People who want to travel to Belarus can apply for a visa in any country of the world that has a Consulate of Belarus by mail or in person. There is also a Consulate at MSQ Minsk National Airport available for application to all nationalities. Please, locate your local Consulate of Belarus using the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus.
People, who want to travel to Belarus to see a friend, take care of the grave of a relative, take part in the court hearings, etc. need to apply for a private / guest visa.
Normally, applying for a Belarus private visa (for example, visiting a friend), one has to have in hand the original of an invitation, issued by the local Citizenship and Migration Department (OGIM) in Belarus. However, for the citizens of migration-secure countries the procedure has been simplified – for instance, a UK or a USA citizen can put the personal details of the friend in the visa application and mail it to the local consulate of Belarus with the passport, passport-size photo and a consulate fee receipt.
In the simplified procedure the private visa can be valid for up to 30 days, while if the full-scale paperwork is involved it can be valid for up to 90 days. Visit the official website of the Ministry of the Foreign Affairs of Belarus to see the details. Catch: if you opt for a simplified visa application the consulate still may ask for the invitation original which will consume some time and effort from your friend's side (just tried myself for my Americans - headache indeed!!).
If the consulate of Belarus requires the original of an invitation letter from a friend (who is based in Belarus), the friend will have to take the following steps: upon paying the state service fee your friend will have to fill in an application form for a private invitation letter at the local Citizenship and Migration Department (OGIM) and collect the paper 10 days later. Upon collection, the friend will have to mail the paper to your country or MSQ Airport Consulate. Applying at MSQ Minsk Airport Consulate you should be aware of the following issues.
To avoid these troublesome preparations, contact me for visa support.
Note, that MSQ Airport Consulate will always require the original private invitation to be delivered by your local friend 2 working days+ before your landing. It is very time- and effort-consuming and therefore applying for a Belarus tourist visa might be an option. Also, contact me for online Belarusian insurance.