Getting married in Russia: Step by step guide

[millefleur 5,046]

So, this question tends to come up here a lot as people think about going the CR-1 route instead of the K-1. Here's a basic run down of how to get married in Russia. As state on the Embassy website, this applies to Russian and American citizens only, things could get trickier if the other party is not a Russian citizen.

https://ru.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/local-resources-of-u-s-citizens/marriage/

 

Time frame: Roughly 2-3 months

 

Physical locations involved:

• Local Russian consulate closest to you for getting a Russian visa
  • You can use a third party visa service to apply and it is possible to do via mail - check options in your area
• Local office where you can register the foreigner's Russian visa (post office, other bureaucratic office...options vary)
  • https://www.visahouse.com/en/information/visaregistration/
• US Embassy in Moscow - US Citizen Services Department
  • Bolshoy Devyatinsky Ln, 8, Moscow, Russia, 121099 // Большой Девятинский пер., 8, Москва, 121099
    • https://ru.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/  - email and how to get an appointment
    • Hours: Monday-Friday currently by appointment only, no walk ins.
• Department of Legalization of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Moscow
  • 1-Y Neopalimovskiy Pereulok, 12, Moscow, Russia, 119121 // 1-й Неопалимовский пер., 12, Москва, 119121
  • Hours: Monday- Friday 10:00am-12:30 p.m. and 2:30pm-5:00pm (until 4:00pm on Friday) - walk ins allowed
  • Legalization Department Official Site (in Russian only)
• Local ZAGS in your city in Russia
  • ЗАГСы Российской Федерации (in Russian only)

 

Step 1:

Obtain a visa to Russia

• Type of visa is irrelevant as long as you'll be able to stay a few months, preferably multi-entry if you want the freedom to come and go while waiting. Ideally a 3 year visa with stays of up to 6 months would be the best bet (preferably a private visa).
• The entire paperwork to marriage process will take a least a few months. Ballpark it at 2-3 months of waiting to be on the safe side.
• Once you arrive in Russia, be sure to register your visa in the town where you will be staying ASAP and get the registration. Also always keep your migration card together with your passport and do not lose it.

 

Step 2:

Get the information page of your passport translated into Russian (the page that has your name and photo)

• Can be done anywhere as long as it is certified that the translator knows both Russian and English
• Technically, you can do it yourself but taking it to a professional will ensure certainty plus a nicer looking format
• Translations in Russian tend to be cheap so it's worth the money - turn around time is also very fast, usually takes only 24 hours
• This document will later be given to ZAGS when you go to get married, so they can read and verify your passport
• NOTE: If you have previous divorces, you need to go ahead and get those divorce certificates translated into Russian as well

 

Step 3:

US citizen completes the "free to marry" affidavit at the US Embassy in Moscow and get it notarized

• You must complete this form in Russian stating that you are free to marry. Must be completed in Russian - so get a Russian speaker to help if you can't write.
• You must state if you have ever been married before; if you've been married before and are now divorced (list date/place of divorces)
• Email US Citizen Services to request an appointment for notary services. Wait time for getting an appointment is currently unknown.
• Bring affidavit, your US passport and any divorce certificates with you (get translations into English if necessary)
• Pay $50 at the US Citizen Services unit at the Embassy in Moscow and sign the form in the presence of the notary there. Do not sign the form until you are at the window with the notary officer!
• The affidavit is only valid for 3 months after it is signed by a notary

 

Step 4:

Get the affidavit authenticated at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Moscow

• Right after you get your affidavit notarized, take a short trip over to the Legalization Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• You do not need a prior appointment for this, walk in is possible - but during Covid, that might be different now
• One you hand in your affidavit for authentication, there will be at least 5 day turnaround time to process it - NO EXPEDITES or fast processing are available!
• This paper must be picked up in person when it is ready, no mail option is available. So either plan 2 trips to Moscow or plan to stay there for a week.
• Cost is 200 rubles, pay nearby in the building at the cashier. According to website, it might be 350 rubles now?

 

Step 5:

Choosing a marriage date and place at the local ZAGS

• Contact the ZAGS office in your town or city in Russia where your Russian fiancée/fiancé's is registered/currently living. Walk ins are possible but again check in advance due to Covid if you can walk in still.
• Bring all above mentioned documents to ZAGS for review. If you bring any foreign documents such as divorce certificates, bring translations into Russian and Apostille if applicable. Note: you will need to get the Apostille in the country where the document originated, so take care of that ideally before entering Russia.
• There is a 32 day obligatory wait before you can actually get married. At some ZAGS locations they will have a calendar right there where you can pick an available date and time from an option of available slots.
• Some cities have more than one ZAGS location, so think about it in advance which one you want to get married at
  • Some ZAGS offices have rooms where many guests can attend, some are bigger and more ornate than others. If you want, you can have a bunch of people attend the civil ceremony at ZAGS and make it quite formal, or you can just do a quick in and out style eloping with no fanfare at all. Some ZAGS offices are very elaborate and decorated and accommodate guests better, so think about it in advance which office will be good for your needs if there's more than one to choose from in your city. Talk to the staff at ZAGS which one might best fit your needs.
• Once you select a date you'll be given an invitation paper with your selected date. You can leave Russia during this time or you can stay and wait it out. If you choose to leave, just make sure to register your visa again when you re-enter.

 

Step 6

Get married at ZAGS!

• Once your wedding day arrives, arrive to ZAGS with all the proper paperwork mentioned above
• Submit it to the office where you will go through a couple steps of signing papers and getting your documents checked and reviewed again
• Once you both sign all the necessary papers and the ceremony is complete, you'll get a marriage certificate in Russian with both your names on it. It's a good idea to get it translated while you are in Russia and also buy a plastic cover to keep it protected (it only costs a few rubles.)
• That's it - now you're officially married in Russia!

 

Now you can start the CR-1 process if all steps go according to plan.

 

Edited January 18, 2021 by millefleur

[Chauncey 138]

Thank you so much! We are planning to do this in October if there is no movement with the K1

[millefleur 5,046]

1 minute ago, Chauncey said:

Thank you so much! We are planning to do this in October if there is no movement with the K1

Good luck! I hope by October that Russia will be issuing some kinds of visas for visitors again.

[Chauncey 138]

1 hour ago, millefleur said:

Good luck! I hope by October that Russia will be issuing some kinds of visas for visitors again.

I just hope the borders are open!

[millefleur 5,046]

2 hours ago, Chauncey said:

I just hope the borders are open!

Exactly, that's really the issue right now. Even though there's no official travel ban between the US and Russia, the fact that both countries are not issuing tourist visas (or private visas for non-family members in Russia's case) basically means that it is.

[Chauncey 138]

1 minute ago, millefleur said:

Exactly, that's really the issue right now. Even though there's no official travel ban between the US and Russia, the fact that both countries are not issuing tourist visas (or private visas for non-family members in Russia's case) basically means that it is.

I would send you a heart but it says I am over my limit on reactions today... I got a little reaction-happy in the Current events topics 😛

[Strawberrymermaid 346]

19 hours ago, millefleur said:

Exactly, that's really the issue right now. Even though there's no official travel ban between the US and Russia, the fact that both countries are not issuing tourist visas (or private visas for non-family members in Russia's case) basically means that it is.

This is something I did not consider - will I be able to get a Russian private visa as a spouse to visit my (future) husband once we are married?

Edited January 20, 2021 by Strawberrymermaid

[millefleur 5,046]

1 minute ago, Strawberrymermaid said:

This is something I did not consider - will I be able to get a Russian private visa as a spouse to visit my (future) husband once we are married?

In the before times (pre-Covid), getting a private visa was relatively straightforward for anyone who wanted to visit a Russian citizen or resident in Russia. The steps are basically this:

• The Russian citizen/resident applies for an official invitation for the foreigner at their local notary office (bring the paper already printed/filled out, they will re-print it on official paper. Takes about 30 minutes including the wait from my experience). You can see examples here: Private Visa docs
• The person in Russia ships this invitation to you in the US (just go with DHL or something secure for sending documents)
• You can either apply in person at a Russian visa center in the US with this invitation, or do it by mail (I've never done via mail but apparently that's offered now)

However.....due to Covid, it seems they're not really offering this right now to non-family members. So, yeah. That's kind of the downer. I don't even know if they're offering this to family members as easy as it was before either....the official Russian proclamation makes it sound like if you don't currently have a visa to Russia, even for family members it has to be for some emergency or death-in-the-family reason. You can see my other post about it here:

 

 

[zolotinka 47]

1 hour ago, Strawberrymermaid said:

This is something I did not consider - will I be able to get a Russian private visa as a spouse to visit my (future) husband once we are married?

This is what I found on the site of Russian embassy in Washington (https://washington.mid.ru/en/consular-services/citizens-usa/visa-to-russia/private-visa) :

II. Private visas for the relatives (husband, wife, minor child) of the Russian Citizen.

If your wife or husband is a Russian Citizen with valid Russian Foreign Passport and you intend to travel to Russia together she/he may submit special application to the Consulate to issue Private Visa for you or (and) your joint minor child.

Visa processing time for this type of visa application is not less than six business days (no express service).

This type of visa can be valid for the period up to three months only.

When filling out a visa application form, the place of submission of documents should be sure to select the "Embassy of the Russian Federation in Washington" or "Embassy of the Russian Federation to the Washington".

RUSSIAN CITIZEN - APPLICANT MUST SUBMIT APPLICATION IN PERSON ONLY

Documents required:

• Special application to the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the United States of America.
• Copy of the valid Russian Foreign Passport of the applicant-Russian citizen and document confirming her\his legal stay in the US (US Visa, Green Card).
• Original or copy of Marriage Certificate or Child's Birth Certificate.
• Original or copy of Russian or US Court Decision with full custody over the child has to be submitted only if visa applicant-Russian Citizen is not a biological parent.

 

As far as I understand it is this new type of visa specifically for relatives. There is also listed 3-year multiple entry visa but as millefleur wrote it is unclear if they give it at all.
Try to call them and ask (from my experience it's better to call than to write because sometimes people who answer emails are not quite knowledgeable) - https://washington.mid.ru/en/contacts/

Edited January 20, 2021 by zolotinka

[millefleur 5,046]

18 minutes ago, zolotinka said:

There is also listed 3-year multiple entry visa but as millefleur wrote it is unclear if they give it at all.

Yeah, it's a bit confusing because there are "Type I" and "Type II" private visas.

 

Type I is for anyone who lives in Russia to invite someone to visit them (can be a friend, anyone legally rising in Russia, they don't even have to be a Russian citizen), and Type II is for Russians living in the US who want to bring their American relatives with them on a visit to Russia. The plus about Type II is that you don't need to get the official invitation from a notary office in Russia, but rather you can complete it all within the US. The negative about Type II is that it is only for immediate Russian relatives who already live in the US and have green cards (or at least visas.)

 

Hope that helps clear it up. For anyone who is not yet married, Type I Private Visa would be the option. The private visa is not new...it's been around for a while, and the 3 year rule started at the same time the 3 year tourist visa rule started. Again the main issue right now with Covid is....are they issuing these at all? My guess is no, not right now.

Edited January 20, 2021 by millefleur

[zolotinka 47]

2 hours ago, millefleur said:

The negative about Type II is that it is only for immediate Russian relatives who already live in the US and have green cards (or at least visas.)

This part is really weird because this visa type was made (at least it was presented so) as a mean to reunite couples separated because of the virus. It really needs some clarification from the Russian embassy.

Edited January 20, 2021 by zolotinka

[millefleur 5,046]

6 minutes ago, zolotinka said:

This part is really weird because this visa type was made (at least it was presented so) as a mean to reunite couples separated because of the virus. It really needs some clarification from the Russian embassy.

Actually Type II been around for a long time, it's not something special just because of Covid. They introduced it so that Russians inside the US wouldn't have to get the invitation paper physically from Russia. Honestly the Russian Embassy website is very bad and doesn't clarify that. I think they just left up all the old info and didn't clarify anything about what kind of visas they're actually giving out to family members right now, which is very annoying. Heh.

 

It looks like right now they're giving out single entry private visas only, see @Anastasia&Jacob's post in the other thread:

 

 

[zolotinka 47]

9 minutes ago, millefleur said:

Actually Type II been around for a long time, it's not something special just because of Covid. They introduced it so that Russians inside the US wouldn't have to get the invitation paper physically from Russia.

I see, thank you! I just remember the announcement around August about visas specifically for separated because of virus close relatives for which a Russian citizen needs just an application without the necessity of a notarized invitation. Unclear if this exists or not then.

[millefleur 5,046]

Just now, zolotinka said:

I see, thank you! I just remember the announcement around August about visas specifically for separated because of virus close relatives for which a Russian citizen needs just an application without the necessity of a notarized invitation. Unclear if this exists or not then.

Yeah, my interpretation is before Covid, for Type II, the Russian would just write a paper saying "I'm a GC holder Russian citizen living in the US and want to bring my spouse to visit Russia with me" and then they would issue the 3 year private based on that, no more questions asked....whereas now, you need to write a paper like "I'm a GC holder Russian citizen living in the US and I absolutely must visit Russia because of (emergency/family issue) and I am inviting my spouse to come with me" - and then they will issue a single entry, short term private visa to the US citizen....and maybe they would ask for other proof or documents relating to the "emergency" situation as well?

 

I feel they left their website unclear on purpose to prevent people from even trying right now. 😕

[zolotinka 47]

3 minutes ago, millefleur said:

 

I feel they left their website unclear on purpose to prevent people from even trying right now. 😕

It is even more ambiguous about those who are separated. Is the separation a good reason for Russian burocracy or not. Why not to clarify such an essential information on the site in this crazy time.