Several of the US travel offices based in Ukraine have closed business. It has also become increasingly difficult to obtain a visa for Ukraine in Russia, as well as getting a visa to Russia while in Ukraine.
The Russian consulate in Trabzon (Turkey) issues visas in one hour (if you have all the papers) for US$30.
There is a Mongolian consulate in Irkutsk, Russia, which gives you a tourist visa in a few hours for US$50 and in one day for US$25. No papers required. Only a passport photo.
Tourist visa invitations are not accepted in Kiev, Ukraine and in Minsk, Belarus. We simply do not issue invitations for consulates in the ex-Soviet republics, thereby saving time, money and unnecessary aggravation to all involved. Travellers should also be warned that when applying for Russian visas in Italy, the Netherlands and the Baltics they will need the original copy of their invitation. Our invitations have never been rejected outright; in some cases travellers should have had the original and did not, in others they did not allow enough time for the visa to be processed. Our hostel in Moscow needs advance payment to process invitations and offers money back guarantee should the traveller not get his visa.
