VISA

You may not be coming from one of the EU countries, but that does not necessarily mean, that you will need a VISA. You need to check, wether you are one of the countries, with which the SR has signed a bilateral agreement on No-VISA entry, here: https://embassy-finder.com/slovakia_visa  
Even if you don’t find your country, it is STRONGLY advised to contact the nearest embassy of the Slovak Republic, by email, and ask wether you need a VISA.

VISA
A Schengen VISA (sometimes called Type-C) allows for a person, who is NOT a national of the EU/EEC area, Switzerland, to enter the EU, to stay FOR A SHORT PERIOD of time (maximum 90 days).

As a VISA expires, and the person has NO OTHER LEGAL REASON to stay in the EU (i.e. TR), such a person MUST exit the EU on the last day of the VISAs validity, otherwise this person will be made to leave by the police, fined and may be subject to becoming a persona non grata in the EU.

With a Schengen VISA one can enter through one of the outer borders of the EU, or through an international airport. Once here, one can go to ANY of the Schengen countries, without requiring a VISA or having to undergo border checks, passport checks, etc. However, countries may start doing border checks in wake of security threats or other socio-political circumstances!
A VISA can serve different purposes. Most usually it is for the purpose of a single entry and exit during a short amount of time (maximum 30 days). This is a tourist VISA. If you plan on staying in the Slovak republic longer, DON’T GET THIS TYPE!

A National Visa (sometimes called Type-D) is for the purposes of coming to the Slovak Republic to be able to submit an application for TR (i.e. if you are going to stay longer than 90 days within a 180 day period). A national Visa is ONLY to be used, when the person is coming to Slovakia, for the reason mentioned in the previous sentence. It is not a Schengen VISA, does not allow for travel outside Slovakia. It is issued for only 2 specific purposes, 1. The above mentioned, 2. If one is going to undergo a Slovak language course, by a certified authority.

Some sharing of experience may be required at this point. (This ONLY APPLIES to NATIONAL Visa):

There are many Embassies of the Slovak Republic, all over the world. There are also different times, when (perhaps because of security threats to the EU) the Embassies will be less lenient with the requirements of the law. By law, you have 2 ways of obtaining a National Visa and TR:

1. You can submit BOTH applications at your local Embassy, with ALL the necessary documents required (including Appostilised, certified translation of Foreign documents). In this case, if the embassy confirms, that you have submitted everything, and it is in order, they shall forward your TR application to the police station, under the jurisdiction you shall fall, in Th Slovak Republic. The embassies fall under the ministry of Foreign Affairs, while the police fall under the Ministry of the Interior. This means, that when you submit, you may be buying Christmas presents and by the time you get confirmation, that your application has been approved, your buying them again (ie. It can/and regularly does take 1 year). Try to ask them one week later again, if they say the same, Contact DEA!
2. You can apply for a National Visa at your local Embassy, state that you are going to apply for TR in the Slovak Republic, (you have to be convincing, you have to tell them, that it takes too much time, money for you to apply at the same time, use whatever resources you have, crying is not out of the question) and based on certain circumstances you may get the following answers:
   1. You can only use the first option (i.e. submit both at the embassy),
   2. You can go to Slovakia, but we need to check all your documents needed for TR, and they have to be in perfect order (they also need to be translated),
   3. You can go to Slovakia, but we need to check all your documents needed for TR, so we know that you have everything (they don’t need to be translated).

In the case of c) you will be OK, you just need to make sure you have all the documents required by the embassy.  
In the case of a), you need to try a short time later again, unless you have the time of one year to wait (but it actually might be more). If this does not work, contact DEA immediately (crying is not out of the question).
In the case of b) you are better of than a), but you are still not out of the woods. Problem is, the ONLY translations the embassies accept are from official translators of the Slovak Republic (99% of them reside IN the Slovak Republic), this may pose some challenges for you depending on the distance to said country (e.g. Ukraine is not such a problem, but in the case of say Iran, you might be looking at a serious challenge). It is advisable to contact DEA for consultation, but it would be better if you tried it alone. If you wish to try, you will need:  
as many trusted and capable friends in the right places and the right time as you can get, around 200- 500 Euros (depending on how many countries you have visited in the last 3 years ((see information on TR)),
good timing,
a piece of paper and a pencil
Step 1. Take the paper and draw a line on it. In the left end of the line mark the day, which is NOW (lets not get into philosophy, look at a calendar, the day on which you drew the line).
Step 2. On the right end of the line make a mark, write the date, when your OLDEST document expires (the first document to reach the age of 90 days). The last Monday, Wednesday or Friday before/or on this date is your DEADLINE (the last day when you can still submit your papers), mark on the line.  
Step 3. Give yourself a reserve, if you can, depending on your distance from Slovakia and available means of travel, try to calculate how many days it will take you to get to Slovakia. Subtract from the DEADLINE the amount of days you need for travel. This will be your DAY OF DEPARTURE, mark on the line.
Step 4. Excluding weekends, the last working day before the DAY OF DEPARTURE is the last day you can get your VISA. This day is VISA DAY, mark on the line.  
Step 5. Subtract 30 days from VISA DAY. The day you get, is your VISA INTERVIEW DEADLINE, mark on the line. 
Step 6. If there is at least 45 days between NOW and VISA INTERVIEW DEADLINE, you have a chance. Otherwise contact DEA, immediatelly!!
If there is more than 45 days, than contact friends/ colleagues in Slovakia, ask for their help, make sure they promise to do so. Send all the Criminal records, Diplomas, etc. to ONLY 1 person, who shall receive them at a specific address, ensure they are properly translated, make sure to send them back. You will need a capable person. Make them make scans of the translations, before they send them back to you. Submit the scans, by email to your embassy, so they can check for problems. If they approve, make your friend send the documents back to you. USE DHL, USE INSURANCE. When communicating postal addresses, DON’T JUST write the address, EXPLAIN, where does your name end, what is street name, postal code, city region (you might think this silly, but it means the difference, between you getting your package and no one ever seeing it again). If you have been in other countries in the last 3 years, find out how you can get criminal records from there (can it be sent by post, can it be appostilised through post! If not, you need another friend in that country). The same goes for other documents, such as University Diploma. If it is possible to have them send these documents by post, HAVE THEM SENT TO THE FRIEND IN SLOVAKIA, AFTER appostilisation.

You can find the various VISA forms here (think carefully, choose the right one, if unsure, contact DEA):
https://www.mzv.sk/cestovanie_a_konzularne_info/cestovne_doklady_a_viza-vizove_formulare  

 

For your Visa application you will need:
TO PROVIDE FOR YOURSELF:  

1. Completed (filled out) Visa form
   You can find the various VISA forms here (think carefully, choose the right one, if unsure, contact DEA): https://www.mzv.sk/cestovanie_a_konzularne_info/cestovne_doklady_a_viza-vizove_formulare
2. VALID PASSPORT (valid for the entire duration of your stay + 3 months, better even if valid until 6 months after your stay),
3. Document/s showing how and by what means the individual will enter and exit the Slovak Republic (e.g. airplane, bus, train ticket, travel itinerary, in case of car – drivers licence, etc.). In case of ANY means of travel, it is advisable to get all the other documents together first, ask for an appointment at the Embassy, ADD 30 days to the date of the appointment, and buy a ticket for travel, with the date of departure later than the date you get (e.g. VISA interview is on 1st of Aug, plane ticket should be no sooner than 31st Aug.!!). Of course, in case of National VISA, the date of your travel CAN NOT be later, than a day, when one or more of your documents have expired. The Embassy will check and not grant you a VISA, if they see that by the time you arrive in Slovakia, one of your documents would be older than 90 days!!
4. Travel Medical Insurance for the ENTIRE duration of your stay, which is valid in Slovakia, In case of National VISA, you ONLY need travel medical insurance for 90 days. The medical insurance SHOULD be bought the SAME WAY as ticket for travel! Because when you buy, you need to know the start date.
5. Proof of sufficient FINANCIAL MEANS (sufficient = minimum 240 EUROS / MONTH):  
   1. in case of GRANT/SCHOLARSHIP holders, freemovers: Grant/Scholarship letter should contain the amount,
   2. in case of RESEARCHERS / EMPLOYEES PhD., Post-Doc.: WE PROVIDE YOU WITH DOCUMENTS/INFORMATION,
   3. in case of STUDENTS, you have to provide a Bank Statement, showing that you have at least 2400 Euros on it,
6. 1 full-face colour photo, which depicts your current facial features, with dimensions of 3×3.5 cm,
7. 60 Euros for Schengen VISA.  

Further information can be found @
https://www.mzv.sk/web/en/consular_info  
http://www.mzv.sk/ministerstvo/slovenske_zastupitelstva-vsetky_zastupitelstva  

FROM US:

1. Letter of Invitation,  
2. Reservation of Accommodation,
3. Confirmation of your Salary (ONLY in case of E.2.).
   IN MOST EMBASSIES, the documents, which WE PROVIDE for you, are REQUIRED TO BE in SLOVAK LANGUAGE!!! If you get an invitation letter from one of our researchers in English, please kindly ask them to provide one in SLOVAK. If they don’t want to, contact DEA!

For more information, in case of questions and documents contact DEA.  

In case you need documents, and are eligible to get them, in your e-mail to DEA, you are kindly asked to provide your personal information (to the extent of FULL NAME, including accademic titles, DATE OF BIRTH, ADDRESS, PASSPORT No.) and postal address to which the documents are to be sent. POSTAL ADDRESS: be very carefull and precise when writing it (CORRECT POSTAL CODE is absolutely ESSENTIAL), you may think that the post office is a joke, and you may be right. 30% of what we send out into the world NEVER reaches the recipient, or the sender! WHEN PROVIDING ADDRESS, IDENTIFY what is the street, what is the city, what is the district, country, etc.  

e.g.: Name: Mr. Ujlaky
       House: Flat 32
       Street name/Number: Rose str., 32
       District: Košice South
       Country: Slovak Republic
       Federation: Czecho-Slovak Federative Republic
       Postal code: 076 75

Once you have all the documents for your Visa you will have to contact one of the Embassies of the Slovak Republic and apply for a Visa interview. In case there is no such Embassy near you, Embassies of other EU countries are eligible to handle your application. You must consult DEA in this case!  

In case you will be staying longer than 90 days, you MUST get a NATIONAL VISA. DON’T GET A TOURIST VISA!!

In case you WILL STAY LONGER than 90 DAYS, READ the information on TEMPORARY RESIDENCE. DON’T wait until you have a VISA, BECAUSE the EXCERPT FROM CRIMINAL RECORD can take up to 3 MONTHS to get ready!!!!!