We recently returned from a trip through Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan.
In Tajikistan, you can stay without registration for up to 10 days, including the days of entry, exit, and weekends.
In Uzbekistan, you can stay without registration for three working days, not counting the day of entry. Weekends and Uzbek public holidays do not count toward these three days. (I verified this with officials at various borders in both Uzbekistan and Tajikistan.)
We managed a 12-day journey from Osh to Urgench via the Fergana Valley and Tajikistan, perfectly timing it so no registration was required anywhere.
Border crossings have become very easy. No lengthy inspections, no forms to fill out, no queues. It takes about 30 minutes to cross from one country to another.
At the Osh-Andijan crossing, there was a queue of locals with goods, but tourists are always prioritized. Uzbek-Tajik crossings are even faster. The Beshrik-Kanibadam crossing is open 24/7, as is the international crossing between Samarkand and Penjikent. Large, very cheap buses now run from these crossings to Uzbek cities during the day.
Yes, I can confirm - in Tajikistan, you can stay without registration for up to 10 days.
I went to the passport office in Khujand intending to register, but the officers (a colonel and a major) firmly stated it wasn't necessary for a stay under 10 days. At the Oybek border crossing, the guards didn’t ask for any registration.
When crossing the Uzbekistan-Tajikistan border, an Uzbek border guard asked for proof of registration for my time in Uzbekistan. Luckily, I had it.
I stayed longer than 10 working days. However, at the border, they didn’t ask for registration or the migration card—only my passport. The guards seemed unusually relaxed.
When applying for a GBAO permit at the OVIR office in Dushanbe, I asked staff to calculate my departure deadline. With weekends included, it totaled 14 days: 10 working days + 4 weekend days.
Hello! If staying in Tajikistan for less than 10 days, is a migration card required? They didn’t issue one or explain anything at the border. While in the country, I started finding conflicting information online.
@pendulum296 No, but border officials might ask for it as a pretext to demand a bribe.
The situation with migration cards is odd. Some say they’re no longer necessary, but in Dushanbe, they were on the tables. We filled them out, handed them to the border officer, and got entry stamps in both our passports and the cards. On departure, no one asked for them.
If you stayed 10 working days or less, they shouldn’t have asked. Border officials can see your entry date in the system.
Still, I recommend getting a migration card regardless. Many people have faced bribe demands due to its absence.
In Murghab, registration is done at the Police Department (38.16939, 73.96651) in the passport office on the building's left side.
In November 2023, my first registration in Khujand cost me about 250 somoni. Extending it in January 2024 cost approximately 300 somoni.
For your information, forum members: registration (OVIR) might affect the activation of a local SIM card. It depends on the operator—some might even deactivate it without registration.
Do they refuse to sell a local SIM card without registration? Or do they deactivate it after a week?For your information, forum members: registration (OVIR) might affect the activation of a local SIM card. It depends on the operator—some might even deactivate it without registration.
Here’s my concern: I’ll be in Tajikistan for 14 days, out of which 10 are working days, so I won’t need to register. Will I face issues purchasing and using a local SIM card?
I bought a SIM card immediately upon arrival in both 2022 and 2024. No registration was required. My last SIM is still active, though I was in Tajikistan in March.
You won’t have immediate issues, but after 10 days, your SIM card will stop working—it simply won’t connect to the network. However, a quick visit to the operator’s office will fix the problem; they’ll extend it for another 10 days.