With the steady growth of business and leisure travellers from the UAE to Russia, and still more expected to travel during the upcoming Fifa football tournaments in Russia, VFS Global and the consulate general of the Russian Federation in Dubai have launched a visa application centre in Dubai.

The new centre, which was inaugurated by Gocha Buachidze, consul general of the Russian Federation in Dubai and Northern Emirates, offers applicants streamlined and world-class visa application services in a professional and comfortable environment.

Effective January 22, all travellers to Russia can visit the new VFS Global centre to submit their visa applications. The centre is conveniently located at Wafi Mall, Level 2, Falcon Phase 2, Umm Hurair 2, Dubai.

Since June 2016, the company has launched similar well-appointed Russia Visa Application Centres, on behalf of the government of the Russian Federation, in 14 countries, namely Portugal, Poland, Czech Republic, Greece, Germany, Belgium, Austria, the Netherlands, Romania, Lithuania, Turkey, China, and Switzerland. The latest being the centres launched in Geneva, Switzerland and in Berlin, Germany.

The rollouts come ahead of major sporting events scheduled this year and next, when inbound travel to the country is expected to rise significantly. Russia is preparing to host the Confederations Cup later this year, a prelude to the Fifa World Cup in 2018. The new centres will significantly improve accessibility and conveniences for travellers planning to travel to Russia.

The rapid expansion of professionally managed visa application centres across Europe, Asia and the Middle East comes from the focused commitment to enhance visa application services for travellers to Russia globally. All the centres are centrally located with staff that have multi-lingual (Russian and local language) capabilities to handle queries and applications. For dissemination of information, VFS Global has set up dedicated websites for each location providing applicants with easy access to details about visa categories, requirements, checklist and applicable fees.

VFS Global has been providing visa processing services for the Government of the Russian Federation since 2009, and currently serves the government in 18 countries, including the UK, Finland, Singapore, and South Korea.

Vinay Malhotra, COO – Middle East & South Asia, VFS Global, said: “Our long-standing partnership with our esteemed client government, the Russian Federation, is reflective of our commitment to continually deliver comfortable, convenient and secure visa services to applicants. The new Russia Visa Application Centre in Dubai works towards achieving a common goal of enhancing the overall travel experience to Russia and we are confident services offered will effectively cater to the growing visa demands of applicants from the UAE.” - TradeArabia News Service