Embassy report: Turkmen visa in Tashkent

[imdumas]

I went to the embassy 10 days ago.
Remember, in October is NOT possible to apply for the last week. They even don't accept an application.
In October and November the embassy is not hat crowded, you can go at 6am or 6:30 to put your name.

The woman in the embassy was extremely helpful. We felt really welcomed.
You need 2 passport photos, photocopy in colour of Uzbek and Iran visa, and a big smile.

She gave me a phone, they answer almost always, between 9 and 13pm.

I will know my result on the next Monday.

[Snooze22]

We went to the embassy on 10th April at 6:10 am and asked for the waiting list. The first guard (right hand side of the building) did not seem to know anything of a waiting list (only Russian spoken). At the other entrance (left hand side) another guard provided us an (still empty) sheet of paper, so luckily we were first this morning.

We returned at 9am (about 30 people on the list) and registered our passports with the guard at the entry gate. They opened at 9:20am and let us in first.

Inside nobody spoke English, so one employee called somebody and gave me the phone. I talked to a very friendly English speaking woman explaining that we would like to apply for a transit visa (Konye-Urgench-Ashgabat, 5 days) for dates 25.04.-29.04. The woman asked if a pickup was possible in Tashkent, which I confirmed. Also she recommended to think of a different route already in case the visa will not be granted.

Then we had to fill two different forms and sign a short letter in Russian with our intended dates. We did not write any cities except Konye-Urgench and Ashgabat and only put “transit” for intended route and accommodation.

The whole procedure took about 40 minutes, so it pays off being early on the list. We were told to call or write an e-mail in 2 weeks to ask, if the visa was granted or not. We did not have to pay anything yet.

[Snooze22]

Quick update: We got the visa today, 5 days Konye Urgench to Ashgabat. We called this morning and could pick it up one hour later!:)

[Quentin]

Despite everything I heard and read, my visa application in Tashkent embassy went very well. I am holding a French passport. Here is the process:

24/09: 5 days transit visa application in Tashkent embassy. I asked to enter on the 4th of October (10 days later). You don’t have to pay any administrative fee like other embassies in Central Asia (I heard 5 or 10$ per pax in Dushanbe and Bishkek).

27/09: Public holiday in Turkmenistan.

03/10: After 9 days (including one week-end and one public holiday) I received confirmation that my visa was approved. I could have wait for invitation letter and pickup at the border but it could have take 3 to 10 more days. Therefore I took the night train to Tashkent.

04/10: I went first to the Tashkent embassy. I was able to pick up my visa, change my entry date to 6th of October and pay the 55$ fee directly at the counter (20min total).

I still can’t believe how easy it was. Compared to what I heard from other embassies in the region, Tashkent seems to be the most efficient one and application is free of charge.

Good luck to all!

[Jonathan]

Hello,

Our experience with 2 French passports :
On the 26th of October, we arrived at 6:15 AM. The guard only spoke Russian and show us a place to wait, we asked about the waiting list but couldn't understand him. After 20 min, an Uzbek guy arrived to wait with us, and we eventually understood we had to establish the list. Fortunately, we had a useless printed tadjik visa, which became the official waiting list. We came back at 9AM, there was about 25 people on the list.
Once in the embassy, we were given some forms to fulfill (in English) and, as we only had B&W copies of our Iranian visa, a guy showed us were to get color copies : there is a shop next to the Korean embassy (5 min walk from Turkmen embassy), I pointed it on MAPS.ME, it's closed to the restaurant called Italiano Vero. So remember to bring one COLOR copie of your passport and your Iranian visa. Except that, everything was OK, people in the embassy were kind and helpful with us. We applied for transit visa from 16 to 20th October.
We didn't pay anything and were told to call on the 8th of October the following number : +998712569402

On the 8th of October, I called the embassy, had a very kind woman who told me our visas were granted.

On the 10th of October, we arrived at 7:30AM after our night train, there were 11 people on the list before us. We had very good French breakfast at BON! (10 min walk) and came back at 9AM. We had to pay $55 per person.

In summary, everything was fine. I hope it can help!

[pritamps]

This thread hasn't been updated in a while. This year, everyone I met got a visa. Except me

Indian passport. Solo. Cyclist (though that wasn't mentioned anywhere). Somehow that's a bad combination I guess!

[steven]

This thread hasn't been updated in a while. This year, everyone I met got a visa. Except me

Indian passport. Solo. Cyclist (though that wasn't mentioned anywhere). Somehow that's a bad combination I guess!

It's not you. Could happen to anyone.

[Leonico90]

Just received my Turkmenistan visa in Tashkent a few hours ago on an Italian passport.

Process was pretty much as described by the other posts from last year. I needed two passport photos, and colour copies of my Azerbaijani evisa and photo page from my passport. That's it. There's a very basic application form you have to fill in, and they have pre-written letters in Russian that you have to fill in the gaps for (entry and exit dates and points). They said to come back in two weeks/on the 23rd (application was on the 11th of July), and I had to pay 10$ and a few som (can't remember how much). A Japanese girl from my hostel said that hers wasn't ready two days after it was due to be, but her friend (also Japanese) got his in a week,so she decided to get to Baku from Kazakhstan instead. Definitely have a backup plan.

Went to get my visa this morning. There's really no need to be super early to put your name on the list, at least at this time of year anyway. Handed them my passport and they asked me what days I wanted to enter and exit. Sat down for about half an hour, then got called up, signed some documents and got the visa. There were three Turkish guys who all got approved, but one Slovenian gentleman was told he had to come back in three days.

Some important points:

- The visa is now date specific. You have to enter and leave on the dates that it says on your visa.
- The cost is now 45$. I'm not sure if this is because of my citizenship, or if they have just reduced it generally.

Finally, there was a bit of confusion at the application stage as I gave them an Italian passport, but it says my place of birth as the UK. I explained that my dad is Italian and my mum is British, and they seemed to understand. What I'm saying is that having a passport of a country that you weren't born in isn't a problem, but you might have to explain your situation a bit.

Hope you've found this useful, and you won't be shitting yourself as I was when I saw the last embassy report was from a year ago

[braj]

^ Thanks Leonico, this is very helpful.

I have a question - I assume the embassy in Tashkent will honour letter of invitations issued by other Turkmen embassies? I had applied for a transit visa in New Del, but the letter came in by the time I was already on the road. I therefore only have a soft copy of the letter and an email from the New Del embassy by which they sent me the letter. I am planning to go to the Tashkent embassy tomorrow, but would be grateful for any insights.

[braj]

Update: - picked up my transit visa in Tashkent this morning. Process same as Leonico described. My invitation letter was issued by the Turkmen embassy in New Delhi, I carried a printout. Was asked for a colour photograph, a copy of passport, and had to fill up a two page application form with the usual details. The entire process was done in about half an hour.

One point - I had to pay $55. Maybe that's because they had to process a non-Tashkent issued LoI?