Last year the Office participated in an interesting and useful podcast talk organized by LVportals.lv “Residence Permits: what are their types and grounds for issue”.
Find out what are the types, terms and legal grounds of residence permits.
Residence permit is a document, being issued in the format of a personal identity card (eID card) and enables a foreigner to stay in Latvia for a certain period of time or permanently.
It is required for foreigners, who own a real estate in Latvia, as well as job seekers, students and family members of such persons, if they wish to stay in Latvia for longer than 90 days during half-a-year, counting from the first day of entrance.
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What is a residence permit and why a foreigner needs it?
Latvia, like other countries of the world has its own immigration policy, which stipulates the types, terms of residence permits and legal grounds for acquisition thereof.
Already since the beginning of 1990 Latvia started to issue visas and residence permit, in accordance with the national interests of the state of Latvia.
Residence permit is a document, enabling the persons, who chose Latvia as their permanent place of residence for a longer period of time, to stay in Latvia or move to Latvia completely. Reasons can be different - employment relations, studies, marriage, acquisition of the real estate etc.
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Is a residence permit a personal identity document?
Yes, it is a personal identity document in the territory of Latvia. With this document a person can prove his or her identity and his or her legal stay in Latvia at any state or private institution (stores, banks, medical treatment and other institutions). It can also be presented together with Covid-19 certificate as a personal identity document.
However, when crossing the state border of Latvia, a residence permit is not equal to a passport or personal identity card or eID card, and it cannot be used as a travel document!
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What are the types of residence permits and how do they differ?
When a foreigner arrives to Latvia for the first time - he or she is entitled to acquired a temporary residence permit. Depending on the reason of stay, it may be issued for a time period from half-a-year up to 5 years.
If a foreigner has lived in Latvia with an issued temporary residence permit for at least 5 years, then he or she shall be entitled to request a permanent residence permit.
Key provisions for acquisition of the permanent residence permit are: permanent living in Latvia, existence of financial means and knowledge of the official language in the A2 level.
There are also exceptions: repatriates and children of citizens/non-citizens of Latvia have the right to acquire a permanent residence permit at once.
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What is the difference of the residence permit issued in Latvia and the residence permit of the habitual resident of the European Union?
The Office grants the status of a habitual resident of the European Union to persons, who comply with the certain criteria of the Directive of the European Union and who previously habitually lived in any other country of the European Union.
Read more HERE.
Source: LVportals.lv.