Last Updated on February 17, 2024 by Irena Domingo
In this article I explain how to quickly get medical insurance to travel to Russia valid to enter the country with your electronic visa (or e-visa) or your traditional or regular visa (with Covid-19 coverage included).
I'm going to talk about ...
- 1. Is it mandatory to have insurance to travel to Russia?
- 2. Which conditions must the travel insurance policy meet to obtain the electronic visa to Russia?
- 3. How to get travel medical insurance to Russia for an e-visa in 5 minutes?
- 4. What is the period for which I have to take out travel insurance for Russia?
- 5. Is medical insurance mandatory to apply for the visa?
- 6. What information should I include in the visa application related to travel insurance?
- 7. Is the original insurance policy necessary, or is the PDF document sufficient?
- 8. What type of visa can I apply for with Ingosstrakh travel insurance?
1. Is it mandatory to have insurance to travel to Russia?
The governments of some countries require foreigners who cross their borders to have travel medical insurance. This way, if you have an accident (or die during the trip), it will be your insurance company that will bear the medical or repatriation expenses, and not the public authorities of the country of destination.
One of these countries is Russia. Thus, foreigners who arrive to Russia with an electronic visa (or a traditional paper visa), are required to carry valid medical insurance throughout the territory of the Russian Federation and throughout their stay period, which must meet a number of conditions.
Due to the conflict in Ukraine, most European or American insurance companies do not offer travel insurance with coverage in Russia, while most Russian insurance companies do offer coverage in Russia but do not allow payment with Western cards.
I have contracted insurance with different companies to travel to Russia, both for the traditional visa and for the electronic visa. In this article, I will explain the conditions that this insurance must meet and how you can buy it online in 5 minutes in PDF format ready to print.
2. Which conditions must the travel insurance policy meet to obtain the electronic visa to Russia?
When buying travel insurance to Russia, the following must be considered:
- You have to buy it before going on a trip. It is not possible to buy it when arriving in Russia, or at the airport, or at the port or at any point of entry by land or by rail.
- The electronic visa insurance policy must come in English or Russian (not in other languages).
- The insurance can be purchased online with any insurance company in PDF format. In this case, you must print it before your trip, to show it along with your electronic visa.
- The following information must be indicated in the insurance policy:
- Insurance date and the period it covers.
- Policy number.
- Full Names of the insured (which must match those listed on the electronic visa).
- List of medical coverage. Medical assistance and repatriation expenses must be included. I always recommend a minimum amount of 30,000 dollars or its equivalent in other currencies.
- Covered insured area: you must clearly specify “World” or “Russian Federation” or “Europe, Russia included” (it is not enough that the insurance specifies that you have medical coverage only in “Europe”, since Russia has a European part and an Asian part).
- Signature of the insurance company.
3. How to get travel medical insurance to Russia for an e-visa in 5 minutes?
Currently there are two travel insurance policies from Russian companies that can be obtained online in 5 minutes and that allow you to pay with foreign cards:
- Atollo Assistance, a Russian insurance company that allows you to purchase insurance from the Ingosstrakh insurance company.
- Cherehapa, a Russian company that allows you to purchase insurance with the Russian insurance company Sovkombank.
The insurance that I use for the electronic visa is the one offered by Attollo Assistance, a Russian insurance company specialized in travel insurance. They offer an insurance policy that comes in English and Russian, and meets all the above conditions. This insurance is also valid to obtain a traditional paper visa.
The good thing about this insurance is that it has very good coverage (35,000 euros), has a very affordable price and you can get it in 5 minutes:
Step 1. Enter your personal information
To acquire it, you must enter its website and enter the traveler’s personal information: name, surname and date of birth. You can add several travelers when purchasing the insurance policy.
The policyholder will be the person who contracts the insurance, that is, the person who pays. Normally it will be the traveler who is responsible for buying insurance for all travelers. You must provide your email address, to which the insurance policy will be sent.
Step 2. Enter payment information
In a second step, you must make the payment by entering your card details. You can pay with cards from any country: Visa, MasterCard, American Express, JCB, Maestro, UnionPay, etc.
Step 3. Download the policy in PDF format (and print it)
Once the payment is made, you can download the policy in PDF format, ready to print. They will also send it to your email. Attollo Assistance currently sells travel insurance from the Russian insurance company Ingosstrakh.
4. What is the period for which I have to take out travel insurance for Russia?
In the case of traditional visa , you must take out travel insurance that covers the validity period of your visa. For example, if you apply for a visa from July 1st to July 15th, you will need travel medical insurance for these 15 days.
However, in the case of multiple-entry visas (whether for tourism or business), it is not necessary to take out insurance for the entire validity period of your visa. It is sufficient to present travel insurance for the period of your first stay in Russia. For example, if your visa is valid for 180 days (from January 1, 2024, to June 29, 2024) and you initially travel to Russia from January 1 to 15, then it is sufficient to take out insurance for these 15 days. If you travel to Russia again from March 1 to 20, then you will need to purchase a new travel insurance for these 20 days.
In the case of the electronic visa, you must take out travel insurance that covers the period of stay in Russia. For the electronic visa, the maximum allowed stay is 16 days from the entry date, so if you anticipate a 16-day stay, you will need to take out travel insurance for these 16 days.
5. Is medical insurance mandatory to apply for the visa?
Travel medical insurance, both for the traditional visa and the electronic visa (eVisa), is mandatory for citizens of the following countries:
- European Union countries: Germany, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Cyprus, Croatia, Denmark, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden
- China
- Iran
- Iceland
- Israel
- Liechtenstein
- Monaco
- Norway
- Switzerland
For the rest of the countries, travel medical insurance for Russia is not mandatory, but highly recommended as healthcare in Russia can be very expensive in case of unforeseen events.
The cost of travel insurance is negligible compared to the risks it covers. It is likely that you will not need to use travel insurance, but it is much better to be prepared.
- Name of the insurance company: for example, Ingosstrakh, Sovkombank, Alfa Strakhovanie, Gazprom Insurance, Tinkoff Strakhovanie, etc.
- Insurance policy number: It is found at the beginning of the policy.
- Policy start date: The start date must match the details of your policy.
- Policy expiration date: The expiration date must match the details of your policy.
7. Is the original insurance policy necessary, or is the PDF document sufficient?
For the electronic visa, the PDF document is sufficient. If requested, you can show it on your mobile device. It is not necessary to print it.
Regarding travel medical insurance for the traditional paper visa in Russia, the vast majority of consulates worldwide accept the electronically signed PDF document. This is the case in consulates of European Union countries, the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, South Africa, among others.
8. What type of visa can I apply for with Ingosstrakh travel insurance?
You can apply for any type of visa:
- Tourist visa
- Business visa
- Student visa
- Visa to visit family or friends
- Work visa
- Humanitarian visa
- Visa for highly qualified specialists
- Visa to participate in scientific, cultural, socio-political, economic, and sports events.
- Ultimately, for any type of visa
I hope this article has been helpful in obtaining good medical travel insurance for Russia quickly and economically.