Hi there, we use cookies to improve your experience on our website. You can update your settings by clicking the Privacy policy link at the bottom of the page. I'll be travelling alone. I have bought two guidebooks about this country.
I have also read many topics about police and bribery in Kyrgyzstan and there are some contradictious stuffs. For exemple, my 1st guidebook tells me to always keep my passport with me and to show it to the police when asked.
If you show a photocopy, you can be arrested. My second guidebook tells the opposite : never show your real passport, lock your passport in a safe in a hotel room and always show a photocopy or tell the police your passport is at the emabssy. I'm from a country which doesn't need a visa for Kyrgyzstan. A passport is good enough. Thank you for your tips. Hi my friend, I was in Kyrgyzstan last September with a friend, Legally you must carry your pasport with you everywhere but dont do it because the risk is more than to carry a photocopy.
Policemen try to take bribes from visitors, they take your pasport to check it and then they ask you to follow them in a cabin, show them the interior of your bag and of your wallet. This is written in the LP guide and happened to us as well! But they were not succesfull because we had not the original pasport with us we carried another old pasport plus a photocopy. Also we had little money. Thanks god this was the only bad contact in our two weeks in Kyrgyzstan, Anas. Therefore, showing only a photocopy is the best idea, as they will just wave you away and wait for someone else to come along.
And if you have problem with policemen trying to take bribes from you in the street or the bazar, do not hesitate to protest loudly, they usually get ashamed from the look of the rest of the locals and give up after a passeport control. As a lot of travelers, the policement in Osh bazaar in Bishkek tried to take me to their station to take the money out of my pocket. They only intersted in Euros or Dollars, and pretending to check if your banknotes are fake or not, they steal some of them.
