Applying for a Russian international passport in London

Katerina Galkina · EN · 07/10/2026

Establish the type of application

Russian citizens can apply for a five-year passport or a ten-year biometric passport; the Consular Department explains the options and general processing period ↗. An additional second valid international passport has separate conditions and must be biometric. Do not confuse replacement with obtaining a second document.

Check the validity of existing Russian documents, any name change and whether you already hold two passports. If you lack a valid document establishing Russian citizenship, a preliminary citizenship verification ↗ may be necessary. Do not assume an expired passport always permits straightforward replacement without further steps.

Find the London booking through official channels

The Consular Department's UK directory ↗ identifies the London office and official website. Follow it to the current instructions and booking process for your passport type. Completing an application form does not itself book an appointment.

The official passportzu portal ↗ covers five-year applications. For a biometric document, use the link published by the consulate for that service. Do not apply another city's payment or appointment rules. Check how many applications and appointments are needed when several family members attend.

Prepare evidence and check name spelling

Gather current and previous passports, the application, photographs required for the selected type, name-change evidence and necessary copies. Children's cases require separate checks of citizenship, relationship and the applicant's authority. Use the overseas office's precise checklist rather than a list for applications inside Russia.

Compare Latin spelling with existing visas, other passports and UKVI records. If you need to retain an evidenced transliteration, establish the procedure before applying. Correcting an already-produced document is a separate process.

Check the current consular fee, currency and payment method; paying an intermediary to complete a form is not the consular charge. Appointments, verification, production and delivery involve different time periods.

Agree what happens to the existing passport

Before applying, ask whether you retain the current passport, when it will be invalidated and whether it can be kept because it contains visas. There is no universal guarantee of travel during every application. If you hold two valid booklets, explain which one is being replaced.

Track readiness using the method in the application acknowledgement and check collection requirements. Do not attend solely because the expected period has elapsed. On collection, verify the name, birth date, number and validity. Then update your passport in the UKVI account ↗, check the eVisa and separately examine foreign-visa conditions. A new passport does not extend British immigration permission.