OBTAINING UKRAINIAN ENTRY VISAS
 

To enter Ukraine you must not only have a valid passport, but also a visa issued by the Ukrainian Embassy. A Visa is not a credit card, but a stamp in your passport that gives you permission to enter a particular country. There are three ways to get a tourist visa:       1.Official invitation from a Ukrainian citizen (takes 1-2 months to get this document)
                        2.Documented (on company letterhead with appropriate registration numbers) hotel
                           reservation confirmed by a Ukrainian hotel, Ukrainian travel agent, or "approved" domestic
                           travel agent.
                        3.Business invitation from legitimate Ukrainian business.
If you have any of the above, then you do not need the service of a travel company to get a visa. You will only need to get an
official application from the nearest Ukrainian Embassy or consulate (in the USA check out the web page of the Ukrainian
Embassy in Washington for details. Copies of the application are not acceptable, plus the new ones are printed with
un-reproducable ink so you can't copy them anyway.
 Most problems arise when visitors are trying to stay in a private apartment. Since an official invitation is time consuming (and
not possible if you just want to visit and don't have any particular friend in Ukraine) and a business invitation is hard to come
by, it will be to your benefit to hire a company that can help you obtain a visa. Such companies make "bogus" hotel
reservations, or reservations that are eventually cancelled.  Citizens of all other countries should contact the Ukrainian Embassy in your country to obtain a list of "approved" domestic travel agents, or contact with us about obtaining a business visa.