This Survival Guide Will Explain Exactly how to get a Tajikistan Visa in Baku!
Tajikistan! Home of the infamously stunning yet frighteningly challenging Pamir Highway! One of the highest altitude and greatest road trips in the known world! There’s glorious lakes, high mountains and the capital Dushanbe is even home to the world’s largest flag pole! What more could you want!
The visa process is rather easy too these days, depending on your requirements, so why not get on and visit this Central Asian glory?
I picked up my Tajikistan visa in Azerbaijan, but since then, you can in fact now apply for a visa online, which has made things even easier! You can do that HERE, and yes, it works on the land borders as well as at airports! A few of my travelling friends can testify to that fact.
If you find yourself in Azerbaijan though, can still apply for a Tajikistan visa in person at the consulate. It’s actually cheaper than the online system. And this guide will explain all.
Here’s how to get a Tajikistan Visa in Baku, Azerbaijan!
The Tourist Visa
Baku is unfortunately not the place to apply for a Tajikistan Visa if you require anything other than a single entry, 30 day tourist visa. If you are planning on visiting Afghanistan from the Pamirs, get a visa elsewhere, probably in Bishkek, as they give out double entry, 45 day visas. The online e-visa can only be issued as single entry. The other problem is that the consulate in Baku can’t give out the GBAO permit necessary for travel to the Pamirs, but this can be secured cheaply and quickly in Dushanbe, once you are in Tajikistan itself. The real reason to apply in Baku- if you only require single entry- is that it’s really cheap!
What documents do I need?
This is simple, as far as Central Asian visa applications go!
All you require is:
1 x Colour Passport Photo
The visa is also date specific, so have your entry date ready too!
The consul will provide you with the application form, of which you will need to fill in two, and you will also be required to hand write a letter to the embassy, requesting them to issue you a visa. They provide a letter for you to copy.
A warning here however. The consul asked how I planned to travel to Tajikistan and I mentioned that I would probably cross from Uzbekistan. He asked to see my Uzbekistan visa, which hadn’t been processed yet, and then refused to issue any visa until he could take a photocopy of the Uzbekistan visa! So, it’s easiest just to say you are going to fly in, or that you will enter from Kyrgyzstan, where most nationalities don’t need a visa! Other than this, it was the smoothest, easiest application process I’ve ever experienced. There were no quees at the embassy, no hotel bookings were needed, and it was all rather simple really.
Where is the Uzbekistan Embassy in Baku?
Baglar Dongessi, 2 Badamdar şossesi, Baku 1021, Azerbaijan
The embassy is located just off the Badamdar Highway. It’s on the map below. It’s a ten minute walk from the Uzbekistan Embassy if you fancy crossing off two visas in one go! You can read more about that in my earlier blog post.
There is a bus from Fountain Square, just outside the Old Town. It stops on the Badamdar Highway next to the turn off which leads to the embassy. It costs 20 Qebits for a one way ride, which you pay to the driver when you get off. Busses run every 10 minutes or so and the whole journey will take no longer than half an hour. You can’t use the Baku City Card on this bus currently. On the way back just catch it from the other side of the road where you got off originally.
The bus you need is Number 31. By Fountain Square, it departs from the point I’ve labelled on the map below, which is a little around the corner from the obvious bus stop you will see, which you would imagine is where it stops!
Opening Hours!
The Tajikistan Embassy in Baku is open Monday – Friday, in the morning from 9.00 am to 13.00 pm and in the afternoon from 14.00 pm to 18.00 pm. Applications can be made any time they are open.
To The Bank!
Once you have applied, the consul with hand you a payment slip, with the address of the bank you need to visit and the amount payable. You can return the payment receipt when you collect your visa in a few days.
The bank is located at 67 Nizami Street, Baku. It’s the International Bank of Azerbaijan. There’s actually two large offices next to each other, go to the new looking building on the left, through the fancy glass doors and to the cash desks. Hand over your payment slip from the embassy and the cash and get all the receipts and stamps you need!
I paid an incredibly cheap USD 25, although as I said, there was no double entry option and it was only valid for 30 days. Compared to other consulates, this is ridiculously cheap, and still much cheaper than the online e-visa costs too! Payment at the bank was in US Dollars only.
You will find the bank just behind Fountain Square:
How long does the visa application process take?
The whole process should only take 3 working days from your successful application to your collection of the visa itself. I had to wait longer, as I needed to provide evidence of my Uzbekistan visa! However, once I showed this, it then only took 3 days to be issued! They do not keep your passport while the visa is processed.
So that’s how to get a Tajikistan Visa in Baku, Azerbaijan!
Richard Collett
**** All information in this article is based on my own experiences, from June 2016. If you have more recent updates, then PLEASE, comment below ****
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