According to the Law on Assistance to Ukrainian Civilians, temporary protection of a Ukrainian civilian is lost if the validity period of the visa or residence permit issued to the person has expired and the person has not applied for a new visa or residence permit within one month. The expiry date for approximately 15,000 visas and residence permits issued to Ukrainian civilians is 4 March 2025, so the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs is waiting for applications from Ukrainian civilians for the extension of temporary protection and residence permits until 4 April 2025. More than a third of Ukrainian civilians residing in Latvia have now submitted the necessary documents. The Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (the OCMA) will continue to accept and process applications, but applicants may face inconvenience in accessing benefits and services.
Ukrainian civilians should be aware that applications can take up to three months to be processed, so the OCMA reiterates its call to check the validity of documents and submit all necessary information as soon as possible. If the documents are submitted later than early April, Ukrainian civilians will face possible inconvenience in receiving social services and benefits.
If a residence permit had been issued previously, the following should be submitted to extend it:
- a copy of a travel document;
- completed free-form application.
If a visa had been previously issued, and it has expired, the following should be submitted to extend the temporary protection status:
- a copy of a travel document;
- a completed residence permit application questionnaire.
However, if the Ukrainian civilian is an adult citizen of Russia or Belarus, the following must be submitted to the OCMA in order to obtain a residence permit or a long-stay visa:
- a copy of a travel document;
- a completed residence permit application questionnaire;
- a completed additional questionnaire to provide information to the competent state authorities.
The prepared documents can be submitted:
- electronically, signed with a secure e-signature and sent to the e-mail address: pasts@pmlp.gov.lv;
- by post to the address of the territorial OCMA division;
- at the state and municipal single customer service centres.
The OCMA has also simplified the completion of applications and questionnaires by making these application forms interactive, with additional explanatory notes that provide more precise guidance on the information required.
During the period from 1 October 2022 to 30 April 2025, the OCMA shall provide support measures to the Ukrainian civilians through the financial support of the Strategic Initiative No. FM2022/68 (EEA/NOFI/DIV) of the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism and the Norwegian Financial Mechanism for the period 2014-2021 under the Bilateral Cooperation Fund Strategic Initiative No. FM2022/68 "Support measures in Latvia to address the European refugee crisis, primarily for the needs of Ukrainian civilians".
*applies to Ukrainian civilians who were issued these documents before 31 December 2022.
Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs
Public Relations Division
prese@pmlp.gov.lv, +371 67219185