There is a COVID-19 Testing Centre in the airport, we recommend to take PCR test there in order to get your results in 24 hours.
You can also change money in the Currency exchange point (first floor) or take some cash in the ATM.
How to get to Moskovskaya metro station from Pulkovo Saint Petersburg airport
You can take a taxi in the airport but it can be very expensive. It is better and cheaper to use taxi apps but only with cash as Visa and MasterCard don’t operate on the territory of Russia. We strongly do not recommend to take a private taxi outside the airport.
If you want to use public transport, you can take buses №39, 39Э (buses operate from 5:10 to 0:44). Bus stop is on the first floor of the airport in front of the exit from the arrivals hall. One ride costs 60 RUB.
At the metro you can buy Podorozhnik travel card to use the first few weeks in the city. It works as an electronic wallet, all citizens use it and you can top its balance up at any subway station. It is cheaper to use Podorozhnik than to buy ordinary tickets. Later you will get a student transport card (1205 RUB per month).
We recommend you to apply for a Buddy in order to ask a Russian-speaking student to meet you at the airport and help you to navigate through the city during your first hours in Saint Petersburg.
The best way to navigate around the city is to use Yandex Maps (Яндекс Карты) app
Registration with the Federal Immigration Service (FIS)
All international students must be registered in the Russian Federation in 7 days upon their arrival at their actual place of residence.
After registration you will receive a registration slip. It is a document confirming a foreign citizen’s legal stay in the Russian Federation.
You must be officially registered every time you enter the Russian Federation or change the place of your temporary stay (hotel/hostel/hospital/changing the apartment).
If you're staying in the HSE dormitory, our Visa and Registration office will apply for your registration for you. In the first two days after arrival you have to bring copies of all passport pages (including the Russian visa and the entry stamp) and a copy of the migration card to theVisa and Migration Office(123 Kanala Griboedova Embankment, 123, office 304).
If you're staying in a private apartment, it is the responsibility of your landlord to secure your FIS Registration in this apartment each time it is required (check-in and each re-entry to Russia).
All hotels and hostels in the Russian Federation are legally mandated to officially register foreign guests with the migration authorities, even if they are staying for just one night. As such, if you stay in a hotel or hostel, your registration at a dormitory or privately rented apartment will be automatically cancelled. Upon returning, you will need to get registered again.
If you require hospitalization, certain medical institutions will register you there as your temporary place of residence. Prior to leaving the hospital, confirm with its staff whether you have been registered there – you should be provided with a new registration slip. After being discharged, you will need to get registered again at your subsequent place of residence.
If you fail to get registered in time, your Russian study visa will not be extended.
The service is free of charge.
Please read carefully all information about FIS-registration here.
Orientation session
Orientation session usually takes place at the beginning of each semester. In order to adjust to student life, it is essential that you participate in the Orientation Session as it will provide you with information on studying at HSE University – Saint Petersburg, visa and migration control, student social life, living in Saint Petersburg as well as other useful tips to help you better enjoy your experience in Russia. Event dates will be sent out by email closer to the start of the semester.
List of HSE study buildings in Saint Petersburg
Kantemirovskaya St., 3A, building 1 (Petrogradskaya, Lesnaya metro stations) - Saint Petersburg School of Economics and Management;
Naberezhnaya Kanala Griboedova, 123 (Sennaya Sq., Sadovaya, Spasskaya metro stations) - Saint Petersburg School of Social Sciences and Area Studies;
Sedova St., 55A, building 2 (Lomonosovskaya metro station) - Saint Petersburg School of Social Sciences and Area Studies;
Promyshlennaya St., 17, building 1 (Narvskaya metro station) - Saint Petersburg School School of Arts and Humanities; Saint-Petersburg School of Law;
Souza Pechatnikov St., 16 (Sennaya Sq., Sadovaya, Spasskaya metro stations) - Saint Petersburg School of Social Sciences and Area Studies.
Each building has a wi-fi access, canteen, cafes, study open-spaces and a library. All the courses might take place in different buldings, in one week before the strat of the module addresses are uploaded to the schedule in RUZ.
You can find more information about study buildings and dormitories here.
Check out our Virtual Tour around HSE University - Saint Petersburg campus!
Medical examination, fingerprinting and photographing procedures
According to the federal law ‘On the legal status of foreign citizens in the Russian Federation’, international students staying in Russia for more than 90 days are required to undergo medical examination, fingerprinting, and photographing. These procedures must be done within 90 days after your arrival.
Detailed step-by-step instruction for students of HSE University - Saint Petersburg is available here.
The official directive of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation can be found here (available in Russian only).
Visa extension
Before arrival to Russia you will initially get a single-entry Russain study visa which is valid for 90 days. Upon arrival to Saint Petersburg we will guide you through the process of getting an extended multi-entry visa that usually appears in November for the Autumn semester and Full year students and in March for the Spring semester students.
Please DO NOTplan any trips outside of Russia until you receive your multi-entry visa, i.e. for the first 3 months of your studies!
List of the documents for the visa extension:
Your passport in original
Printed copies of your passport pages with marks (first page + visas, stamps)
One color portrait photo 3x4 size
Printed copy of migration card (you will receive one at the border when you arrive in Russia)
Original and a printed copy of the current valid FIS Registration under the actual address of stay in Saint Petersburg
Visa extension fee payment receipt (1600 RUB) - you will receive the instruction for payment process via email in due time
Do not forget to print copies before visiting Visa and Migration office. Without these copies documents for extending your stay in Russia will not be accepted.
The whole process of visa extension will take about 4-6 weeks.
