GlobeQuest

Lithuania visas and residency

Who can visit Lithuania without a visa, and the 5 long-stay routes that let you actually live there.

Short stay

Visiting Lithuania, by passport

How the 198 passports we track get in. A visitor entry is never permission to work, study or settle — that is what the routes further down are for.

United StatesVisa-free · 90 daysUnited KingdomVisa-free · 90 daysIndiaVisa requiredCanadaVisa-free · 90 daysAustraliaVisa-free · 90 daysGermanyFree movementFranceFree movementNetherlandsFree movementIrelandFree movementSpainFree movementItalyFree movementPortugalFree movementPolandFree movementSwedenFree movementSwitzerlandFree movementSouth AfricaVisa required
No visa at all

Who can simply move to Lithuania

EU/EEA and Swiss free movement

Citizens covered by EU/EEA and Swiss free movement need none of the routes below

Citizens of EU and EEA countries and Switzerland can live, work and study in each other's countries without a visa or a work permit.

For the first three months a valid passport or national ID card is all you need. Beyond that you may have to register as a resident, and if you are not working or studying you need enough money to live on and health cover. Switzerland issues an EU/EFTA residence permit on the same terms.

Verified November 2026:Your Europe — residence rights when living abroad in the EUState Secretariat for Migration — free movement of persons Switzerland–EU/EFTA
Long stay

How you actually move to Lithuania

Work / sponsoredMedium confidenceVerified August 2026

Temporary residence permit for employment

The standard route: a non-EU national with a Lithuanian employer. EU, EEA and Swiss citizens do not need it — they declare their place of residence and obtain a certificate confirming the right of residence.

What you need
  • An employment contract with a company registered in Lithuania
  • A work permit or a decision from the Employment Service that the foreigner's work corresponds to labour market needs, unless the occupation is on the shortage list or another exemption applies
  • Gross monthly salary at least the country's average gross monthly earnings (BDU) as published by the State Data Agency — a figure in the region of €2,400 in 2026, and revised quarterly
  • Health insurance and documented accommodation in Lithuania
  • Application filed through the MIGRIS portal; applicants outside Lithuania submit via the Migration Department's contracted external service provider
How long it lasts
Up to 2 years for the first permit in most employment cases, up to 3 years on renewal, renewed while the employment continues and the salary test is still met.
Path to permanent residence
Permit for permanent residence in Lithuania after 5 years of continuous legal residence, which requires Lithuanian at A2 and a pass in the Constitution examination. The exams are the real hurdle; several years of paperwork are not.
Cost
The long-published state fee is €120 for the ordinary track and €240 for the urgent one, but secondary services now quote €160 and €320 for the same permit, and the Migration Department's own fee page could not be read to settle it. Treat the pair as €120–€160 standard and €240–€320 urgent and confirm on the day. Add the employer-side work permit fee where one is required, plus the external service provider's charge if applying from abroad.
Processing time
Nominally 2 months on the general track and 1 month on the urgent track; some current guidance describes the same two tracks as 90 and 45 days. Plan against the longer reading.
Worth knowing
  • Lithuania has no digital nomad visa and no remote-work residence permit. If your income comes from a foreign employer with no Lithuanian entity, there is no dedicated route — this is a genuine gap, not something a scheme name will solve.
  • The salary floor is the national average gross wage, not the minimum wage, and it moves with each quarterly BDU release. A contract signed against last quarter's figure can fall below the threshold by the time the file is assessed.
  • Occupations on the shortage list skip the labour market test, which is the single biggest saving in time on this route. Check the list before assuming your employer must advertise.
  • The permit is tied to the employer. A change of job normally means a new application, and working before the new decision is issued is not permitted.
  • Everything runs through MIGRIS, including booking the appointment to submit biometrics. Appointment slots, not the decision itself, are usually what sets your timeline.
Sources:Migration Department under the Ministry of the InteriorMigration Department — state fees for residence permits
Work / sponsoredMedium confidenceVerified August 2026

EU Blue Card

Highly qualified specialists — the route most Vilnius fintech and engineering hires actually use, because Lithuania's threshold is set unusually low for ICT roles.

What you need
  • A higher-education qualification, or at least three years of relevant senior ICT experience acquired in the last seven years, or five years of professional experience equivalent to a degree
  • An employment contract of at least six months with a Lithuanian employer
  • Gross salary at 1.5× the average gross monthly wage, reduced to 1.2× where the occupation is on the list of high value-added / shortage occupations, which covers much of ICT
  • Health insurance and accommodation
How long it lasts
Three years, or the contract length plus three months where that is shorter. Renewable.
Path to permanent residence
Counts toward the 5-year permanent residence permit, and Blue Card holders may aggregate periods of residence in other EU member states — a real advantage if your career moves between EU capitals.
Cost
€160 for issue, renewal or replacement; €320 for expedited issue.
Processing time
1 month under the standard procedure, 15 days under the expedited procedure.
Worth knowing
  • The 1.2× shortage coefficient is the point of the Lithuanian Blue Card. For an ICT specialist it puts the threshold well below what most of Western Europe demands, which is a large part of why the Vilnius fintech cluster could staff itself.
  • Both coefficients are applied to the average gross monthly wage published by the State Data Agency, so the euro figure changes as the wage series is updated. Verify on your filing date.
  • The Blue Card no longer requires the labour market test that the ordinary employment permit can trigger, which usually makes it faster as well as more portable.
  • Recognition of a foreign degree can be required before the application is accepted; start that with the Centre for Quality Assessment in Higher Education early, because it sits outside the migration timetable.
Sources:European Commission — EU Blue Card in LithuaniaMigration Department — state fees for residence permits
InvestmentMedium confidenceVerified August 2026

Startup Visa (temporary residence permit for innovative business)

Non-EU founders building a scalable, technology-based business — the route Lithuania actively wants, and by far the cheapest way in for someone with a product rather than a payslip.

What you need
  • A business concept assessed as innovative, technology-based and scalable by the evaluation commission — accelerator and venture representatives sit on it alongside Startup Lithuania and the Innovation Agency
  • A business plan or prototype with a development strategy, market analysis and financial projections
  • Incorporation of a Lithuanian company (typically a UAB) once the concept is approved
  • Proof of subsistence funds for yourself and any family members, health insurance and accommodation
How long it lasts
An initial temporary residence permit, extendable while the business develops.
Path to permanent residence
Counts toward the 5-year permanent residence permit, with the A2 Lithuanian and Constitution examinations still applying.
Cost
No minimum capital investment is demanded by the scheme itself. You pay the ordinary residence permit state fees plus company formation and accounting; the commission assessment is free.
Processing time
The commission assessment runs on its own short timetable; the residence permit then follows the ordinary Migration Department clock.
Worth knowing
  • 'Innovative' has a working meaning here and the commission is not a formality. A services company, an e-commerce reseller or a consultancy will not pass, however plausible the revenue.
  • Founders keep being surprised that the scheme demands a product thesis rather than money. That is the whole design — Lithuania is buying companies, not capital.
  • The company has to be genuinely Lithuanian-registered and operating. A holding shell will not sustain the permit at renewal.
  • Amounts cited for required personal funds are pegged to Lithuanian subsistence levels and move annually; confirm the current figure with the Migration Department rather than an advisory site.
Sources:Startup Lithuania — Startup Visa schemeInvest Lithuania — Startup Visa for non-EU foundersMigration Department under the Ministry of the Interior
Work / sponsoredMedium confidenceVerified August 2026

National (D) visa

People with a defined reason to be in Lithuania for longer than Schengen's 90/180 allows but who are not yet on a residence permit — including those bridging the gap while a permit application is decided, and family members joining a permit holder.

What you need
  • A qualifying basis — employment with a work permit or exemption, study, family reunification, an approved startup, or intra-corporate transfer among others
  • Health insurance covering the intended stay
  • Evidence of sufficient means and of accommodation
  • Application through MIGRIS and, from abroad, the Migration Department's external service provider
How long it lasts
Up to one year, issued for the period the qualifying basis supports.
Path to permanent residence
A visa is not a residence permit. Time on a national visa does not build the five years toward permanent residence — the permit is what starts that clock.
Cost
€120 for the national visa. Confirm against the Migration Department's fee schedule, which is revised.
Processing time
Usually within 15 calendar days of a complete application, extendable where documents are queried.
Worth knowing
  • The national visa is frequently mistaken for a light-touch residence route. It is not: it gives presence, not status, and it does not accrue anything.
  • It is also the practical bridge that lets a startup founder or a new hire arrive and begin while the residence permit is processed — worth asking about explicitly rather than waiting abroad.
  • Staying more than 183 days in Lithuania in a calendar year, or having your permanent place of residence here, makes you a Lithuanian tax resident whatever your document says.
Sources:Migration Department under the Ministry of the InteriorMigration Department — state fees for visas
StudentMedium confidenceVerified August 2026

Temporary residence permit for study

Students admitted to a Lithuanian higher education institution. Vilnius University, VILNIUS TECH and Kaunas University of Technology all run substantial English-taught programmes, several tied directly to the laser and fintech industries.

What you need
  • Admission to an accredited Lithuanian institution
  • Proof of sufficient funds for the period of study
  • Health insurance and accommodation
How long it lasts
Issued for the study period and renewed as the programme continues.
Path to permanent residence
Study time counts toward permanent residence but is commonly counted at a reduced rate — check how the Migration Department will treat your years before planning around them. Graduates may stay on to look for work.
Cost
In line with other temporary residence permits — see the fee caveat on the employment route; the published figures are not currently consistent between sources.
Processing time
2 months standard, 1 month urgent.
Worth knowing
  • Students may work, but within limits set by the permit — confirm the current hours cap rather than assuming an unrestricted right.
  • Lithuania's laser and photonics sector recruits directly out of the Vilnius physics faculties; a student permit converted into an employment or Blue Card permit is a well-worn path here rather than a theoretical one.
  • An English-taught degree does not move you toward permanence linguistically — A2 Lithuanian and the Constitution exam still gate permanent residence.
Sources:Migration Department under the Ministry of the InteriorMigration Department — state fees for residence permits
On the ground

Where you'd land in Lithuania

Vilnius

A baroque old town wrapped around one of the EU's largest fintech clusters, at Baltic prices.

Full Vilnius guide

Lithuania at a glance

Capital
Vilnius
Population
2.9M
Languages
Lithuanian
Currency
EUR