compliance with the established form;
• A document from the Belarusian agro-ecotourism complex. Such a request requires the presence of the address, goals, number of days of residence of the tourist, the list of services provided to him, as well as the obligation of the complex to comply with the rules of stay in Belarus by the tourist, among other things, documents certifying the right to provide tourist services by this legal entity are also provided
• A document confirming the booked room in a hotel and similar places (does not apply to citizens of "unfavourable" countries in terms of migration).
• A pass ticket for any official event (in this case, a visa is issued for up to 2 days).
The validity of a tourist visa is determined in accordance with the visa support document, but cannot exceed 30 days.
A tourist visa can be either single entry or double entry (one or two entries).
Cost and period for obtaining a tourist visa
(all categories of visas)
Recently, the price of a visa for EU citizens received through Belarus missions abroad (with the exception of Denmark, Ireland) and stateless peple has become 35 euros, and with accelerated processing of documents - 70 euros.
In this case, children under the age of 12, disabled and close relatives, with a written invitation, are issued a visa free of charge.
Citizens of all other states will have to pay 60 euros for a visa, and 120 euros for an urgent visa.
Children under the age of 14, as well as people visiting Belarus due to the death or illness of a family member, have the right to receive a visa free of charge.
In order to get a visa at the airport, citizens of countries that have a Belarusian embassy will have to pay 180 euros or 30 euros when applying for a group visa. For those citizens in whose countries there is no Belarusian representative, a visa will cost 90 euros or 15 euros for a group visit to the country.
In this case, a visa is issued to children under the age of 14 without payment.
In this situation, it is worth preparing cash in advance, since when obtaining a visa at the airport, payment is made only in this way.