Instructions to tourists coming in Grodno without visa

Everything worth knowing about visiting the Grodno-Brest tourist zone visa-free

1. When crossing the border of the Republic of Belarus regardless of crossing method, it is obligatory to pass:

• border control;
• customs control.

2. Foreign citizens and stateless persons can cross the State Border of the Republic of Belarus having the following documents:

• Valid document for traveling abroad (passport) with a visa for citizens of  countries with which Belarus has a visa regime;
• A document for returning to the state of citizenship or residence (if the passport is lost on the territory of the Republic of Belarus);
• Valid document for traveling abroad (passport) and  document, granting (individuals or groups of tourists) the right to visit the Tourism and Recreation Zone «Brest-Grodno»;

3. You can enter through any of following checkpoints:

• roadway entry points:

• Bruzgi / Kuznica Bialystockaya (Poland);
• Privalka / Raigardas (Lithuania);
• Berestovitsa / Bobrovniki (Poland);
• Beniakoni / Shalchininkai (Lithuania);
• Brest / Terespol (Poland);
• Domachevo/ Slovatichi (Poland);
• Peschatka / Polovtsy (Poland).

• points of simplified border crossing:

• Lesnaya / Rudavka (Poland) - seasonal, pedestrian, water;
• Privalka / Shvyandubre (Lithuania) - seasonal, water;
• Pererov / Bialowieza (Poland) - year-round, pedestrian;

• railway checkpoints:

• Brest / Terespol (Poland);
• Grodno / Kuznica Bialystockaya (Poland);

• airport checkpoints:

• Grodno Airport;
• Brest Airport.

4. During the travelling on the visa-free territory of «Brest-Grodno», you can visit the following territories individually :

• Grodno region:

• the city of Grodno;
• Grodno District;
• Berestovitsa District;
• Volkovysk District;
• Svisloch District;
• Shchuchin District;
• Lida District;
• Voronovo District

• Brest region:
  • the city of Brest;
  • Brest District;
  • Zhabinka District;
  • Pruzhany District;
  • Kamenets District

5. You can visit the following territories as part of an organized tourist group when following the tourist travel route:

• throughout the territory of  Grodno  region;
• throughout the territory of  Brest region.

6. Citizens of a number of countries can visit the Grodno-Brest tourist zone visa-free for 15 days, but no longer than the period identified in the document, which grants citizens the right to visit the visa-free territory. This document is issued by travel agencies.
    
7. When crossing the State Border of the Republic of Belarus, a foreign citizens must:

• produce a valid document for traveling abroad, and a document providing a foreigner with the right to visit the Tourism and Recreation Zone «Brest-Grodno» individually or within a group;
• produce compulsory medical insurance contract;
• complete a customs and goods declaration form if you import:
• transport facilities;
• goods worth more than 500 euros and / or weighing more than 25 kg;
• cash and / or traveller's cheques, if their total amount at a single export exceeds the amount equivalent to 10 000$;
• alcohol (more than 3 liters of alcohol per person when traveling less than 1 time in 7 days, more than 1 liter of alcohol per person when traveling more than 1 time in 7 days) or tobacco products (more than 200 cigarettes when traveling less than 1 time in 7 days, more than 40 cigarettes when traveling more than 1 time in 7 days);
• so-called monetary instruments: traveler's checks, bills of exchange, checks( Bank checks), securities in documentary form;
• weapon and munitions, gas cartridges, stun guns;
• medicines, psychotropic substances and their precursors;
• cultural values, prints;
• animals;
• goods imported more often than 1 time in 3 calendar days.

8. A driver of a vehicle must have the original insurance certificate, valid in the territory of Belarus, and confirming the liability insurance in the Member State of the “Green Card” system. The vehicle participating in the road traffic and registered abroad without the agreement of compulsory insurance of civil liability of vehicle owners, functioning in the territory of the Republic of Belarus, establishes administrative liability under the Law 18.20, paragraph 4 of the Administrative Code on 20 base units (since 01.01.2020, the base unit is 27,0 BYN).
    
9. When entering Belarus a foreign a visitor should possess not less than 2 base rates for each day of stay (as at 1 January 2020 about 23 Euro for each day).
    
10.  A foreign citizen or a stateless person, who arrived in the Republic of Belarus, is obliged to register in a registration authority at place of actual temporary stay within five days, except for Sundays, public holidays and high days (not applicable up to 30 days to residents of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia). Registration authorities of the Republic of Belarus are:

• Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
• Bodies of internal affairs;
• Hotel;
• Health resort and wellness organization;
• Subject of agro-ecotourism;

For violations of these requirements foreign citizens are subjected to administrative liability (warning with deportation or without deportation, or a fine of up to fifty base values in accordance with Article 23.55. Code of Administrative Offences the Republic of Belarus).

11. Citizens at the checkpoints are forbidden:

• to take photos, filming;
• talking on mobile phones;
• to leave money in the documents, which are produced for checking;
• to offer and (or) to hand over officials any valuables, offer and (or) provide the property benefits, to perform other actions preventing the implementation of border and other types of controls;

12. On the territory between the State border of the Republic of Belarus and correspondent checkpoint is prohibited:

• parking of vehicles;
• loading and unloading of passengers;
• cargo-handling works;
• presence of individuals not related to state border crossing.

For violations of these requirements foreign citizens are subjected to administrative liability (warning with deportation or without deportation, or a fine of up to fifty base values in accordance with Article 23.31. Code of Administrative Offences the Republic of Belarus).

13.  The Republic of Belarus has a BelToll collection system

The drivers must pay for driving toll roads, which are included in BelToll system (vehicles with foreign registration.).

The drivers of vehicles with technically permissible total weight not exceeding 3.5 tons, registered in the member-states of the Customs Union, do not pay for driving toll roads.

14.  The stay of foreigners on the territory of the Republic of Belarus is regulated by the following documents:

• Edict of the President of Republic of Belarus 07.08.2019 No. 300 «About establishing visa-free procedure of entry and departure of foreign citizens”
• REGULATION «About the procedure of foreign citizens visiting the Tourism and Recreation Zone «Brest-Grodno» visa-free, also Brest and Grodno regions, which aren’t the part of the visa-free area».
• THE LAW OF THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS OF JANUARY 4, 2010 No. 105-Z «Of the legal status of foreign citizens and stateless persons in the Republic of Belarus»
• Resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus 20.01.2006 No.73 «About approving Rules of the stay at the Republic of Belarus for foreign citizen and stateless persons».

15.  In the case of foreign citizens visiting the visa-free territory «Brest – Grodno», traveling out of the territory is prohibited.
     
16.  For violations of these requirements (traveling out of the territory, entering the territory more than the validity term) foreign citizens are subjected to administrative liability in accordance with Part 1, Article 23.55. Code of Administrative Offences the Republic of Belarus (warning with deportation or without deportation, or a fine of up to fifty base values). As at 1 January 2019 about 1275 Belarusian roubles (about 565 Euro). In some cases, it is possible to add these citizens to the list of citizens who are prohibited from entering the territory of the Republic of Belarus for up to 10 years.

Pay attention! Documents are issued for tourism. For violation of the purpose of the trip, a fine or the prohibition on entry to the Republic of Belarus may be imposed. The final decision to enter the territory of the Republic of Belarus is made by border guards.

17.  If the tourists have to stay on the territory of the visa-free regime for more than 15 days, they need to contact with the Department of Citizenship and Migration for an exit visa. Depending on the cause of the violation a protocol on administrative liability must be kept by migration officials and an administrative sanction is imposed, depending on the reason of the violation (from warning to a fine of up to fifty base values). The protocol should be reviewed and the fine with the entry visa must be paid in a bank (2 base rates, about 23 Euro as at 1 January 2019). Migration officials obtain (upon receipt of payment) an exit visa for leaving the territory of the Republic of Belarus.

For reference:

• Migration services in Grodno:
• the Interior Department of  Lenin District , Grodno, 230005, Dubko street, 5.

Phone numbers: (+375-152)-79-68-82, 79-68-88. E-mail address ofthe CDIA Grodno Oblast Executive Committee: ugimgrodno@tut.by

• the Interior Department of  Oktyabrsky District, Grodno, 230005, Gaya street, 4. Phone numbers: (+375-152) 79-78-28, 79-76-77
• The DSoIA of Grodno, 230003, Grodno, Ozyorskoe shosse, 26«А». Phone numbers: (+375-152) 79-77-85, 79-77-80
• The offices of Citizenship and Migration Affairs  (Grodno and Brest regions) are on their official sites:
• The Grodno Regional Executive Committee on Citizenship and Migration
• The Brest Regional Executive Committee on Citizenship and Migration

Working hours:

• Tuesday: 08.00 - 13.00, 14.00- 17.00
• Wednesday: 11.00-15.00, 16.00-20.00
• Thursday: 08.00 - 13.00
• Friday: 8.00 - 13.00, 14.00- 17.00
• Saturday: 8.00 - 13.00

18. See more information on the entry on the page "Visa-free entry. Questions and Answers."