Pre-arrival information

Invitation

International Office will provide the Invitation Letter for your Russian study visa. In order for us to do that, you have to follow the instructions from the Incoming coordinator and meet all the deadlines of submitting documents.

After the end of Application period, we start collecting the package of the documents for your Invitation Letter which is later sent to the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs. The process takes approximately a month. As soon as it is ready, you receive a digital copy of your Invitation Letter on your email address by the middle of July for the Autumn semester students and by the beginning of December for the Spring semester students. As the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs is a governmental organization, the process cannot be speeded up. 

As soon as you get Invitation Letter, you can apply for a study visa. 

Visa

Before applying for a Russian study visa, please consult the Embassy/Consulate General of the Russian Federation in your country (or an authorised visa centre) in order to get the correct list of required documents.

Russian study visa is initially a single-entry visa and is valid for 90 days. It lets you enter the Russian Federation only once. If you leave the country while having a single-entry visa, you are not allowed to enter Russia before you receive a new single-entry visa. 

Be prepared to stay in Russia without leaving for the first 3 months after your arrival, until you receive a multiple-entry visa.

As soon as you get your Russian study visa, please send us the scan to incomingspb@hse.ru.

Migration card

Upon entering Russia, you must fill in a migration card. Please indicate "study" as the purpose of your stay in Russia.

Migration card is an importnat document and is required for FIS-registration application and visa extension. The migration card should be presented at passport control when you leave.

Always keep the original migration card with you.

Important information!

• Your passport must be valid for at least 18 months from the proposed start date of the visa and contain at least 4 blank pages for the visa and border stamps. 
• We recommend to apply for a visa in the country of your citizenship. If you plan to apply in another country, we might need more documents for the Invitation Letter. 
• Please do not buy your travel tickets until you get your Russian study visa.
• Students from Azerbaijan, Southern Ossetia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Armenia and Uzbekistan do not need a visa.

Check out our Immigration & Visa Guideline and remember that the process is easy if you follow our instructions and meet deadlines.

For more information about all migration procedures please visit our Visa & Immigration Support website. 

According to Russian migration laws, all foreign citizens must have medical insurance while entering Russia valid for the entire period of their stay exactly to the day. Repatriation must be included. Moreover, a student won't be able to extend a Russian study visa without valid medical insurance.

We strongly recommend to buy a short-term (1-2 weeks) medical insurance in your country to enter Russia and then to buy a long-term Russian one. Many hospitals, clinics and even dormitories don't accept foreign insurance. We can recommend some companies upon your request.

HSE University - Saint Petersburg reserves the right to expell exchange students who refuse to get medical insurance.

We also recommend to save the emergency number of your insurance company in your mobile phone.

As soon as you get medical insurance, please send a digital copy to incomingspb@hse.ru and migrationspb@hse.ru.

For more information please consult Medical Aid & Insurance.

At HSE University - Saint Petersburg we do our best to ensure that your daily life in Saint Petersburg is comfortable. We offer a variety of options for students to choose from, please check the information below.

1. Private housing via the partner real-estate agency service, types of rooms: various
2. HSE dorms, for example, our famous among international students dormitory on Zaporozhskaya st.,  types of rooms: 2 or 4 beds; number of places is limited

If you want to stay in a dormitory, please inform us via email no later than the end of Application period. Due to the limited amount of places in the dorms, the selection will be done on the first come-first served basis.

If you consider the option of the private housing, before signing a Tenancy Contract and paying the rental fee it is crucial to make sure that your landlord agrees to do a FIS Registration for you. Without FIS registration it won’t be possible to extend your visa.

For the students who stay in the dormitory the FIS-registration will be done by HSE University.

Documents for the dormitory check-in:

1. Copies of passport, visa and migration card
2. The original copy of general health certificate 
3. Russian medical insurance (foreign insurance can be accepted only for a short period)
4. Fluorography certificate (lung X-ray) results (only in English or in Russian) - it can be obtained in Russia in 5 working days upon arrival
5. Certificate of vaccination (if you have one) - a document that lists all the vaccinations you have ever received

Some of the points listed below are mandatory, some depend on the financial capabilities and preferences of the student.

Dates:

In June - for Modules 1 - 2 (for Autumn semester)

In December - for Modules 3 - 4 (for Spring semester) 

Before the abovementioned dates you will recieve an instruction and access credentials for the course selection process. Selection is made using SmartWay system.

We strongly recommend to visit our Course Catalogue beforehand to find the most suitable courses for you. You need to apply filters to find courses (campus - Saint Petersburg, academic year, modules etc.)

How to apply for the courses:

1. Access SmartWay.

2. In the left part of the screen, click on "Selective Courses" button. You will access the course catalogue with both in-campus and inter-campus courses.

3. You can apply filters (course title, faculty, department, language, modules, mode of studies, academic year etc.) and click on the "Select" button. To drop the course from the selected courses, click the "Remove" button.

4. To complete the application, click the "Send a Request" button.

The full instruction on how to sign up for the courses can be found here.

Please note that the number of places in each course is limited and disseminated on first come - first served basis. 

ISU (International Student Union) buddies are HSE volunteers who are ready to help international students to adapt to life in Saint Petersburg and on campus.
Learn more about buddies and apply here.

Upon arriving to Russia you must have the following documents: 

1. Valid passport with a Russian study visa
2. Migration card (you will get it at the passport control)
3. Medical insurance (digital copy has to be sent to incomingspb@hse.ru and migrationspb@hse.ru as soon as you purchase it)
4. Passport-size (3x4) photos on a matte paper (for dormitory, International office, visa extension)
5. General health document, vaccination certificate (if you have it) and X-ray results (certificate in English or Russian) for students who stay in the dormitory

What to pack with you?

1.  Saint Petersburg is notorious for its cold and rainy weather but we do have 4 seasons: it can be rather hot in summer (up to 30° C) and really cold in winter (- 30° C). We recommend to take warm clothes, hooded coat for rainy and windy Autumn/Spring season, heavy coat for Winter season, gloves, a scarf, solid shoes, an umbrella. However, we have plenty of shopping malls where you can buy everything you need.
2. Russian ruble. It's better to have at least a small amount of currency for the first days.
3. Medication which you take on a regular basis because it may not be imported to Russia. You can also take Vitamin C and D with you for staying strong during rainy and cold seasons (although you can find plenty here).
4. In Russia the standard voltage is 220 V and the frequency is 50 Hz. You can use your electric appliances in Russia, if the standard voltage in your country is in between 220 - 240 V. Otherwise, you need the adapter. Electrical sockets here are one of the two European standard electrical socket types: Type C and Type F.

Moreover, before the arrival it is important to check the following information:

1. Contact details of the Embassy/Consulate General or diplomatic mission of your country in Russia
2. Contacts of your exchange coordinators: Ms. Dasha Sanochkina, Head of Student Academic Mobility Office, and Ms. Valeria Konyaeva, Incoming coordinator
3. Emergency number for HSE SPb International students: +7 (981) 830 15 40
4. Contacts of your buddy