Poland is
opening up three new visa centers: one in Kaliningrad
itself and two more in the nearby towns – Chernyakhovsk and Sovetsk. This information
was made public by Marek Golkovsky, Consul General of the Polish Republic,
during his speech on the IX Polish-Russian travel forum. Visa centers will start
working on November 16.
Mr. Golkovsky notes that
the need for these visa centers arose due to start of local border traffic (LBT)
between Kaliningrad Region and Poland
on July 27. This new rule means that people, who have an LBT-pass, are allowed multiple
visits of the areas close to the border. According to Marek Golkovsky, during the
last year, the number of issued Schengen visas and SBT-passes rose by 20-30%. With
the introduction of SBT the traffic between Russia
and Poland
has really increased in both directions.
Out of 900 thousand people
living in the Kaliningrad
region, about 750 thousand (basically all the adults) have travelling passport.
According to Mr. Golkovsky, in 2011 the Polish consulate in Kaliningrad issued 113 thousand Schengen visas,
which were used for 600 thousand border crossings. That means six border crossings
for each visa. Overall there were 2.3 million crossings of the Russian-Polish border
in both directions. During eight months of this year alone, there have already been
more than 2.6 million border crossings with visas and LBT?passes, which is more
than the overall count of 2011. For instance, Marek Golkovsky says that the border
was crossed 215 thousand times in February, and almost 400 thousand times in August,
after the introduction of LBT. According to the estimates, by the end of the year
the total number of border crossings from both sides should round up to 3.5-4 million.
The Consul General explained
that the new visa centers were opened to meet the expectations of Kaliningrad Region
citizens. You can apply for a Schengen visa there as well as for a LBT-pass. Mr.
Golkocsky noted that the main reason for crossing the border is shopping. Yet it’s
obvious that interest towards tourism is developing rapidly, especially towards
weekend tours and excursion tours. According to Rosstat data, there were about 49
thousand tourist trips to Poland
from Russian in 2011, which is 14% more, compared to 2010. During the first half
of 2012 there have already been 26.6 thousand tourist trips, which is 19% more,
compared to the same period of 2011.
The LBT-pass is first issued
for two years. If during this term there are no violations, you can get one for
5 years. The rules which apply to LBT are much like the Schengen rules. You can
stay for a total of 90 days every half a year, but no more than 30 days at a time.
LBT-pass holders do not get a stamp in their passports when crossing the border.
If the person using an LBT-pass is caught outside the border traffic zone, he will
be blacklisted and won’t be able to obtain a Schengen visa for the next 5 years.
