MNS to Decide about Accreditation of Foreign Journalists

The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry has officially recognized that for the issuance of visas to foreign citizens, including members of the press, the consular service of the MFA sends documents to the Ministry of National Security.

After receiving appropriate conclusion of MNS, the consular service or the relevant diplomatic mission of Azerbaijan issues the visa.

This procedure is currently used in connection with the changes to the MFA orders amended on October 27 this year. This has been stated by the press secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Hikmet Hajiyev.

The term of consideration of the application for visas is defined as 15 days, but in emergencies (medical treatment, death of a relative) the visa is issued within two working days.

A one-time entry visa costs 50 dollars, and a reusable one is $ 350. The student, tourist and transit visas are $ 20.

It should be noted that the practice of denying "unreliable" persons was widely used by the authorities not only against those who visited Nagorno Karabakh. Thus, many foreign journalists that ever criticized the situation in Azerbaijan were denied visas. Moreover, visas were denied even for the journalists who worked with the local "opposition" press. -03D-