You might need the Permit for border zones in Kyrgyzstan to visit some famous places, located in border regions, like Kelsuu, Chatyr-kul, Mertzbaher lakes, Inylchek glaicier etc. The are border control in the areas and you must have the permit to pass them.
So before visiting the places you should get the border-zone permit. Here I describe the process, how to get it in Bishkek. The whole process takes 7 working days (officially) and includes 2 stages:
1) getting the permit in the Department for Registration
2) Affirming the permit with the stamp in the Border Control Department
Getting the Permit for Border Zones in Bishkek.
Firstly you should go to the Department for Registration, located in the center of Bishke, adress 58 Kievskaya str. Пyou should bring 3 copies of you passport and 4 blank sheets A4 to write an application.
Firstly you go tp the left door from the entrance. There you will find a table in the center of the room with a sample application form. You must write by hand 3 copies following the example:
If you can’t write in cyrillic you can always ask a friend to do it for you, and sign it in the end. No risk, it is just an application to get the permit.
In the application you should write your destination, or the region where you go. As a purpose of the visit I wrote just “tourism”. Then you sign in the paper, put the date. Do not forget to write your mobile phone number, they will contact you when the permit is ready.
That’s all for now. Submit all you applications with passport copies to the window and wait 6-7 days, until the permit is ready. If can’t wait and need to have the permit earlier, ask Nursultan, his office in the next door. He is the one who take all the applications and take them to the State Registrar Office, where they issue your permit. He can help you to accelerate the process.
How much the permit costs.
The official cost of the permit for Kyrgyz citizens 50 KGS, for foreigners 200 KGS You should pay the payment in the RSK Bank. There is a branch located close to the Department for Registration, in the Glavpochtamt building on the other side of the street. They will give you this check, that you should give to Nursultan to receive your permit.
Certifying the permit in the border control service
There is only one last step left – you have to stamp your permit in a border control service. Basically you can stamp it in any city in Kyrgyzstan, where there is the border control department. Some of my co-travellers did it in Naryn.
Normally it takes 1 working day: you leave your permit with a copies of the application and passport in the border control office, and the next day you take it back with a stamp. Thenk you can go to your destination.
I did it in Bishkek, in the Border control service, located in the addres 163 Mederova st. I came too late, it was 5pm, the end of the working day. And our group was going to leave this night to Kel-suu. Hardly I could get it stamped today. But I explained the situation to the inspector and she helped me. She just took my papers and left. And in 30 minutes I’ve got my permit stamped. It was was like a miracle in our bureaucratic country.
Do not forget to make 2-3 copies of your stamped permit before leaving. Because they can ask you to leave a copy of the permit in the border pass.
This is the official procedure. Another option – you can always address to a travel agency, they might help you, make all the job for money. It may cost around 1000-200 KGS.
So I’ve got the permit to the border zone in 5 working days ofor 50 KGS only, and I visited the Kel-suu lake, which is certainly the most beautiful lake in Kyrgyzstan.