What It's Like Entering Russia As An American 2025 (Immigration)
- Konrad Tillman
- Sep 7
- 5 min read
Intro
Always trust the media, right? "Visit Russia and you will be detained" sort of thing. Obviously, as an American, there are certain places in the world that the government advises us not to visit. Now, if you have followed this blog for a little bit, you know that I have almost visited every level 4 country Do Not Travel. However, after arriving on the China Eastern A330 from Beijing, I was feeling a little bit nervous about immigration.
So, let me walk you through what to expect as an American entering Russia in 2025.
It All Depends On Where/When
Let's start here. When you enter Russia, you need to be extremely strategic, as the odds of you being pulled aside for enhanced interrogation on your first visit are extremely high.
If you arrive at DME when many people from the stans are arriving, my friend told me it can take well over 12 hours for Europeans/Americans, and occasionally over 48 hours for people from the Stans.
So if you are looking for the quickest way into Russia, I recommend the land border, as another friend of mine reached out and said it took an hour. Additionally, I have heard that Sochi is a little bit better in comparison to Moscow.
But I was in Moscow, and figured that SVO would be the best option... Now that that is out of the way, let me walk you through my experience.
My Experience
Upon landing from Beijing, I scurried off the plane and made my way towards the foreigner line for passports. I thought, "It's never going to work, but let's give it a shot". It was about a 15-minute wait before the immigration officer waved me over.
He took a while, mentioned to his colleague, "ahh, American", and then eventually told me to go and wait on the benches behind where the people were queuing. Ahh, great, here we go. Well, not only does Sheremetyevo have wifi, but I also had Verizon travel pass in Russia! How about that!
Anyways, gazing out of the window with virtually nothing to do, I saw an Aeroflot A350 and remembered why I had come to Russia. To see Russia, and this was just one of those moments that I had to let it ride out.
For the next 2.5 hours, I waited, and I waited. No clue what was going on, vending machines only accepting rubles (or the local card), it was sort of like, "you are in for the long run now".
Eventually, I got a call over the PA to come to an office near the back and to wait outside. For the next 30 minutes, I sat on the floor with another American who was also going through the same process as me. Granted, he had a connecting flight, and props to Russian immigration here, as they sped up the process for him.
Well, after 3 hours from stepping off the plane, the time had come to step into the interrogation room. It's a very small room, with cameras in the corners, and in front of me was this immigration officer on the phone.
I was a little nervous, you know, especially as I didn't want to hide any pictures of my trip to Ukraine from 8 months ago. He asked me a few questions about why I was visiting, asked what my job was, took a picture of my Student ID, and proceeded to search my phone. Man, those 10 minutes of my life, as he is on the phone with a friend, talking, while going through my phone. Little, nerve-wracking, ya know.
For me I would much rather just be honest about why I was there and trust that they will allow me in. Because if I had hidden pictures and they had found them, it would be even worse.
Honestly, he was pretty nice, didn't take my IMEI number, and gave me back my phone 10 minutes later, kept my passport, and said, "go".
Long story short, I waited for the next 2 hours with a guy from Germany who had been there 7 hours, until my name was called to go get DNA samples taken????
Thankfully, it was a miscommunication, but when I saw this, I was messaging my friend who was waiting outside, and another Russian mate, being like wtf 😅.
Anyways, 5.5 hours later, they took us to a separate line in immigration, with a stack of over 100 passports, and you had to listen closely for your name.
2 minutes later, I was stamped through, and with no checked baggage, I was outside within 5 minutes. Customs is just a belt where you put all of your bags.
Important: they give you a card which you must keep with you at all times to check into hotels and to leave the country. DO NOT LOSE THIS.
My Take/Advice
Up above, I was simply just trying to share my experience of what it was like as a first timer in Russia on a US passport. However, nobody knows what it's going to be like for you. The American I sat with told me that he came 8 months ago for the first time, and there was no extra immigration for him. You never know, but just be prepared to stay up to 8 hours. Additionally, another American I met said that he was there for 6 hours, but nobody spoke to him until they let him through.
Finally, and this is the main point of the story: it might take a long time, but they are just ensuring that you are there for legitimate reasons. Yes, it's frustrating, but be respectful. As long as you are coming to Russia with a good reason, nobody is chucking you in a gulag. You are not getting detained like the media says. Even this ex-CIA man I met had no issues, because he was there to see his girlfriend.
Be honest, don't delete anything. If you do that, you will get to experience one of the most beautiful countries in the world.
Final Thoughts
I get it, flying into Russia as an American might be worrisome with what is going on in the world today. You hear the Western media saying that you will end up in prison for no reason, then Russians getting downvoted on Reddit, saying you will be fine. However, I am here to tell you that as long as you are honest, are not there for any ill intent, and have patience, you are going to be alright. Yes, it's going to take a while, but it's the worst part of Russia. Trust me. After that, it's beauty, vodka, more vodka, and a splash more of vodka 😅.
Russia Series
