The date of the resumption of work of visa centers in Europe is still largely unclear.
On the website of the VMS company, which is the Italian visa operator in the Russian Federation, last week the opportunity was opened to make a submission for a visa from June 1 in Moscow and in the regions. However, within a few days the situation has changed. The latest relevant information on the VMS website said that the center is closed for the next two weeks.
The Consulate General of Italy in Moscow told that they did not have information on the date of renewal of accepting documents for visas at the consulate and visa centers.
“If Italy is ready to accept tourists, then Russia still has a self-isolation regime and quarantine measures continue,” says Anna Filatovskaya, director of the advertising and PR department of the tour operator Russian Express.
Representatives of the consulates of the Czech Republic, Greece, France, Spain and Hungary were unanimous in their answers: there are no exact dates. It all depends on the epidemiological situation in Russia, the dates of opening of the EU external borders (the borders are closed until June 15) and the borders of Russia (it is remain unknown).
The Consulate General of the Czech Republic in Moscow said that the activities of the consular department in the field of visas and residence permits remained completely suspended.
“So far, the borders are closed until a new order,” the press service of the French Embassy in Russia said.
“The Spanish government has not yet provided a date of cancelation the state of emergency and opening the borders,” the Consulate General of Spain in Moscow informed.
Since May 18, the Consular Section of the Embassy of Hungary has partially resumed its activities, however, the acceptance of applications for a Schengen visa is not opened yet.
Representatives of the tourist offices of Greece, Bulgaria, Norway and other countries also report that there is no understanding in the timing of opening of visa centers.
