For Russians planning vacations or business trips to the United States, the U.S. visa maze has gained an emergency exit.


Several Moscow travel agencies have been accredited to submit visa applications to the U.S. Embassy on behalf of their clients, embassy spokesman Richard Hoagland said Thursday.


That means in most cases that the prospective travelers will not have to undergo time-consuming waits at the embassy to apply for visas, long a bugbear for Russians planning trips to the United States.


"The purpose of accepting these applications is to streamline the visa service," Hoagland said, "and to provide better service to the citizens of Russia."


Ever since Moscow eased travel restrictions in 1992, Russians have discovered to their dismay that obtaining a visa to the West can be a frustrating experience, marked by long lines, delays and frequent refusals.


Eleven Moscow agencies are currently accredited in the program, which was launched last month, said Julia Dragomirova, a sales representative of Delta Air Lines, the carrier that stands to benefit the most from the arrangement.


Delta is the only U.S. carrier that serves Moscow directly. Other U.S. carriers such as American Airlines and Northwest Airlines have reciprocal agreements with European carriers to bring their customers into Moscow.


Delta's Moscow office worked out the arrangement with the embassy, Dragomirova said.


Commersant Daily reported Thursday that British Airways and Air France were seeking to provide similar programs to ease visa procedures for flying to Britain and France.


British Airways' Moscow management was unavailable for comment. Pierre de Baecque, Air France's general manager for the CIS and Poland, said he knew of "no agreement on the part of the French consul to have this type of program at this date," although he thought such procedures would be good for business.


Each of the 11 travel agencies involved in the U.S. visa agreement is authorized to gather its clients' visa invitations, applications and documents and pass the packet on to the embassy, where the application is processed and the visa issued. The embassy may still request an interview with the applicant before making a final decision to offer or decline a visa.


Prospective travelers must reserve airline tickets and, in the case of tourists, hotel accommodation, to use the agencies' visa services.


Although Delta organized the program and had a hand in picking its participants, the agencies are under no obligation to sell Delta tickets as part of the package.


"They can also go on Aeroflot, or any airline," said Irina Golubeva, tourism manager at Griphon Travel, but she said most of her clients were likely to use Delta to go to the United States. So far 15 tourists have used the service, she said.


"I was really surprised to see the American Embassy so helpful," said Natasha Vladagina, reservations manager at Time Travel.