Russia considers extending visa exemption to include up to three day stay in country

The Russian government is reported to be considering to extend exemption from visa requirement to include passengers that arrive by sea or river going vessels and who stay in the country less than 72 hours, Finnish media reports say.

At the moment, passengers who arrive to the country on cruise liners do not require individual visas. The new rule would include a number of ports of arrival that will be decided later, the reports say, adding that St Petersburg is expected to be high on the list.

The change would benefit cruise ferry operators, whose passengers could spend a few nights at hotels in Russia and sail back without obtaining a visa. At the moment, a ferry service operate e.g. from Helsinki to st Petersburg. However, in the past there have also been services linking the Russian second city with e.g. Stockholm, Tallinn and Rostock.

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