Visa regime facilitation brings more Russians to USA
The flow ofRussian tourists to the USA is growing very fast. All thanks to an agreement
signed by the two countries to simplify visa formalities. In 2012, when 260
thousand Russians visited America, the growth came to 17%. This year, however,
a record-breaking 300 thousand visas have already been issued by U.S.
consulates throughout Russia. This is twice as many as three years ago and 25%
more compared to the whole 2012. Besides, 95% of these visas are good for three
years and more than a third of them have been issued without an interview with
the applicant. According to new rules, a new visa may be obtained without an
interview during four years after expiry of your previous U.S. visa, revealed Mr.
Samuel Rotenberg, a consular officer at U.S. Embassy in Moscow, during a
presentation of his country's mountain resorts at Moscow Ski Salon trade show.
The visa
regime facilitation agreement has been in force since September 9, 2012. It
allows Russian and American citizens to get multiple-entry tourist and business
visas valid for three years instead of two as before. A holder of such a visa
may legally stay in the country for up to six months following each his entry. On
top of that, consular fees have gone down from $260 to $180.
"Russia
is currently the fastest growing supplier of tourists to the USA. We estimate
the tourist flow to reach 460 thousand people per year by 2018 making Russia
the 20th on this list," Mr. Ken Walsh, Commercial Officer at
U.S. Embassy, pointed out. According to American statistics, the Russians come
to America for leisure (45%), visiting family (24%), business (12%), attending
a conference (12%), mountain skiing (10%). An average visitor is 36 years old
and stays for almost 19 days.