The situation in the world is changing every second, and what used to be taken for granted is now considered survivals. The Cold War, the creation of the European Union and other important events have gone down in history. When the relative world was restored in the world, tourism began to develop. But in international tourism activities it is imperative to comply with formalities. About them in the article.
How it all started
How did tourist formalities come about? To answer this question, a small digression is necessary. The fact is that the customs systems of different countries, of course, affect the development of international tourism, this is logical. With the help of the same tourist formalities, the state can both slow down this development by tightening legislation and contribute to it.
It should be understood that tourist formalities are procedures that are associated with the observance of persons crossing the state border, the rules, requirements and conditions of stay and entry in the country. All rules are established by government bodies.
In 1989, the Hague Declaration defined a principle that explained that all states needed to take measures to simplify:
- Customs procedures regarding visas and passports.
- Tourist formalities.
- Stays and trips around the country.
- Medical and currency control.
It turns out that to enter the country it is not enough to observe only customs and border charters. It is worth examining carefully the same sanitary and epidemiological rules that are also mandatory to follow.
Kinds
What types of tourist formalities are there? It is clear that for such a large group of rules there are separate methods of separation. These are several large sections, which include visas, customs regulations, passports and more. For example, one section is devoted to currency and the procedure for its exchange, and the other to sanitary rules and the regime of exit-entry. In the tourist rules you can find information about immigration or the features of staying in a particular country.
Formalities are divided into sanitary and police. The first is called all the procedures that are associated with verifying compliance with the rules by persons crossing the country's border. This also includes requirements for animals about the necessary vaccination. The sanitary service at the border points controls these points. Compliance with the rules is checked very simply: employees are asked to present an international certificate of vaccination.
Police formalities are compliance with the passport and visa regime. The control is carried out by authorized services at airports, railway stations, river and sea stations, roads.
Crossing the border is impossible without customs clearance, and rightly so, because it is customs that is the state body that controls the passage of the border both by people and by cargo, money and others. The service is also responsible for the duties and other fees charged, as well as directly for the delay of goods that violate the legal conditions.
Customs formalities are usually expressed in verbal and written declaration of the list of transported items, as well as their quantity. This includes all items, money or goods that are permitted for transportation.
In addition, there are visa and passport formalities. It's no secret that a passport is the main document confirming the identity of a person both at the border and within the country. By the way, passports are not only foreign. There is also a consular, official, diplomatic, passport that is issued to a stateless person, a foreigner's passport, a sailor's passport, a child’s passport and others. Most often, in order to enter the country, you need to apply for a visa. About which countries Russia has a visa-free regime with, we will consider later.
Visas are also of several types. So, in 1995, seven European countries concluded the Schengen Agreement, thanks to which internal border control was abolished in these countries.
What is going on in Russia
Today, the state of tourism in the Russian Federation is very ambiguous. It is more about the organizational structure, the state of the qualitative and quantitative parameters of industries. You can talk as much as you like about which countries Russia has a visa-free regime for, but first you need to figure out what is happening with the tourism industry. For example, since the eighties, Russia's position in this area has weakened, but over time, everything has changed. Analysts are now predicting the country's entry into the top ten countries to receive tourists in the next few years. In this regard, the role of tourist formalities and, as a consequence, the executive and legislative branches is growing. It is these moments that play a decisive role in shaping the country's economy.
If everything is more or less clear with this, then the time has come to analyze the types of formalities in more detail.
Passport formalities
Travel tours are always accompanied by the collection of documents, because the borders of another state cannot be crossed without papers. In this case, a passport comes to the rescue. It is the main document capable of confirming the identity of a person traveling outside the borders of his country. An authorized body issues a document. Many people think that the main purpose of a passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation is to control the departure of a person. This is partly true, but not only. By the way, in the countries of the European Union, the USA and Canada there is a unified system for monitoring the movement of citizens.
Do not think that passports are only foreign and domestic. There are a lot of them, and here are some of them:
- Family passport for wife and husband.
- Official, consular, diplomatic.
- ID card of the child.
- Certificate "Lesse-Pass". It is issued by employees of UN agencies or other international organizations. This also includes NATO, the Red Cross.
There are rumors among the people about such documents that allow traveling freely around the world. How real are they? Indeed, such documents exist. In Russia, these are the following passports:
- Passport of a sailor.
- Service passport.
- Diplomatic passport.
It is worth noting why this does not include a foreign passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation. The fact is that in this case the rules of entry into a particular country apply, and a visa is often required there. For this reason, a passport cannot be attributed to documents that allow you to travel freely on the planet.
Visa formalities
In tourism, there is such a form of formalities. In order to go on a tourist permit, you need to apply for a visa. What is the reason for this? To answer the question, you should first deal with the concept of visa. This is the name in the alien’s passport, which is considered permission to visit the country. A visa is issued by the consular (official) authorities of the state to which the owner of the passport follows.
A visa can also be considered a separate document that is issued to a foreigner. An example is the Soviet visa, in which there were three parts, two of them had photos of the owner. The entrance part was taken at the border checkpoint, and the exit part when leaving the country.
But a visa is not the last binding document. According to the customs regulations of many countries, the entrant must present a travel company voucher, a return ticket, a document that confirms a sufficient amount of money. It turns out that the visa does not give any guarantee for admission to another country if the other documents are not in order. The final decision on admission can be taken by the competent authorities at the border of the country. If a person for some reason does not correspond to the situation of a tourist, then the authorities may not be allowed to cross the border.
This practice is applied on the borders of European countries, because this rule is indicated not only in the customs regulations, but also in the requirement of the leadership of the European Union.
The tourist is also required to inform how many days he arrives. Based on this, the amount that is needed for a comfortable stay will be determined. How to confirm the availability of funds? To do this, a card, traveller's checks or a tourist voucher with a note from the receiving side that the tourist is guaranteed full board is suitable. This rule helps fight illegal immigrants, as well as domestic crime among foreigners.
Where a visa is not required
From the outside it seems that the document regulating tourist formalities is quite tough, but it is not. Firstly, not all countries have such a system for selecting tourists. Secondly, for citizens of Russia there is a whole list of countries that can be visited without a visa and any serious requirements for material resources.
We list some of them:
- Albania.
- Abkhazia
- Argentina.
- Barbados
- Bahamas.
- Armenia.
- Belarus
- Bosnia and Herzegovina.
- Brazil.
- Venezuela.
- Vietnam.
- Hong Kong.
- Dominican Republic.
- Israel.
- Kazakhstan.
- Cuba.
- Colombia.
- Malaysia.
- Maldives
- Nicaragua.
- Cook Island
- Salvador.
- Seychelles.
- Thailand.
- Serbia
- Tunisia.
- Uzbekistan
- Phillippines.
- Fiji.
- Montenegro
- Croatia.
- Ecuador.
In addition to these countries, there are those in which a visa is placed directly at the airport. These are the countries:
- Bolivia.
- Bangladesh
- Haiti.
- Georgia.
- Egypt.
- Zimbabwe.
- Iran.
- Indonesia.
- Kenya.
- Cyprus.
- Lebanon.
- Madagascar.
- Mauritius.
- Myanmar
- Syria.
- Turkey.
- Sri Lanka.
- Jamaica.
Tourist formalities in Russia rarely change significantly, but this cannot be said about other countries. Often a state or several states tighten entry regimes, for example, requiring additional documents at the stage of visiting the embassy.
Sanitary and epidemiological requirements
The concept and essence of tourist formalities we have already disassembled, we have also disassembled almost all types of formalities, but we have forgotten about the sanitary-epidemiological formalities. What are they? First of all, we are talking about the observance by tourists of the rules that doctors prescribe. This is necessary first of all in order not to bring a terrible disease into the country and not become the cause of the epidemic. Of course, there are people who do not pay attention to the rules, which is why epidemics of plague or cholera periodically flare up in the world. Yes, there are still corners of the planet where there are these terrible diseases.
International statistics show that every fifth European, when traveling abroad, either gets injured or becomes infected with some kind of infection.
The behavior of tourists during the trip, as well as preparation for it, must comply with all the recommendations of the WTO and WHO. To prevent disease, tourists should get vaccinated, listen to lectures and agree on preventive treatment.
These rules were adopted in 1951 and are still valid, of course, with periodic amendments.
Above we gave examples of passport formalities in tourism, why not do it now? According to the rules, to avoid infection, the following is necessary:
- Use drinks and drinking water of guaranteed quality.
- To live in a square with sewage and running water.
- Use only industrial products for food. You can’t eat raw vegetables and fruits, local food without certificates, non-traditional dishes.
- Wash vegetables and fruits with tap water only, and wash hands. Use only personal utensils.
- When bathing in pools or ponds, do not allow water to enter your mouth. It is best to swim in the pool at the hotel.
WHO has also developed rules for the provision of medical care:
- When traveling, you need to draw up multilateral or bilateral agreements on medical assistance to tourists and medical insurance.
- Providing emergency assistance to every tourist, if any.
- Notify the consulate and relatives in case of death or exacerbation of the disease.
- To carry out the burial and transportation of the body. This is done for a fee.
- Quickly issue all necessary documents.
Customs formalities
Everyone knows that when crossing the state border, it is necessary to pass customs control. The only difference is that for some states this can take a whole day, while in other countries a tourist will not even notice - everything passes so quickly.
It is important to understand that customs formalities directly depend on the economic and social situation in the state, and therefore can often change. For this reason, it is better to clarify all changes before planning a trip in order to avoid unpleasant surprises.
In almost all countries, goods that a tourist carries for personal use are not subject to duties or customs duties. But he must be ready to explain and confirm that these things are for personal use.
There are restrictions on the amount of imported tobacco, alcohol, perfumes and medicines. So, tobacco products in the total mass can be transported no more than 250 grams, it is allowed to carry up to two liters of wine and a liter of strong alcohol. As for perfumes, they are allowed to be transported only in the amount of 50 grams, while toilet water can be imported 250 milliliters. Medicines are transported strictly in the required quantity, without stocks.
Cash
Foreign exchange formalities in tourism also exist. Visitors often encounter scammers and various frauds built on currency exchange. To avoid this, just read the rules in a particular country. Each state has its own order of export-import of currency, so it is better to clarify this point in advance. For example, in the United States, you must declare an amount in excess of 10 thousand dollars.
It is important to understand that there are only a few currencies for free sale - these are franc, dollar and pound sterling.
The WTO has developed its recommendations regarding these formalities. They are as follows:
- Permission to import currency, provided that it will be included in the declaration.
- Comprehensive information of tourists and visitors, so that there are no financial difficulties and inconveniences.
- Currency exchange for national money is made only at the request of the tourist.
- When leaving the country, the tourist has the opportunity of a reverse exchange.
- At the entrance to the checkpoint, the rules governing currency exchange at the current rate should be posted.
- When leaving their tourists, allow them to have personal money for a return trip.
Some countries have very strict currencies, and you need to know these rules. There are states in which only national money is considered the only means of sale.
If a tourist is trying to conduct currency exchange operations without the participation of banks, then he must be prepared for criminal punishment. Some countries do not punish deceivers who specialize in currency exchange, for this reason it is better to study all the points in advance.
All types of formalities, unfortunately, are very dependent on state policy and the economic situation in it, and therefore it is important to make inquiries on time, preferably with a tour operator.
Formalities issues
We have already talked about passing passport control and many other nuances. And you probably noticed that all kinds of formalities are imperfect. Why does this happen, because the instability of formalities leads to a decline in inbound tourism? If this trend is observed, then this is a sure sign that it is necessary to revise the rules for foreign citizens. Politics should be more flexible, this is what will contribute to the influx of people.
For example, often when making a trip at an agency, a client receives the right to use certain services from partners of the operator, but at the same time there is no unconditional guarantee that the service is paid. This applies to travel insurance, carrier services, visa payment. Meanwhile, this should be provided on the basis of tourist formalities. If this continues to happen, then the trust of potential customers will be undermined, which means that a lot of damage will be done to the economies of the countries. The only way out of this situation is to provide services or return money for them. If a convention were adopted on this issue, tourists would have less problems.
By the way, this moment concerns Russia directly. And it is good that the legislation of the federation spells out guarantees for the rights of citizens, because this is very important, especially in disputed situations involving tourists.
If someday all countries decide to simplify travel and travel, the problem will disappear by itself. Most likely, it will be so, because the budget of each country consists, among other things, of funds from the tourism sector.
Conclusion
As you can see, traveling abroad is accompanied by many bureaucratic obstacles. It is important to know all the information correctly so as not to go back from customs. Of course, countries can also be understood, because the tightened entry framework provides at least some guarantee of security in the country. Too often, people try to emigrate illegally, especially in European countries.
But the tourist must follow all the rules, because they are not taken from the ceiling, but are designed for his own safety. Remember that neglecting one point or another can cost not only money, but also life. It is unlikely that anyone would want to spend their vacation like that.
Tourism operators should warn of any changes in the tourism legislation, but it will be more reliable to personally control this moment. In which case, not the operator deployed at the border, but you. It is better to comply with all the requirements of the border service and not try to prove something. Sometimes you have to deal with abuse of authority, but, as a rule, we are talking more about the stubbornness of a tourist than about serious violations of service employees.
If you want only pleasant memories of the tour, then do everything right and in accordance with the rules. A positive experience will give a desire to travel further, but a negative one will repulse a desire for a long time.