Visa policy of Belarus

Belarus visa

Visitors to Belarus must obtain a visa from one of the Belarusian diplomatic missions unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries.

Belarus plans to introduce a visa-free regime with 80 countries in 2016. The visa-free regime will only apply to visitors arriving and departing from Minsk International Airport and visa-free entry will be only 5 days.[1]

Visa policy map

Visa policy of Belarus

Visa policy

Entry stamp
Exit stamp
Entry and exit stamps.

Citizens of the following 21 jurisdictions can enter Belarus without visas:[2][3]

Indefinite stay
90 days

1 — 90 days within any one year period
2 — 90 days within any 180 day period

30 days

1 — for a maximum total stay of 90 days within any one year period
2 — for holders of MSAR passports or MSAR Travel Permits.
Special provisions

Provided that there is a private invitation or a tourist document nationals of  Macedonia and  Montenegro do not require a visa for up to 30 days.

Citizens of  China do not require a visa when traveling as part of a tourist group through an authorized agency. Since August 22, 2015 a visa is not required for up to 3 days if flying from China to Belarus and in possession of a valid Schengen / EU visa.[4] The new agreement on visa-free group tourism between Belarus and China was signed but is not yet in force. Additional requirement of possession of a visa of the EU and the Schengen area will be abolished.[5]

Non-ordinary passports

No visa is required for Belarus for holders of either diplomatic or other official passports of Argentina, Brazil, China, Ecuador, Egypt, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Laos, Peru, Romania, Singapore,[6] Slovakia, South Africa, South Korea, Syria, Thailand,[7] Uruguay and Vietnam and for holders of diplomatic passports of Poland.

Additional requirements

All visitors are required to have adequate health insurance.[8]

Future

A visa-free agreement was signed with  Argentina in October 2016[9] but it is yet to be ratified.

An agreement between Belarus and  Chile on mutual visa-free visits for holders of diplomatic, service and official passports was signed in November 2016 and is yet to be ratified.[10]

Visa on arrival

The Foreign Admissions Division at the Minsk International Airport of the Consular Directorate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issues visas on arrival if the support documents were submitted not later than 3 business days before expected date of arrival.[11] If the reason for arrival is serious illness or death of a close relative or family member visa support documents can be submitted at the moment of application for an entry visa. Fees are significantly higher than at the consulates.[12]

In January 2015 fees for visa on arrival were as follows:

Special regional provisions

In June 2015, Belarus established a visa-free regime for foreign hikers and cyclists, going to the Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park through the border checkpoint Białowieża–Pererov for a period of up to three days. A pass for a visa-free visit can be obtained electronically and is only valid for the territory of the national park.[13][14]

Effective from 26 October 2016[15] visitors to the Augustów Canal holding the relevant document (filled out by a travel agency, the form being different for individual and group visits)[16] are entitled to visit the areas listed as follows upon entry to Belarus via Rudawka–Liasnaja, Kuźnica–Bruzgi, Švendubrė–Pryvalka and Raigardas–Pryvalka border checkpoints for up to 5 days visa-free:[17]

The visa exemption will remain in force until the end of 2017 unless prolonged.[19]

Statistics

Most visitors arriving to Belarus were from the following countries:[20]

Rank Country or territory 2013
1  Ukraine 1,412,980
2  Russia 1,107,571
3  Lithuania 863,730
4  Poland 362,452
5  Moldova 180,109
6  Latvia 145,452
7  Germany 33,416
Total 4,445,018

See also

References

External links

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