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CONSULAR FOCUS: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
Address: US Consulate General, Ulitsa Chaykovskgo 19/21/23, Moscow, Russia 121099 
Office Hours: 9 am to 6 pm, Monday through Friday. 
Jurisdiction: All of the former Soviet States (except the Baltics) with respect to immigrant visas. Nonimmigrant visas are processed at consulates in Kiev, Ukraine, Yereva, Armenia, Almaty, Kazakhstan and St. Petersburg. Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have full-service consulates. 
Telephone number: (7)(95)252-2451. 
Security clearances: Many visa applicants are required to have security clearances from the State Department's Visa Office and should allow extra time for such clearance. 
Nonimmigrant Visas: 
The overall approval rate is approximately 80%. 
Applicants who are in line by 10 am will be interviewed the same day and should be able to pick up their visa after 4 pm. Those applicants arriving after 10 am will be asked to pick up an application at the information window and apply the following day. Applications may be picked up from 10 am to 12:30 pm and from 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm at the information window beneath the American flag on Novinskiy Boulevard. 
Applications must be accompanied by the following: (1) a passport valid for at least six months following the proposed date of entry into the US; (2) two photos size 37 mm x 37 mm for each family member (even infants included in their parents passport; (3) a completed OF-156 Form; (4) evidence that the applicant will depart the US at the end of the stay (not required for H and L applicants). Notarized invitation letters or forms are not required. Normal business or family correspondence is preferred by the Consulate. Evidence should be sent to the applicant for the applicant to take to the interview rather than sending the application directly to the consulate. 
Special requirements for particular nonimmigrant visas: 
B-1 Business Visas: applicants must present detailed correspondence from the applicant's US business colleague explaining the nature of the trip. American companies in Russia seeking to invite Russian businessmen to the US may wish to take advantage of the Consulate's office hours at the US Foreign Commercial Service Office. Sponsoring companies should send a representative to the FCS on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday between 4:30 and 5:30 pm. The representative should bring (a) the invitee's Soviet passport valid for six months beyond the planned stay, (b)two photos, (c) a completed OF-156 form, (d) a letter of invitation from the American company describing the nature of the business in which the company is involved, exact purpose of the trip, length of the visit, the cities to be visited and the exact name, address and telephone number of the contact person in the US and (e) a completed cover sheet for the case. 
B-2 Tourist Visas: Bring evidence indicating where you will be staying, correspondence or letters of invitations from friends you may be staying with (including a statement relating to the inviting person's relationship to you and indicating whether the inviting person is a US citizen, lawful permanent resident, or nonimmigrant. 
F-1 Student Visa: Bring Form I-20 and proof of funding for first year's studies. Funding evidence should include a bank financial statement, a US sponsor's tax return, and/or evidence from your parent's place of employment demonstrating that they can cover the cost of your first year in the US (if the parent's do not have an overseas account). Dependents of students should be prepared to demonstrate the strength of family ties and that the F-1 student has the financial ability to support the dependents. 
J-1 Exchange Visa: IAP-66. 
L-1 Intracompany Transfer Visas: INS concerns about organized crime figures using the L-1 visa to transfer into the US has led to particular scrutiny for persons applying under this category. Overdocumenting is recommended. 
The Consulate Section has an express lane which is open daily in the north annex at the windows immediately adjacent to the cashiers. Applicants in the following categories can process in the express lane: (a) persons with a history of travel to the US, i.e. two or more visits lasting less than three months each to the US within the last five years; (b) F and M students returning to the same educational institution; (c) H and L visa holders returning to their same jobs in the US; (d) J applicants on US-government sponsored programs; (e) any J visa holder returning to his/her program; (f) spouses, children and parents of adult US citizens, provided they have evidence of financial capabilities; and (g) persons age 60 and older visiting friends or relatives, provided they also have evidence of financial capability. 
Fees: B-1/B-2 visas - 3 entry, 1 year validity - , multiple entry 3 year validity - 0; F-1, J-1, H-1, L-1 visas: single-entry and 1 year validity - , multiple entry and 1 year validity - 0. The embassy also charges a  additional application fee for the machine-readable visa. 
Immigrant Visas: Applications are be appointment only and are scheduled two months after Packet 3 is received. Like nonimmigrant visas, immigrant visas are issued on the same day as the interview. 
Adoptions: Interviews are scheduled 24 to 48 hours after the appointment is requested, though longer waits are not uncommon. Parents can pick up the forms for their child's medical examination prior to the interview. 
The posts approval rate is over 90%, though many cases are initially refused due to insufficient evidence. 
Medical Examinations: 
American Medical Center 
2 Tverkoy-Yamskoy Per, 10 
125047 Moscow 
Telephone: (7)(95)256-8212 
A.O. Meditsina 
2 Tverskoy-Yamskoy Per, 10 
125047 Moscow 
Telephone: (7)(95)250-9190 
Orphans: Dr. Vsevolod V. Rybchonok 
Filatov Children's Hospital 
U1. Sadovaya-Kudrinskaya 15 
103001 Moscow
Telephone: (7)(95)423-7780