The Republic of Latvia is included European Union (EU), The North Atlantic Alliance and the Schengen Area. Latvian citizenship gives the right to vote and participate in elections, engage in civil service, and enter more than 40 countries of the world without a visa.
Who is allowed to obtain Latvian citizenship
According to the Citizenship Law, any foreigner can become a Latvian citizen. A person is obliged:
- Recognize the Constitution of Latvia (Satversme), its sovereignty;
- Integrate into society;
- Do not pose a threat.
Restrictions
The granting of Latvian citizenship will be denied to applicants:
- Posing a threat to national security;
- Those who have committed anti-constitutional actions against Latvia, terrorist acts or who called for terrorist acts;
- Failed to fulfill tax obligations;
- Not recognizing the sovereignty of the country and denying the Constitution;
- Actively promoting ideologies prohibited by the country (fascism, Nazism, totalitarianism, communism);
- Convicted of crimes recognized as criminal by Latvia;
- Former intelligence officers of the Latvian SSR or the USSR;
- Serving in the army or in the civil service of another state.
Grounds for obtaining citizenship
The law provides for obtaining Latvian citizenship:
- By origin ("blood");
- By birthright ("soil");
- Through marriage;
- Naturalization;
- Adoption;
- For exceptional service;
- For refugees.
By right of blood
Assigned to children whose at least one parent was a Latvian citizen at the birth of the child (or had dual citizenship). The rule applies regardless of the place of birth.
Citizens are Latvians, Livs, descendants of Latvians and Livs who had the status of citizens before 17.06.1940... The descendants include children, grandchildren under 15 years old.
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Descendants are prohibited from having foreign citizenship. The rule does not apply if the ancestors of the applicant with 06/17/1940 until 05/04/1990 left Latvia in flight from the occupation of Germany, Soviet Russia, or were deported.
By the right of the soil
Children born in Latvia after 21.08.1991, whose parents are in the status of non-citizens or do not have citizenship, are allowed to apply for Latvian citizenship if:
- When registering a birth, at least one parent was permanently resident in the country;
- The parent moved in after 07/02/1992, but has a permanent residence permit;
- A child under 15 years of age is in the status of a non-citizen or does not have citizenship, but lives in Latvia with the applicant (parent);
- The parents of a 15-18 year old child live in Latvia permanently, the child has no criminal record and is fluent in the Latvian language.
Applied:
- Identity cards of the applicant and the child;
- Marriage document (if the applicant is married).
Children found in the country are also granted citizenship if the identity of the parents is not established.
Naturalization
Naturalization is the gradual integration of a migrant into the Latvian society, which formally takes 10 years of continuous residence in the country. Children under 15 years of age pass it at the same time as their parents.
Requirements for applicants:
- Age from 15 years;
- Residence with permanent residence for at least 5 years;
- Legal income;
- A documented level of proficiency in the state language;
- Documented knowledge of state history, the Constitution and the anthem;
- Renunciation of existing citizenship.
The amount of income must meet the minimum requirements and must be documented.
Income is considered legal:
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- From being employed or running a business;
- From renting out real estate to tenants;
- From bank deposits, securities, interest.
The total stay outside Latvia should not exceed 12 months, and one departure - 6. The degree of integration of the migrant is checked by examinations. This is the most common way for Russians to obtain a Latvian passport.
Getting married and buying real estate
Marriage serves as the basis for obtaining a temporary residence permit, but does not give the applicant preferences when applying for citizenship. Foreign spouses receive a passport through naturalization.
Buying one property with a value from 250 thousand € or two objects by 125 thousand € each also gives the investor the right to apply for a temporary residence permit. Naturalization exemptions are not granted.
Other methods
Merit citizenship is granted by decision of the President. Children adopted by Latvian citizens become citizens automatically.
Latvia grants asylum to refugees (including political ones). Such persons are eligible to apply for citizenship after 5 years of residence.
Double citizenship
All new citizens are required to take an oath and renounce their current citizenship. It is allowed to keep the existing citizenship:
- Citizens of the EU countries, the North Atlantic Alliance, the European Free Trade Association;
- Brazilians, Australians, New Zealanders;
- With the permission of the Cabinet of Ministers;
- Children adopted by citizens;
- When registering a marriage;
- To Latvian exiles, Latvians, Livs and their descendants.
Second citizenship by origin
If the parents are citizens of different countries, but one of them has Latvian citizenship, then the child can acquire both citizenships at birth. Children under 18 are allowed to have dual citizenship with any country.
Having reached the age of 25, such persons are obliged, upon written application, to renounce one of the citizenships, if it is not included in the list of permitted ones.
Obtaining citizenship
The procedure consists of 5 steps:
- Submission of applications and documents;
- Passing exams or providing a document exempting from verification;
- Renunciation of current citizenship;
- Swearing an oath of allegiance;
- Documents receiving.
Those with special merit receive a document according to a simplified scheme. They do not need to give up their current citizenship and live in Latvia continuously. The only conditions are observance of law and order and taking the oath.
Documentation
The composition of the package depends on the grounds for obtaining citizenship. Upon naturalization, the following are submitted:
- Statement;
- Identity card (passport, personal card);
- Income statement;
- Color photograph 30 x 40 mm;
- Proof of permanent residence in the Republic for 5 years (certificate from the place of work, study, from the social insurance service, from the local administration, or documentary evidence of economic activity);
- Legalized and translated into the state language certificate of convictions (for foreign citizens);
- Receipt of payment of the duty;
- For children under 15 years of age who are naturalized together with their parents, a separate application and confirmation of the child's residence in Latvia are provided.
To request citizenship on other grounds, an application of the established form is submitted with the indication of the surname in Latvian.
Additional papers required:
| Base | Documentation |
| Exiles, Latvians, Livs and their descendants |
|
| Children of non-citizens or stateless persons |
|
Where to submit documents
The application and documents for naturalization are submitted to any branch of the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (OCMA) of Latvia. The list of branches with addresses and contact information in Russian is on the website of the Office.
Applicants from 15 years old are required to be present when submitting documents in person.
Children of Latvian citizens who were born outside its borders, descendants of Latvians, Livs or exiles can also apply to any consulate and embassy of Latvia. The address of the embassy in the Russian Federation: Moscow, Chaplygin, 3.
Exams
Exams are taken no later than 2 months after the application is submitted. First, a language exam is carried out, consisting of an oral and a written part. The candidate must be given at least 51% correct answers (category B1). State-funded Latvian courses have been organized to prepare migrants for the exam.
The rest of the tests are carried out orally or in writing at the choice of the examinee. In both cases, the words of the anthem are played from memory.
Two retakes are allowed on the subject:
- State language - not earlier than 6 months;
- Satversme, history, anthem - not earlier than 3 months.
If the retake fails, the application is rejected. A repeated request can be made only after 6 months (you will have to pay a fee again). It is not necessary to retake already credited disciplines.
Foreigners are exempted from one or several stages of the exam:
- Have passed a language exam under an accredited program not earlier than 5 years ago;
- Those who received higher education with training in Latvian (proficiency level not lower than D);
- Persons with disabilities and persons over 65;
- Refugees.
Cost and terms
Consideration of securities takes 6-12 months. The process takes less time for students of Latvian universities, elderly people and people with disabilities.
State duty 28,46 €. Eligibility for preferential state duty (4,27 €) have:
- Pensioners;
- The poor;
- Unemployed;
- Persons from large families;
- Disabled persons of groups II and III;
- Students of accredited educational institutions in Latvia.
Reasons for refusal and appeal
Citizenship is granted by a Cabinet of Ministers decree. An extract from it is sent to the applicant's name with an official letter.
The main reasons for refusal:
- Fictitious marriage or adoption, falsification of documents, provision of false data, other fraud;
- Part of the documents is missing;
- No or too little legal income;
- Insufficient time of residence in Latvia;
- Committing a crime in the territory of Latvia or another country, if it is criminally punishable in Latvia.
The decision of the Cabinet of Ministers is subject to judicial appeal. The text of the appeal indicates which legal norms, in the applicant's opinion, were violated by the decision.
Buying Latvian citizenship
You cannot legally buy a Latvian passport. Scammers are behind all such offers. Latvian citizens' passports offered on the black market - processing of stolen documents.
Forgery is not accompanied by the entry of information about a person into state databases. The buyer receives simple books with a defective RFID chip.
Although obtaining Latvian citizenship is cheaper than obtaining a residence permit, the process takes longer and requires a deeper knowledge of the language. However, nothing supernatural is required from the candidate. The main thing is to fulfill the legal conditions, correctly fill out and submit the necessary documents on time. Only 10% of applicants fail to pass the language exam.
