I had a little bit of a maths attack

click for larger image

I finally got around to working out exactly what the dates on the three visas I currently hold actually mean for our travel plans and relative boarder crossings. The image above shows when we may enter and when we must leave each of the three countries we need permission to travel across. Let’s start from the top;

Russia is rigid. The government allocate you dates after which you may enter and a date where you have to get out by and this is based on the particular dates you apply for on the visa forms submitted to the embassy and the constraints of the visa you may be applying for.

Mongolia is flexible. On the visa is an enter before date. Apparently you would be eligible for entry anytime after the visa is applied until 30 days after the enter before date expires. The official rules state a maximum 30 day period within a 90 day window based upon the dates on the visa application.

China is in between. They use the same 90 day window / 30 day period basis as Mongolia but the window starts from the day the visa is first issued and runs until the enter before date (both dates are printed on the visa). I was made aware, when applying for my Chinese visa, that an additional 30 day period after the enter before date is sometimes available but this arrangement must be agreed before entering the country.

So there you are all the facts and rules laid out, hopefully, in concise and understandable language. If anyone is reading this and it helps or if they think my experience of applying for these visas would help them you can leave a comment or question on the post page.

The graph shows the most efficient way to use the visas and probably won’t be the final dates where we will be crossing any boarders. It shows the block of 30 days in Russia as stationary, as is dictated by the visa, with the 30 day window in China being pushed as far back as reasonably possible (8th Feb – 10th March 2009). My Mongolian window sits between these two time periods (22nd Jan – 21st Feb 2009 ). These two later windows can be compressed together to speed my transit across the globe or stretched, slowing the trip down and allowing me to maximise the value of each visa. Getting closer to the 30 days each one affords me.