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 Belarusportal |
Visitors to Belarus must obtain a visa from one of the Belarusian diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries.
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 Map of international land border crossings of Belarus [1] |
Holders of ordinary passports of the following countries and territories may enter Belarus without a visa for the following period: [2] [3]
Freedom of movement
Indefinite period 90 days
30 days 30 days, conditional6 |
1 - Internal passport accepted if arriving directly from Russia or Kazakhstan.
2 - 90 days within any 1 calendar year.
3 - 90 days within any 180-day period.
4 - 30 days, 90 days within any 1 calendar year.
5 - For holders of MSAR passports or MSAR Travel Permits.
6 - If holding an invitation letter or a tourist voucher.
| Date of visa changes |
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Citizens of Armenia (2003), Azerbaijan (2007), Georgia (1992), Kazakhstan (2002), Kyrgyzstan (2002), Moldova, Russia (2002), Tajikistan (2002), Ukraine (2010), Uzbekistan (2006) have never required a visa to enter Belarus. However, visa-free agreements have been signed with these states. [4] [5]
Cancelled: |
Holders of diplomatic or official/service passports may enter Belarus without a visa for the following period:
Freedom Of Movement 180 days 90 days
30 days |
D - Diplomatic passports only.
1 - 90 days within any 180-day period.
2 - 90 days within any 1 calendar year.
3 - 30 days, 90 days within any 1 calendar year.
All visitors are required to have an adequate health insurance. [2]
Citizens of the following countries may enter Belarus without a visa only if they use land border crossings, with a maximum stay of 90 days within any 1 calendar year (until 31 December 2024): [27]
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Foreign visitors who are citizens of designated countries are allowed to enter Belarus without a visa through the Minsk National Airport, except for flights departing to and from Russian airports.
The allowed length of stay is up to 30 days, with mandatory registration for stays exceeding 5 days in length.
Visitors must also depart from Minsk National Airport, departure by other methods (for example by train) is not permitted.
The number of visa-free entries is unlimited. [28]
The decree "On establishing a visa-free order of entrance and departure of foreign citizens" was signed by the President of Belarus on 9 January 2017 and it entered into force on 12 February 2017. [29] [30] [31] [32]
It was amended by another presidential decree on 24 July 2018, which entered into force on 27 July 2018. [33] [34]
Conditional2 |
1 - Including non-citizen residents of Estonia and Latvia.
2 - Only if they have a multiple entry visa (i.e., a 'C' or 'D' type visa) from a European Union or Schengen area member country, an entry stamp from one of these countries and a valid air ticket with departure from the airports located in Minsk, Brest, Vitebsk, Gomel, Grodno and Mogilev. The EU residence cards are not accepted for this purpose. [35]
In September 2017 it was announced that Belarus is planning to extend the visa-free access to 10 days and to other checkpoints. [36]
In November 2017 statistics were published showing that 54,000 foreigners visited Belarus through the visa-free program, mostly citizens of Germany, Poland, Italy, United States and the United Kingdom. [37]
Effective since 17 October 2021, visa is required for US citizens to travel to Belarus. [38]
The single visa-free territory "Brest – Grodno" was established by a presidential decree signed in August 2019 and has been in effect since November 10, 2019. [39] [40]
Visitors are allowed to stay without a visa for 15 days. Entry is possible through the following checkpoints with Poland and Lithuania - Brest (Terespol), Bruzgi (Kuźnica), Damačava (Sławatycze), Bieniakoni (Šalčininkai), Bierastavica (Bobrowniki), Piasčatka (Połowce), Pryvalka (Raigardas), Piareraŭ (Białowieża), Liasnaja (Rudawka), Pryvalka (Švendubrė), Brest-Uschodni Railway Station, Grodno Railway Station, Brest Airport and Grodno Airport. Prior to travel, visitors must obtain an appropriate document [41] issued by a local travel agency registered in Belarus.
The list of eligible citizens is the same as that for the visa-free program through the Minsk National Airport, only without restrictions for certain citizens.
The visa-free zone consists of the following territories:
The legislation superseded the previous decrees that established two separate visa-free zones: Brest area including Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park (since June 2015) [42] and Augustów Canal area including Grodno (since October 2016). [43]
Belarusian citizens may enter without a visa to all countries whose citizens are allowed visa-free entry. Among the countries that have been granted visa-free access under the pilot program, Belarusian citizens are granted visa-free access to Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Haiti, Indonesia, Malaysia, Micronesia, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Seychelles and Vanuatu.
Most visitors arriving to Belarus were from the following countries: [46]
| Country | 2013 |
|---|---|
 Ukraine | 1,412,980 |
 Russia | 1,107,571 |
 Lithuania | 863,730 |
 Poland | 362,452 |
 Moldova | 180,109 |
 Latvia | 145,452 |
 Germany | 33,416 |
| Total | 4,445,018 |
The Byelorussian SSR was one of only two Soviet republics to be separate members of the United Nations. Both republics and the Soviet Union joined the UN when the organization was founded in 1945.
Brest Region, also known as Brest Oblast or Brest Voblasts, is one of the six regions of Belarus. Its administrative center is Brest. Other major cities in the region include Baranavichy, and Pinsk.
Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park is a national park within parts of the Brest Region and Grodno Region in Belarus adjacent to the Polish border. Since 1992, it has been a preserved part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Białowieża Forest, the last primeval forest fragment of the European woodlands that once stretched across the European Plain. It is home to a large population of European bison, the continent's heaviest land animals. The border between the two countries runs through the forest with the Białowieża National Park on the Polish side of the border. Since May 2015 there has been a visa-free regime within the forest for hikers and cyclists at the Pierarova-Białowieża border crossing.
A Belarusian passport is issued to citizens of Belarus and is used for both external and internal travel. Unlike Russia, there are no internal passports in Belarus. Passports are issued by the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Belarus and by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to citizens who live abroad.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus is the Belarusian government ministry which oversees the foreign relations of Belarus.
Belarus and Israel established diplomatic relations in 1992. In 1947, Belarus voted in favor for the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine. Belarus operates an embassy in Tel Aviv, while Israel operates an embassy in Minsk. Around 130,000 Belarusian citizens immigrated to Israel during the 1990s under the Law of Return.
The visa policy of Russia deals with the requirements which a foreign national wishing to enter the Russian Federation must meet to obtain a visa, which is a permit to travel to, enter, and remain in the country. Visa exemptions are based on bilateral or multilateral agreements.
Visitors to Kyrgyzstan must obtain an e-Visa unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries or citizens who may obtain a visa on arrival.
Visitors to Kazakhstan must obtain a visa from one of the Kazakh diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries or citizens eligible for an e-Visa.
Visa requirements for Russian citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of Russia.
Visa requirements for Singapore citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states which are imposed on citizens of Singapore.
Visa requirements for Uruguayan citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of Uruguay.
Visa requirements for Namibian citizens are administrative entry restrictions by the authorities of other states placed on citizens of Namibia.
Visitors to Tajikistan must obtain a visa unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries, or citizens who may obtain a visa on arrival, or citizens eligible for an e-Visa.
Visitors to Uruguay must obtain a visa from one of the Uruguayan diplomatic missions unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries.
In accordance with the law, citizens of all countries require a visa to enter Turkmenistan unless they have special passports. To obtain a tourist visa for Turkmenistan, all foreign citizens must supply an invitation letter issued by a travel agency licensed in Turkmenistan.
Citizens of all countries require a visa to visit Afghanistan. The only exemptions are travelers born in Afghanistan, born to Afghan parents or with parents born in Afghanistan.
Visa requirements for South Ossetian citizens are administrative entry restrictions imposed on citizens of South Ossetia by the authorities of other states.
The visa history of Russia deals with the requirements, in different historical epochs, that a foreign national had to meet in order to obtain a visa or entry permit, to enter and stay in the country.
The Military Band Service of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus is the central military band service of the Armed Forces of Belarus. The band was formed on 1 April 1950 as the Band of the Belorussian Military District. It was expanded into a service in the 1990s after the Independence of Belarus occurred. Its bands participate in military parades, military tattoos, and official ceremonies of Belarus. They perform domestically, regularly performing in the Central Officers House in Minsk, as well as other garrison clubs. The massed bands of the Minsk Garrison is an annual participant in the parades of the Minsk Garrison on Victors Avenue since 2004. The repertoire of the band includes more than 500 compositions of the most important classical music composers and contemporary ones. Bands have performed in festivals in Great Britain, Ireland, Germany, France, Poland, Sweden, and Russia. The band has also played in the Spasskaya Tower military tattoo in 2013, 2016, and 2017. The band is commanded by its Senior Director of Music/Chief Conductor, Lieutenant Colonel Igor Khlebus, since 2019. The artistic director of the band is Colonel Evgueny Dovzhik.
