uzbekistan : visa extension

Do a visa run to Almaty or Bishkek.

can u tell me what exactly is this visa run? How does it work??

Tnks so much

Nothing major, it just means leaving Uzbekistan and applying for another (Tourist) visa. Arrange the LOI a few working days before you leave the country, and when you arrive in, say Bishkek, you can pick up our visa immediately at the embassy, then head back to UZ same day. I hear extending an existing visa is a major pain in the culo.

extending visa is always difficult in Uzbekistan. I had even a private invitation visa with reference my own ambassador. Yet extending was not that easy and it required 3 weeks of waiting without even know that the visa would be extended or not. I was visaless for several days, but thanks God they agreed to extend it, even if it cost me 100 dollars.

Wait....sorry of me being stubborn, but i m kinda beginner about these things.

Ok further details : i am an italian citizien actually in tashkent (do i need LOI? guess not ?!?), and my visa expire in one week (14th).

Let s imagine i do this fast trip to Bishek...ok i feel like a kid...but can u tell me exactly the steps i should do?

What s the best (and economic) way to arrive there?

How long should i stay in bishek?

How can i do with kyrgistan visa?

How can i have uzbek visa in bishek? Who should i contact?

I dont matter that much the price......thank u 10000 :)

Greenday, if you don't need a LOI (some EU countries and Japan don't need them...not sure about Italy), the visa usually takes up to 5 working days to process after you submit your application at the embassy. I don't know this from experience 'cos I need a LOI and always received the visa on the spot. To get to Bishkek, for example, you need a Kyrgyz visa (unless you fly, then you can receive a visa on arrival), but it's no big deal as the friendly Kyrgyz embassy in Tashkent issues 30-day tourist visas on the spot, no fuss. I paid USD40, but the fee varies according to nationality. To get to Bishkek, go to Tashkent Railway Station and get a share-taxi to Andijan, once in Andijan, get another share taxi to the border, Dostyk/Dostylyk(sp?), cross the border on foot, then get a public bus or a taxi to Osh (only 7 minutes away). In Osh, get another share-taxi (usually overnight) to Bishkek. Tashkent to Osh can be done in a day. Osh is an interesting town worth a day or two having a look around. Bishkek is a very pleasant capital...beautiful mountain setting, lots of trees, multicultural.

Thanks so much for the precious infromations!

Anyway, a little update for ppls that would like to extend their uzbek visa in Tashkent. There is just one easy way to extend a tourism visa for 15-30 days : go to the UzbekTourism office in Buyuk Ipak Yuli (behind a hotel that i forgot the name...let s say about 5 mins after Nestle firm) and there u can ask to extend ur visa (second floor).

The price is around 40 dollars for 20 days. It s better asking no more than 20 days, otherwise OVIR office can make some problems. I did yesterday for 15 days and today i brought the documents to OVIR and they didnt ask me further documents.