Foreigners will be able to obtain a temporary residence permit before coming to Lithuania
From the beginning of next year, the Migration Department will start providing the service of issuing temporary residence permits in Lithuania through an external service provider. VFS Global, the world's largest outsourcing and technology company providing similar services to many governments and diplomatic missions, has been selected through a public procurement process.
From 2 January 2023, foreigners wishing to obtain a temporary residence permit in Lithuania will be able to submit their applications in 34 different foreign countries, where VFS Global's offices will be located.
The external service provider will be authorised to provide clients with information on the procedure for issuing temporary residence permits, to receive applications and documents required to be submitted, to collect personal and biometric data, and to transmit them to Migration Department specialists.
In all cases, decisions on whether or not to issue a temporary residence permit will be taken by Migration Department specialists. The time allowed for examining the application and taking a decision will vary from 1 to 3 months.
The external service provider will also be obliged to collect Lithuanian State levies for services. Receiving, examining and deciding on an application for a temporary residence permit and issuing the document in accordance with the general procedure is subject to a levy of EUR 120. From next year, foreigners admitted to study in a Lithuanian research and study institution under a study programme or to a doctoral programme will enjoy a novelty: the state levy for issuing a temporary residence permit will be reduced by 50%. Foreigners who have completed their studies or research and experimental development in Lithuania will be able to pay no state levy for the issue or amendment of temporary residence permits for one time.
Once the Migration Department's specialists have taken a decision to issue a temporary residence permit in Lithuania, the card produced will be sent abroad. Thus, the foreigner will arrive in Lithuania with a valid residence permit and will no longer need to obtain an additional visa. Until 2 January, applications for temporary residence permits can only be submitted after legal arrival in Lithuania and after booking an appointment at the Migration Department's Customer Service Unit.
If the foreigner has a visa entitling him/her to come to our country, or if he/she uses a visa-free regime, he/she will be able to collect the temporary residence permit card already issued in Lithuania.
In addition, amendments to the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens will enter into force on 2 January 2023, shortening the time limit for processing applications for temporary residence permits by 1 month.
All foreign nationals will be able to apply to the VFS Global offices, regardless of whether they are resident in the country where such services are provided.
Since the beginning of this year, the Migration Department has issued more than 111,000 temporary residence permits to citizens of various foreign countries, and changed 15,000 temporary residence permits in Lithuania.
The procedure for applying for national visas remains unchanged as of 1 January - the procedure for obtaining national visas continues to be applied for at the external service provider chosen by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania. This procedure will remain in force until 1 July 2023.
Countries where the offices of the external service provider VFS Global will be open: Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Canada, Sakartvel, India, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Moldova, Moldova, Nepal, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States of America, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan, Venezuela.
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