The Latvian parliament, the Saeima, has passed amendments blocking investors from Russia and Belarus from obtaining temporary residence permits in Latvia, LETA reports. The amendments close a legal loophole that allowed Russian and Belarusian investors to obtain residence permits through an investment programme for alternative investment fund managers. Meanwhile, a parliamentary commission recommended setting quotas…
A petition initiated by the mayor of the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, Valdas Benkunskas, on stricter language rules for foreigners has collected more than 22,500 signatures, BNS reports. Under the proposal, non-EU residents would be required to have at least A2-level proficiency in Lithuanian after three years of residence. Earlier, Interior Minister Vladislav Kondratovic argued that…
The mayor of the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, Valdas Benkunskas, has launched a signature campaign for legislation that would oblige foreigners living temporarily in the country to learn Lithuanian, BNS reports. Under the mayor’s proposal, non-EU nationals would have to show proof of at least A2-level proficiency in Lithuanian when renewing their temporary residence permits after…
The Lithuanian Migration Department (LMD) has revoked the temporary residence permit of a Russian citizen for repeatedly travelling to Russia and Belarus, BNS reports. The person is the first to lose their residence status under a new law, which bars Russian citizens from travelling to either country more than once within any three-month period. LMD…
Lithuania’s Interior Minister, Vladislav Kondratovic, sees no need to relax existing restrictions on the entry of Belarusian citizens into Lithuania, BNS reports. Lithuania has stopped issuing new visas to Belarusian citizens with few exceptions and has closed four out of six checkpoints on the border with Belarus. Moreover, Belarusians arriving in the country are subject…
Lithuania has introduced stricter rules on residence permit applications through external service providers as of 1 December 2024, BNS reports. From now on, only citizens of countries with an office of the external service provider can use their services. Citizens of other countries can apply for temporary residency permits at an office in another country…
Lithuania has almost 8,000 foreign students with temporary residence permits, according to the Lithuanian Migration Department (LMD), BNS reports. Nearly 1,400 Indian citizens, 959 Belarusians, and 709 Pakistanis are currently doing their studies in Lithuania. So far in 2024, LMD has issued over 3,000 temporary residence permits for permanent studies to foreigners, compared to 4,400…
The Lithuanian Migration Department (LMD) denied residence to almost 36,000 foreigners in the first eight months of 2024 after the introduction of tighter rules on immigration, according to the Ministry of Interior, BNS reports. LMD received altogether 67,175 residence permit applications. The number of applications to work in Lithuania from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and…
Ukrainians without temporary protection can now only work in Lithuania if they have a valid residence permit, BNS reports. Previously, Ukrainian nationals with visas were exempt from having to obtain a work permit in Lithuania. The exemption will continue to apply to highly qualified workers. Ukrainian refugees can start working immediately after submitting an application…
