Baltic States – CIS, Estonia, Russia, Tourism
International Internet Magazine. Baltic States news & analytics
Friday, 29.03.2024, 16:17
Estonia posts additional visa officials in Moscow, St. Petersburg for run-up to holidays
"Since the number of visa applications in Russia grows
every November and December, we have one additional staffer at the consulate
general in St. Petersburg starting November and one additional staffer also at
the embassy in Moscow starting December," told spokesperson for the
ministry Britta Tarvis.
Estonia's representations abroad accepted 126,795 visa
applications in the first 11 months of this year, 4.27% less than during the
same period in 2017, when 132,444 applications were accepted.
However, the reduction in the number of applications in
Russia has been smaller than at Estonia's missions elsewhere in the world.
The consular offices of Estonia in three cities of Russia --
Moscow, St. Petersburg and Pskov -- accepted altogether 97,046 visa
applications in the 11 months, 3.7% less than in January-November 2017, when
100,776 applications were accepted.
The decline, according to the spokesperson, is attributable
to a reduction by almost 6,000 in the number of visa applications filed in St.
Petersburg, whereas in Moscow more applications were accepted than last year
and the number of applications in Pskov was largely the same as in 2017.
The Belarus capital Minsk and the Ukrainian capital Kiev
also saw reductions in the numbers of applications for an Estonian visa.