Visa policy of Moldova

Policy on permits required to enter Moldova
Politics of Moldova

Government of Moldova

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The Government of the Republic of Moldova allows citizens of specific countries/territories to visit Moldova for tourism or business purposes without having to obtain a visa, often based on bilateral agreements. Citizens of other countries must obtain a visa from the embassy of their residence country or online eVisa.[1] All visitors must hold a passport (or machine-readable national ID Card for EU, Liechtensteiner, Monégasque, Sammarinese, Swiss and Turkish citizens) valid for 3 months beyond the period of intended stay.

Visa

The Moldovan visa is a document, which is placed in the passport. It contains the name and the indication of nationality.

Requirements for Tourist Visa

A tourist visa entitles its holder only to tourism trips and visits of relatives and/or friends. Tourist visa holders are prohibited to engage in business or work activities in the Republic of Moldova.

Requirements for Temporary Residence Visa/Work Visa

Anyone wishing to live and work in Moldova will be required to apply for a temporary residence visa. To obtain a temporary visa for employment purposes, you will need to secure a job offer from a Moldovan company or government department, or a foreign company based in Moldova. The criteria for approval of an employment visa include suitable educational qualifications or work experience, a secured employment contract in Moldova, provide proof of adequate means of subsistence in Moldova, police confirmation that you have no criminal record, and a satisfactory medical examination. All official documents must be translated into the Romanian language.

Visa policy map

Visa exemption

Citizens of the following 104 countries and territories, as well as stateless persons and refugees residing in those countries, can enter the Republic of Moldova without a visa for a period of up to 90 days within any 180 day period.[2][3][4][5]

ID — May enter with a machine-readable national ID card (including Irish passport card) in lieu of a passport.

Date of visa changes

Under Law №257 on 1 November 2013 “On third-country nationals who are required to have a visa and third-country nationals who are exempt from the obligation to have a visa when crossing the state border of the Republic of Moldova”[6] Visa free

  • Armenian, Azerbaijani, Belarusian, Georgian, Kazakhstani, Kyrgyzstani, Russian, Tajik, Ukrainian and Uzbekistani citizens have never needed a visa to gain access to Moldova.
  • 11 October 1990: Romania[7][8]
  • 1 January 2007: European Union countries; Canada, Iceland, Japan, Norway, Switzerland, United States[9]
  • 1 June 2010: Andorra, Israel, Liechtenstein, Monaco and Vatican[10]
  • from 1 July 2013 (as country of the EU) or 3 January 2014 (Under Law №257): Croatia
  • 3 January 2014: Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Chile, Ecuador, Hong Kong, South Korea, Malaysia, Macao, New Zealand, San Marino, Seychelles, Singapore and Turkey[11]
  • 31 July 2015: Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia[12]
  • 6 August 2015: Serbia[13]
  • 1 March 2016: Bosnia and Herzegovina[14]
  • 24 March 2017: United Arab Emirates[15]
  • 13 April 2018: Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Brazil, Brunei, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Honduras, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Nicaragua, Palau, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela[16]
  • 1 March 2019: Cuba[17]

Cancelled:

  • Estonia and Latvia: 1 August 1993[18] (was resumed on 1 January 2007)
  • Lithuania: 1 November 1993[19] (was resumed on 7 July 2005)[20]
  • Turkmenistan: 9 June 1999[21]
  • Bulgaria: 1 November 1999[22] (was resumed on 1 January 2007)
  • Czech Republic: 22 October 2000[23] (was resumed on 1 January 2007)
  • Hungary: 1 January 2001[24] (was resumed on 1 January 2007)
  • Poland: 14 February 2001[25] (was resumed on 1 January 2007)

Substitute visa

Entry stamp of Moldova
Moldovan visa specimen

Citizens of visa-required countries are allowed to visit Moldova without a Moldovan visa if they hold a valid residence permit, a valid 'C'-type, or a valid 'D'-type visa issued by a Schengen member state or a European Union member state.[26]

However, this policy does not apply to passport holders of the following countries and territories:[26]

Invitation letter required

Nationals of the following countries are required to provide an invitation letter in order to obtain a visa for Moldova:[3][27]

Anyone, regardless of nationality, having a valid visa or a residence permit issued by an EU/Schengen State, is exempted from the invitation letter requirement.[3]

Non-ordinary passports

Additionally, holders of diplomatic or official/service passports of Brunei, China, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Qatar, Singapore, Turkmenistan and Vietnam do not require a visa to visit Moldova.

Reciprocity

Moldovan citizens can enter many of the countries whose citizens are granted visa-free access to Moldova without a visa except for Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Grenada (grants visa on arrival), Guatemala, Hong Kong, Honduras, Ireland, Japan, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Mexico, Nicaragua (grants visa on arrival), New Zealand, Paraguay, Saint Lucia, Singapore (grants eVisa), Solomon Islands, South Korea, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu (grants visa on arrival), United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Vanuatu and Venezuela.

Visitor statistics

Most visitors arriving to Moldova were from the following countries of nationality:

Country 2018[28] 2017[29] 2016[30] 2015[31]
 Romania 2,524,403 2,140,028 1,864,586 1,300,945
 Ukraine 1,069,066 1,049,307 974,357 1,013,779
 Russia 322,256 314,266 247,846 258,320
 Bulgaria 78,870 70,592 55,391 47,831
 Italy 46,549 42,972 34,829 32,884
 Germany 30,061 26,206 22,925 20,419
 Turkey 25,936 24,529 21,193 21,818
 Israel 28,358 22,891 20,551 17,518
 United States 25,778 21,878 18,263 17,133
 Belarus 20,039 16,469 13,930 14,136
Total 4,334,215 3,879,964 3,395,132 2,856,089

See also

  • flagMoldova portal
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Moldova.

References

  1. ^ eVisa Moldova
  2. ^ "Visa and passport". Timatic. International Air Transport Association through Emirates. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
  3. ^ a b c "Visas to Moldova". Mfa.gov.md. Retrieved 6 January 2019.
  4. ^ "Index". lex.justice.md. Retrieved 2024-03-17.
  5. ^ "Justice index". lex.justice.md. Retrieved 2024-03-17.
  6. ^ LEGE Nr.257 din 01-11-2013 privind resortisanţii statelor terţe care au obligaţia deţinerii unei vize şi resortisanţii statelor terţe care sînt exoneraţi de obligativitatea deţinerii unei vize la traversarea frontierei de stat a Republicii Moldova
  7. ^ Was suspended from 8 April to 18 September 2009
  8. ^ "Acordul între Guvernul României şi Guvernul Republicii Moldova privind călătoriile reciproce ale cetăţenilor din 29.08.1991". Lege5.ro. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  9. ^ Law No. 151-XVI on 8 June 2006 "On the abolition of visa regime for citizens of member States of the European Union, the United States Of America, Canada, Swiss Confederation, Kingdom of Norway, the Republic of Iceland and Japan" (in Russian)
  10. ^ LAW 75 on 04 May 2010 "About modification and additions in the Law on the abolition of visa regime for citizens of member States of the European Union, the United States Of America, Canada, Swiss Confederation, Kingdom of Norway, the Republic of Iceland and Japan No. 151-XVI on 8 June 2006 (in Russian)
  11. ^ http://lex.justice.md/ru/350980/ [bare URL]
  12. ^ http://lex.justice.md/ru/360082/ [bare URL]
  13. ^ http://lex.justice.md/index.php?action=view&view=doc&lang=2&id=360146 [bare URL]
  14. ^ http://lex.justice.md/index.php?action=view&view=doc&lang=2&id=364424 [bare URL]
  15. ^ "LAW No. 14 from 02.03.2017 for the amendment and completion of Law no. 257/2013 on third-country nationals who are required to hold a visa and third-country nationals who are exempt from the obligation to hold a visa when crossing the state border of the Republic of Moldova". Parliament of the Republic of Moldova. March 2, 2017. Archived from the original on 7 March 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022 – via Ministry of Justice.
  16. ^ http://lex.justice.md/viewdoc.php?action=view&view=doc&id=374983&lang=2 [bare URL]
  17. ^ http://lex.justice.md/md/379039/ [bare URL]
  18. ^ Resolutions of the Government of Moldova No. 450 on 7 November1993 "About an order of entrance and stay of citizens of Latvia and Estonia in the territory of the Republic of Moldova" (in Russian)
  19. ^ Resolutions of the Government of Moldova No. 708 on 12 November 1993 "About an order of entrance and stay of citizens of the Republic of Lithuania in the territory of the Republic of Moldova" (in Russian)
  20. ^ Lietuvos Respublikos Vyriausybės ir Moldovos Respublikos Vyriausybės susitarimas dėl piliečių kelionių (in Lithuanian)
  21. ^ HOTĂRÎRE Nr. 532 din 10-06-1999 cu privire la introducerea regimului de vize pentru cetăţenii Turkmenistanului care vizitează Republica Moldova
  22. ^ HOTĂRÎRE Nr. 667 din 13-07-1999 cu privire la introducerea regimului de vize pentru cetăţenii Republicii Bulgaria care vizitează Republica Moldova
  23. ^ Resolution of the Government of Moldova No. 1042 on 17 October 2000 "About introduction of a visa regime for citizens of the Czech Republic who visit the Republic of Moldova" (in Russian)
  24. ^ ACORD Nr. 479 din 25-11-2000 Articolul 8. ACORD ÎNTRE GUVERNUL REPUBLICII MOLDOVA ŞI GUVERNUL REPUBLICII UNGARE CU PRIVIRE LA MODALITATEA CĂLĂTORIILOR RECIPROCE FĂRĂ DE VIZE ALE CETĂŢENILOR, TITULARI AI PAŞAPOARTELOR DIPLOMATICE SAU DE SERVICIU
  25. ^ Resolution of the Government of Moldova No. 1255 on 14 December 2000 "About introduction of a visa regime for citizens of the Polish Republic who visit the Republic of Moldova" (in Russian)
  26. ^ a b "Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Integration of the RM". www.mfa.gov.md. Retrieved 2019-05-11.
  27. ^ "The foreign citizens who need invitation to obtain a visa for the Republic of Moldova". mfa.gov.md.
  28. ^ "Biroul Naţional de Statistică // Comunicate de presă". Statistica.gov.md. 2019-02-15. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  29. ^ "Biroul Naţional de Statistică // Comunicate de presă". Statistica.md. 2018-02-12. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  30. ^ "Biroul Naţional de Statistică // Comunicate de presă". Statistica.md. 2017-02-10. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  31. ^ "Biroul Naţional de Statistică // Comunicate de presă". Statistica.md. 2016-02-12. Retrieved 2022-03-07.

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