In order to strengthen State security and improve the efficiency of State border guarding, from 1 September 2025 thirdcountry nationals, who have not been issued a visa or residence permit in Latvia, will be obliged to submit certain information regarding themselves, their relatives (if any) and the purpose of travel to the State threat prevention information system eta.gov.lv. before entering Latvia. Amendments to the Immigration Law were adopted by the Saeima on 3 April 2025.
Information for immigrants:
• The circle of persons subject to the duty to provide information is precisely defined in Section 4.4, Paragraph one of the Immigration Law – foreigners who are not citizens of the European Union, the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, the European Economic area State, the Swiss Confederation or the Federative Republic of Brazil and who do not have a visa or residence permit issued by the Republic of Latvia will be obliged to provide information. This obligation also applies to those who only transit through Latvia;
• At least 48 hours before arriving in Latvia, information must be submitted online at eta.gov.lv. After submitting the data to the website (eta.gov.lv), the person will receive automatic confirmation to the specified electronic mail address of receipt of the data. In order to enter Latvia, a person does not have to wait for a separate permit.
• A refugee travel document is essentially equivalent to a passport. If a person does not hold a passport but has been issued a refugee travel document, then, when completing the entry form, the document details must be entered in the same section designated for passport information. When specifying the issuing authority, the country that issued the refugee travel document must be indicated, and all other fields should be completed in the same manner as for a passport (using the information provided in the refugee travel document).
• Information may be used by national security authorities to identify and prevent national and public security risks. In cases where these risks are identified, the competent State authorities will use the existing legal instruments to address the threat posed, including limiting the person's access to Latvia.
• The information must be provided by the traveler themselves, not on behalf of another person, except in cases where the form is filled out for minor children — in such cases, it is completed by parents or guardians.
• If a traveler’s plans change before the trip, the form must be completed again. The 48-hour submission requirement does not apply to the resubmitted form.
Information to be provided:
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purpose of travel (entry);
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planned time and place of stay;
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travel route;
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contact information;
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any elected positions held by the applicant and their relatives;
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any record of running for election;
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current or former status as a central or local government official;
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service in the armed forces, special services, border guard, customs, or in the interior, justice, or foreign (including diplomatic) services.
• The foreigner is provided with administrative responsibility for the failure to submit the requested information and for the provision of incomplete or false information;
• The new entry procedure does not apply to persons with diplomatic immunity, persons who arrive in the short term for the performance of official functions or for the provision of technical support;
• From September 1, Latvia does not have to submit an entry questionnaire to a non-citizen of the Republic of Estonia, but it is mandatory for Russian citizens, even if they have been issued a residence permit or EU long-term resident status in Estonia.
• Similarly, the entry form does not need to be filled out by stateless persons who were granted this status by one of those mentioned in the provisions of Section 4.⁴, Part One of the Immigration Law.
• For Ukrainian citizens – if they do not have a visa or residence permit issued by Latvia, the obligation to submit information shall be the same as for other citizens of the relevant third countries;
• Persons who entered Latvia by September 1 and are in Latvia are not obliged to submit relevant information.
- Each case in which the entry declaration is submitted less than 48 hours before entry will be assessed individually, taking the specific circumstances into account. The imposition of an administrative penalty for failing to provide the relevant information is not an end in itself; the main objective is to ensure compliance with the requirements and entry safety.
- If a person has multiple citizenships that require the submission of an entry declaration, they must indicate the citizenship they consider to be their country of residence. If a person has multiple citizenships, but the declaration is required for only one of them, they must indicate precisely the citizenship to which this obligation applies.
*If you encounter technical problems while completing the form in the system https://eta.gov.lv/en/, please contact the Information Centre of the Ministry of the Interior by writing to the e-mail address pd@ic.iem.gov.lv.