Turkmenistan visa

Turkmen embassies in the world

 Application of visa : what do you need

• the usual stuff : 1 nice picture of yourself, passport valid at least 6 more months
• Maximum duration of stay : 10 days for the on-the-spot tourist visa at Asghabat airport (invitation needed), 14 days in most embassies, with special invitation letters you can sometimes get 3 weeks
• Price : 61 US dollars in Asghabat airport, 51 US dollars in most embassies
• transit visa : invitation is necessary and price the same as for tourist visa, so you better get a tourist visa as for transit proof of onward transport and/or visa for the next country can be requested.
• tourist visa : an invitation is needed,
• city list : normally since January 2001 no more cities are listed on the visa; problem is that the visa itself still has the possibility to write in “points of destination” and “points of entry, exit”, so it will depend on the embassy if they just leave this space blank or fill them in. I have seen a visa from the Uzbek embassy where they did not mention the cities anymore. no cities are written on the private visa, so you can go where you want. I`m not sure about the tourist visa; if there is still a list and you want to go to Crimea you should make sure some cities of the peninsula are included.

Letter of invitation - Visa support

As always with invitations, the most important thing for an independent traveller is to find an agency which does not requires you to take any extra services (hotel bookings, transport, tours,…) which limit your freedom and cost you lots more. Also the way of payment is important, as bank wire or Western Union payments are not as practical as VISA or payment on arrival. The following selection is what I have found, feel free to send me details of other agencies who offer cheap invitations without further obligations. This selection is purely based on these criteria, it does not takes in account the quality of their service.

Remarks :

·         Journalists are not welcome anymore in Turkmenistan. Because travel agencies cannot be sure if the individual traveler who applies is really a tourist or a disguised journalist, they are not very willing to offer individual travelers invitations and prefer tour groups. If they allow a journalist to enter the country on their invitation they risk losing their licence. Also providing someone an invitation means for the travel agency that they are responsible for you.

·         Normally an invitation is always needed, although if you apply in a different country than your home country, you could try to use a letter of recommendation of your embassy instead. A Belgian traveler got his Turkmen visa in Mashad, Iran with a letter of recommendation of the Belgian embassy in Teheran in august 2001.

·         For the invitation you must provide where you will enter – exit the country and the cities you will visit. It is important to make a copy of the invitation once you receive it. If you have any problems afterwards (as I had on the train to Turkmenbashi because at the airport they had only written “Dasoguz” as “points of destination” on my visa), you can try to convince the police with the cities listed on the copy of your invitation. There are many checkpoints in the country, but fortunately the police is also very corrupt, so they sometimes drop the very rigid rules for 1 or 2 US dollars.

·         It generally takes about two weeks for your invitation to be ready (after you had a positive response of the travel agency !! They don`t accept every application.), but it is better to apply longer in advance to be sure to get your invitation in time. You can apply starting from 3 months in advance.

·         To apply for the invitation you must provide points of entry/exit (Ashabat, Dashoguz, Gaurdan-Badzgiran, Gushgi, Konye-Urgench, Saraghs, Turkmenabat, Turkmenbashi), and the cities you will visit. Check when you get the visa if they have listed them all on the visa or if you are lucky and they let you go just with no more names on the visa.

·         Rules and prices of agencies change fast, check their websites or their email addresses for up to date prices and conditions.

Travel Agencies :

Registration

• If you stay longer than 5 days in the country you must get a registration stamp at the OVIR police office, this will cost you 5$ and can also be done by the inviting travel agency.
• As there are many  many checkpoints in the country you better get this stamp in time

Extension

• Not possible for a normal tourist visa, you must get a new invitation first

If you have more questions

• http://www.turkmenistanembassy.org/turkmen/info/visainfo.html, visa info Turken embassy in USA
• http://www.lonelyplanet.com/letters/cas/tur_pc.htm, LP postcards Turkmenistan

Customs

• You have to fill in a customs declaration form at the border (English version is available), you fill in the amount of money and jewels you have with you and the name of your camera, let them date-stamp the thing and keep it safe until you leave.
• Be ready for a very thorough search at the land borders.

Permits

• A permit from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs / Border Authorities is necessary for the southern border including Karakala, Kugitang, Badkhyz, Tagtabazaar, Seraks, Gaudan.
• Permits no longer necessary for Firuza, Meane Baba, Sekizyap and Nokhur valleys
• Travel agencies can arrange the permit for you