Arrival and departure

Visas

Uzbekistan is a country with a rather liberal visa system. Foreigners are charged relatively small amounts for tourist visas as compared to the neighbouring countries. Recent changes in the visa regime have made it possible for some traveling nationals to obtain visas using a simplified procedure. (FMI see Visas for Uzbekistan FAQ). In order for you to go unhampered through the Uzbek immigration authorities, you have to have a valid passport (its expiry date should not be within the period of stay in Uzbekistan) and a valid visa. Also, they may check your Registration when you are leaving the country.

Police Registration

All foreigners are required to follow the registration procedure in Uzbekistan. This procedure is aimed at providing Uzbek authorities with data about the movement of foreign citizens in the country.

All visitors must get registered with the police within three days after arrival and obtain a stamp of registration on their visa. As far as tourists (which means visitors with a TOURIST VISA) are concerned, it is the reception at the hotel who issues a stamped receipt with dates of stay; usually hotels do this automatically. There may be a problem, however, if you decide to stay elsewhere, for example, at your friends or with relatives. In such cases, it would be the responsibility of the host to register the guest.

Unregistered visitors may be subject to a fine or even prevented from leaving the country until all documents are properly done.

Arrival, Customs

As guests of Uzbekistan, you will be requested to complete two copies of customs declarations (available in English, Russian and Uzbek) upon arrival in the country, usually onboard a plane or at the airport. One of the copies must be kept during the entire stay in Uzbekistan. On departure, you will have to complete another declaration, and submit it together with the initial one to the customs officer.

There are no limitations on the amount of money tourists may bring into Uzbekistan. However, they should have less hard currency while departing than indicated in the entry declaration.

Items of considerable value, for example, jewelry, cameras, computers etc., should be written on the declaration forms on entry. All such items must be re-exported, otherwise import duties will be charged on travellers.

The customs regulations clearly define the list of items which you may not bring in the country and the list is almost identical to those in Western countries. It includes, inter alia, drugs, explosives, dangerous substances and weapons. Food products, such as fruit and vegetables, may be imported freely in reasonable quantities sufficient for personal consumption.

Unlike some Islamic countries, alcohol drinks and tobacco products are allowed for import and fall under the same consumable quantity regulation.

When entering airport facilities, all luggages go through X-ray devices.

Departure

Items that visitors buy in Uzbekistan, such as products of handicraft, pottery and other recently manufactured products can be freely exported from the country. When you plan to take out works of art or antiques, such as old rugs and/or suzannis (wall covers), books, weaponry (swords, knives, etc.), you may be required by customs to provide a license issued by the Uzbek Ministry of Culture stating that such items have no historical or cultural value. It is recommended to demand such a license directly from Sellers before you buy things. Otherwise, unlicensed items may be confiscated by the customs authorities.