Every country has its own laws that apply to its citizens marrying a person from a different country. Getting married to a Russian citizen with the goal of eventually bringing them to Canada to live is a process with many steps.
You must demonstrate to Russian officials that they are not currently married to anyone else – either you have never been married or all divorces are finalized – that your identity is proven, and that you have never committed any crimes in Russian. This is done by providing various documents including an Affidavit of Single Status to the Russian government either in Russian or via a Russian embassy.
If you want to bring your Russian spouse or partner to live in Canada, you must then file a sponsorship application for them to become a permanent resident. If they would like to visit you in Canada while their application is in process, they must also apply for a visitor visa. For more information, please see our family sponsorship page and our visitor visa page.

Marriage to a Russian Citizen

Every country has its own laws that apply to its citizens marrying a person from a different country. Getting married to a Russian citizen with the goal of eventually bringing them to Canada to live is a process with many steps.

You must demonstrate to Russian officials that they are not currently married to anyone else – either you have never been married or all divorces are finalized – that your identity is proven, and that you have never committed any crimes in Russian. This is done by providing various documents including an Affidavit of Single Status to the Russian government either in Russian or via a Russian embassy.

If you want to bring your Russian spouse or partner to live in Canada, you must then file a sponsorship application for them to become a permanent resident. If they would like to visit you in Canada while their application is in process, they must also apply for a visitor visa. For more information, please see our family sponsorship page and our visitor visa page.

 

Russian Marriage Basic Requirements

Before obtaining a marriage certificate in Russia, official documents received in Canada have to be legalized.

The last thing required is to get the marriage documents translated into Russian and legalized by the Russian embassy or Consulate in Canada. After that your documents are legal and valid in Russia.

Documents that Require Legalization (Authentication) for Marriage in Russia

• Affidavit of Marital Status
• Divorce decree (if relevant)
• Former spouse’s death certificate and previous marriage certificate (if relevant)
• Birth certificate
• Name change certificate (if relevant)

A Canadian passport cannot be legalized because it is already an internationally recognized document. Photocopies of the ID and bio page should be notarized as true copies of the original.

Only a civil registration of your marriage is recognized as legal. The legal age for marriage in Russia is 18.

Documents Required from the Canadian

• Original affidavit of marital Status (valid for 3 months from the date of issue) can be issued in Canada or in Russia by the Canadian embassy.
• Original and valid Canadian passport
• Original birth certificate
• Original death certificate of deceased spouse if widowed
• Original divorce decree or annulment documents if divorced

Documents Required from the Russian

• Original and valid passport and ID card
• Affidavit of marriage Status
• Original birth certificate
• Original death certificate of deceased spouse if widowed
• Divorce decree or annulment if previously divorced

 

Russian marriage certificate

The Canadian partner can apply for a private visa, which is issued to anyone wishing to visit friends and relatives. It is valid for up to 3 months, an official letter of invitation has to be submitted to support the visa application, the Russian bride must present a photocopy her your passport.

However, private visas can be very cumbersome. Learn more about Russian visas.

Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months after the visa expiry date and have at least two blank pages.

When you arrive in Russia, you should register yourself with the local arm of the Russian Migration Service within 3 days.

 

Family Members

If your Russian spouse has dependent children, this does not affect the Russian Marriage document application.

If you have dependent children, they have no effect on the application to marry a Russian citizen.

 

How long is the Russian Marriage document valid?

The document is valid for 6 months from the date of issue. If you do not marry your Russian fiancé within 6 months of the issuance of the Russian Marriage document, you must apply again with new supporting documents.

 

List of Russian Consulates in Canada

Click here

Russian Currency

Russian Ruble is the official currency of Russia. It is also used as the medium of exchange in many former soviet republics.

The Rouble is one of the world’s oldest currencies. It was invented in 15th century, during that time there was soaring demand for silver across Europe that resulted in the growth of value of Russian silver coin to a point when they were no longer useful for purchases.

People started splitting the coins in half. The Russian word for split or cut is “rubit” and the half coins were called roubles. Even though Russian coins no longer made, the name stuck.

A rouble is divided into 100 pieces of kopek. The inflation rate of the Rouble is 3.7%.

Coins are in denominations of руб1, руб2, руб5, к.10, к.50 and bank notes are in denominations of руб50, руб100, руб500, руб1000, руб5000.

 

Calling Russia from Canada

• The exit code for Canada is 011
• The country code for Russia is 7
• Dial 011 – 7 – area code – local number

Area Codes for Major Russian Centres

Arkhangelsk	8182	Krasnoyarsk	391	Samara	846
Astrakhan	8512	Kurgan	3522	St. Petersburg	812
Barnaul	3852	Kursk	4712	Saratov	8452
Belgorod	4722	Lipetsk	4742	Smolensk	4812
Bryansk	4832	Magnitogorsk	3519	Stavropol	8652
Cheboksary	8352	Mahachkala	8722	Surgut	3462
Chelyabinsk	3512	Moscow	495/499	Tolyatti	8482
Cherepovets	8202	Murmansk	8152	Tomsk	3822
Chita	3022	Naberezhnye Chelny	8552	Tula	4872
Ekaterinburg	343	Nizhny Novgorod	831	Tver	4822
Irkutsk	3952	Nizhny Tagil	3435	Tyumen	3452
Ivanovo	4932	Novokuznetsk	3843	Ufa	347
Izhevsk	3412	Novosibirsk	383	Ulan-Ude	3012
Kaliningrad	4012	Omsk	3812	Ulyanovsk	8422
Kaluga	4842	Orel	4862	Vladimir	4922
Kazan	843	Orenburg	3532	Vladivostok	423
Kemerevo	3842	Penza	8412	Volgograd	8442
Khabarovsk	4212	Perm	342	Voronezh	473
Kirov	8332	Rostov-on-Don	863	Yakutsk	4112
Krasnodar	861	Ryazan	4912	Yaroslavl	4852

 

Calling Canada form Russia

• The international code is 00
• The country code for Canada is 1
• Dial 00 – 1 – area code – local number

Area Codes in Canada

Province	Code	Province	Code
Alberta	403 / 587 (southern Alberta) 587 / 780 (central and northern Alberta)	Nunavut	867
BC	236 / 250 / 778 (majority of BC) 236 / 604 / 778 (Metro Vancouver)	Ontario	226 / 519 (southwestern Ontario) 249 / 705 (northeastern Ontario) 289 / 365 / 905 (Greater Toronto Area) 343 / 613 (eastern Ontario) 416 / 647 (Toronto) 807 (northwestern Ontario)
Manitoba	204 / 431	PEI	782 / 902
New  Brunswick	506	Quebec	418 / 581 (eastern Quebec) 438 / 514 (Montreal) 450 / 579 (Greater Montreal) 819 / 873 (remainder of Quebec)
Newfoundland and Labrador	709	Saskatchewan	306 / 639
Northwest Territories	867	Yukon	867
Nova Scotia	782 / 902

Time Differences

Since Russia does not observe daylight saving time, subtract 1 hour from the time difference during DST (March-November) except if you are calling from Saskatchewan.

Canadian Time Zone	Russian Time Zone	# of Hours Kaliningrad Time is Ahead	# of Hours Moscow Time is Ahead	# of Hours Yekaterinburg Time is Ahead	# of Hours Omsk Time is Ahead	# of Hours Krasnoyarsk Time is Ahead	# of Hours Irkutsk  Time is Ahead	# of Hours Yakutsk Time is Ahead	# of Hours Vladivostok Time is Ahead	# of Hours Magadan Time is Ahead
Pacific (BC, Yukon)		11 hours	12 hours	14 hours	15 hours	16 hours	17 hours	18 hours	19 hours	20 hours
Mountain (Alberta, western Nunavut, Lloydminster, Saskatchewan)		10 hours	11 hours	13 hours	14 hours	15 hours	16 hours	17 hours	18 hours	19 hours
Central (Manitoba, Northwest Territories, central Nunavut, northwestern Ontario, Saskatchewan)		9 hours	10 hours	12 hours	13 hours	14 hours	15 hours	16 hours	17 hours	18 hours
Eastern (most of Ontario, most of Quebec)		8 hours	9 hours	11 hours	12 hours	13 hours	14 hours	15 hours	16 hours	17 hours
Atlantic (Labrador, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI, eastern Quebec)		7 hours	8 hours	10 hours	11 hours	12 hours	13 hours	14 hours	15 hours	16 hours
Newfoundland		6.5 hours	7.5 hours	9.5 hours	10.5 hours	11.5 hours	12.5 hours	13.5 hours	14.5 hours	15.5 hours

 

Emergency Information for Canadians in Russia

Canadian Consulates in Russia

Embassy of Canada in Moscow 23 Starokonyushenny Pereulok Moscow, 119002 Russia Telephone: 7 (495) 925-6000 Fax: 7 (495) 925-6004 E-mail: [email protected] Website: russia.gc.ca	View Larger Map
Consulate of Canada in Vladivostok 707-59 Krasnogo Znameni prospekt Vladivostok 690002 Russia Telephone: 7 (4232) 49-11-88 Fax: 7 (4232) 49-11-88 E-mail: [email protected] russia.gc.ca	View Larger Map

The Canadian Government’s Travel Alerts for Russia

For travel alerts, click here

Russian Marriage Customs

Engagement

Russian wedding customs are different from the normal western traditions. For example, there are no bridesmaids, a best man and flower girls.

In Russia, a man asks a woman if she will marry him that is all, no rings are given and no one is informed about the wedding except closest friends and family.

The wedding is usually planned within 1-3 months. The time depends on the department of registrations (ZAGS – department of registration of civil statuses, which is also responsible for registrations of births, deaths and divorces).

The couple is supposed to write to the department of registrations asking to register their marriage. The department will give them available dates (usually when the registrar is available), but according to the law the waiting period is 1 month.

During the Soviet era, the waiting period was 3 months, so the two had time to cool down. Russians typically marry early, between 18years -22 years.

After the couple has applied to the department of registration, they are considered as bride and groom; but Russians do say they are engaged, they say “They handed in the application”. The planning of the wedding is very simple it includes rings, brides’ dress, cars, and reception.

Russians consider “engagement rings” as the rings that the couple exchanges during the wedding ceremony which the two buy together and the groom pays this is the necessary part of the wedding tradition.

Marriage Preparations

The bride’s dress is usually made especially for the occasion because it’s cheaper than buying it. All Russian women are taught how to sew in school, therefore they saw their own wedding gowns. Sewing is compulsory in the course of ‘domestic labor’ subject for girls in Russian schools, boys are taught how to make furniture and fix pipes among other things.

There is no custom of giving a wedding dress to a daughter, and if somebody marries in their mother’s dress people might think it’s weird or that you don’t have money to buy a new one.

The wedding ceremony is a wedding train of several cars, big black cars are considered a luxury in Russia, and usually if the couple has money, they will hire at least one for the bride.

In the old days the bride’s family was supposed to pay for the reception expenses, nowadays brides’ and groom’s families share expenses.

The reception takes place at a restaurant, cafe or at groom/bride’s home, which is more affordable.

The Wedding Day

The groom and the bride have their family and friends with them, meaning the groom’s company meets at the groom’s place and the bride’s company meets at bride’s place.

The groom goes to pick up the bride to go sign the marriage registration at ZAGS, and then they go to the ceremony of “brakosochetanie” (this is the formal name of the ceremony when a bride and a groom exchange rings and put their signatures in the registry).

Traditionally the wedding is ruled by “witnesses”. The best man and maid of honour usually act as the witnesses.

The groom and the bride go to the registrar’s office in the same train but in different cars. All cars are decorated with ribbons and balloons, often the bride’s car has a doll on the bonnet, or two golden rings on top of the car.

The ceremony in ZAGS is similar to what happens at a civil ceremony in the West, the bride and the groom are asked if they want to marry each other before they exchange rings, then they kiss and sign the registry, thereafter the witnesses sign.

Nowadays many couples opt for a marriage, however the church still requires a civil marriage certificate to arrange the ceremony for the couple (the couple must be officially married by ZAGS before the marriage in church). So if the couple plans to have a church ceremony, they usually go through the civil ceremony a few days before the wedding.

After the marriage ceremony the coup leaves the guests for a tour around the city sights. Thereafter they head to the reception.

At the reception, the event begins with a toast. The first toast is dedicated to the new couple. One of the witnesses announces the first toast, and then the parents have their say. Witnesses will also add some greetings, usually in the form of a poem, and eventually announce the toast.

During this part people only eat starters and salads but there are usually 10-20 different types of starters on the table so guests can sample.

There is no tradition of a wedding cake in Russia or the bride and groom cutting it together.

The Wedding Day

The second day of the wedding is a party held at the couple’s new residence (usually at one of the parents’ place – most young couples live with wife’s or husband’s parents first). The party starts in the morning or early afternoon.

Guests must “buy”the cutlery they will use to eat .

On the second day the couple wears different clothes but must be new clothes bought specifically for the occasion.

On the second day they cook a bit less food, mostly food cooked is beetroot soup with vegetables, potatoes and meat or “ukha” (fresh water fish soup with potatoes and onions) soups are very popular among Russians. The main course is often “pelmeni” (similar to ravioli) that can be also eaten with broth.

 

Wedding Food

Cucumbers

Pickled cucumbers are popular in Russia. Served in almost all Russian meals, and goes fine with any dish. Every Russian knows them right from the birth.

 

Salo (bacon)

In Russia bacon is called “salo” and it is eaten raw, the more fat in it than meat the better it is. Its put the freezer, then sliced thin and eaten with Russian bread and garlic.

 

Cabbage

Fermented or sour cabbage is almost as popular as pickled cucumbers, and every Russian party including a wedding serves it. Many Russians especially like drinking it’s juice as a hangover killer, together with the pickled cucumbers brine.

 

Aspic

This is a famous Russian meat jelly that is served cold, a lot of meat is boiled and left to cool and served with toppings.

 

Salami

Salami goes with Russian bread and butter or cheese and ham as well. It’s a quick snack that is easy to prepare.

 

Pickled Mushrooms

These are hand-picked and prepared in a special recipe and put in jars, they are only opened during special occasions like wedding feasts.

 

Herring

Marinated herring and black bread, is often served with onions. Some Russians consider it to be “one of the tastiest foods ever”.

 

Caviar

Caviar is eaten very often on the big occasions like parties or weddings, served with bread or on its own, eating caviar with just a spoon is a sign of luxury in Russia.

 

Pickled Tomatoes

Pickled tomatoes are put together with pickled veggies, cucumbers, fermented cabbage and pickled mushrooms all processed at home by Russian wives, ready for New Year celebrations, birthday parties or weddings.

 

Shashlik (BBQ)

Barbecue is a must in Russia and its called Shashlik which means fried meat.

 

Ukha

This recipe is very easy any fish, a few potatoes, some carrots, onions, and salt and here you have perfect soup for any celebration. Also black pepper can be added.

 

Borsh

Its red beet and meat soup topped with Smetana, a kind of sour cream.

 

Olivje

This is a salad made of boiled potatoes, a lot of mayonnaise, wurst, and green peas.

Religion in Russia

Orthodox Christianity

The Russian Orthodox Church is the largest in Russia. Many Russians consider themselves Russian Orthodox simply because they are Russian, despite the fact that some have never even attended church.

Orthodox followers in Russia range from 60 million-100 million.

Protestant and Catholic Christianity

The Catholic Church in Russia is estimated to have 600,000 to 1.5 million followers. Protestants are more than 2 million, with more than 3,500 officially registered religious organizations.

Buddhism

Buddhism was introduced in Russia around the 16th Century. Southern Russia is home to many large Buddhist temples, particularly in Buryatia, Kalmykia, and Tuva. Buddhists in Russia range between 1.5 million-2 million.

Islam

Islam in Russia is a minority religion, with believers estimated at 9 million. In Moscow there are about 2 million Muslims living there. The Moderate Council of Muftis is the central leadership figure that oversees Islam in Russia.

Judaism

Although they represent a small segment of the population, the Jewish community in Russia and they are very active, the Jewish population of Russia is estimated at 228,000.

Shamanism / Paganism and other traditional beliefs

The Evenk are the traditional and most populous adherents of Shamanism in Russia, it is a mystical and decentralized religion. The population of Shamanists or pagans is not clear.

Atheism and Agnosticism

According to a 2006 poll, 11% of the Russian population said they do not identify with any religion, 3% found the question hard to answer.

 

Church in Moscow

 

Ivolginsky Datsan

 

Mosque in St Petersburg

 

Temple of all religions in Kazan

 

Romantic, Scenic and Historic Places in Russia

Gorely Volcano – Kamchatka

Gorely is an active volcano close to the Mutnovski, in the south of Petropavlovsk. There are two lakes, with one being acidic because of sulphur gas exhausts, and seven craters.

Kedrovaya Pad – Primorsky

Kedrovaya Pad is a highly protected wildlife and forest reserve in the south of the Far East Russian state of Primorsky.  This is a conservancy created to protect endangered species of Leopards and it’s a tourist destination popular with wildlife enthusiasts.

 

Hotels

Moscow

Ararat Park Hyatt

Ararat Park Hyatt is located in the heart of the Russian capital, Moscow, within the vicinity of the Bolshoi Theatre. The hotel is only a few minutes’ walk from the Kremlin, Red Square, the Russian Parliament building and Moscow’s central business district.

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Grand Hotel Europe

Grand Hotel Europe was the first 5-star hotel in Russia dating back to 1824.

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Hotel National

Built in 1903 by the famous Russian architect Alexander Ivanov, Hotel National has been an awesome historic landmark for Russia for more than a century.

Located at the heart of Moscow’s historical, cultural and business centre, the magnificent hotel opens spectacular vistas of the Kremlin and the Red Square.

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Ritz Carlton

The 11-story hotel, ideally located near the Kremlin and the adjacent Red Square, will set a new standard of luxury and service for visitors.

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St. Petersburg

Hotel Astoria

Located in St Isaac’s Square in the heart of St Petersburg, the Astoria hotel sits opposite the beautiful St Isaac’s cathedral and is walking distance to the Hermitage Museum.

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Bringing Gifts to Russia

Items Free from Entry Duties:

• 400 cigarettes or 200 cigarillos or 100 cigars or 500 grams of tobacco products, as long as only one type of tobacco product is imported (otherwise only half of the quantities allowed)
• 2 litres of alcohol, for persons ages 21 years and above only
• Perfume for personal use
• Goods up to an amount of RUB 65,000 for personal use only
• Caviar (must be factory packed) max of 250 grams per person

 

Restricted Items:

• Customs declaration forms filled out on entry of Russia must be kept carefully. When leaving Russia, this declaration has to be handed over, even when travelling to another C.I.S. country.
• Dairy and meat products are permitted (except from Armenia and Georgia), provided they are packed in original factory packing and in quantities that can be considered for own personal use. Larger quantities are subject to inspection and travellers will be requested to provide the appropriate documentation, including veterinary health documents.
• Cats, dogs and birds must be accompanied by veterinarian health certificate. All animals, except cats & dogs, special import permission from Veterinary department, Ministry of Agriculture is required. (Pets are not permitted in hotels.)
• For travellers entering Russia, baggage allowance is 35 kg and/or a value of RUB 65,000. A customs fee of EUR 4per kilo will apply.

 

Prohibited Items:

• Photographs and printed material that speaks against Russian Federation government
• Sturgeons fish and any product made thereof and live animals (subject to special permit).
• Dairy and meat products from Armenia and Georgia.
• Arms and ammunition.

 

Bringing Items Out of Russia

No Exit Duties

• Goods for personal use

 

Restricted Items

• Archaeological, historical and artistic objects are allowed with only with written permission of Ministry of Cultural Affairs and with a photograph of the exported object.
• All kinds of weapon require a permit from Internal Affairs Ministry

 

Prohibited Items

• Arms, ammunition, precious metals, (gold, silver, etc.) and articles made thereof (also if containing precious stones like pearls)
• Acipenseridae family (sturgeons) fish and any product made thereof.
• Antiques and art objects (subject to duty and special permit from the Ministry of Culture) furs.

 

How to Sponsor Your Russian Spouse to Canada

For more information on sponsoring your Russian spouse to Canada, click the button below:

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