On 7 February, the Cabinet of Ministers adopted the Regulation “Amendments to the Cabinet of Ministers Regulation of 30 August 2011 No. 676 “Visa Regulations””, which aims to streamline the procedures and costs related to the storage of visa applications, reduce the administrative burden on persons by providing the possibility to submit visa applications to the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs electronically or by mail, as well as to specify the notes to be included on visa labels in accordance with the regulations laid down in the European Union legislation.
With the rapid growth of the archive to be stored by the Office for Citizenship and Migration Affairs, the five-year storage period for visa application forms and accompanying documents set out in the legislation has so far resulted in additional costs and the need to rent additional premises for the storage of archive documents. In 2022, the increase in the number of visa applications by Ukrainian civilians is particularly significant, with approximately 24 000 visas issued in the first four months of 2022.
Taking into account the large volume of visa application files and the relatively low need to use these archived documents, the amendments to the Regulation make it appropriate to provide for a retention period of two years from the date of the final decision.
Information on the visa application and the visa issued or extended, if necessary, is available in the National Visa Information System (NVIS), where the data are kept for five years.
The rules also provide that visa applications are submitted to the Office for Citizenship and Migration Affairs by sending documents by mail or electronically. In order to facilitate the application procedure for persons who would like to submit their application using an electronic address, an electronic application form will be developed and made available at the e-address. The prepared decision will be communicated by the Office for Citizenship and Migration Affairs to the e-address in priority, in accordance with Section 12, Paragraph one of the Law on the Official Electronic Address, if the person has one.
The Regulations also contain information on the documents to be submitted by a foreigner when applying for a long-stay visa for remote work in the Republic of Latvia, stipulating that proof of employment for at least six months with an employer registered in a member state of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development or as a self-employed person is required, this must be evidenced by a certificate issued by the tax administration or social insurance institution of the country concerned, as well as the possibility to work remotely (i.e., the work duties must be such that they can be performed remotely) and that the remuneration of the foreigner corresponds to the average gross monthly remuneration of workers in the previous year, with a coefficient of 2.5 applied (according to the latest published information of the Central Statistical Office).
Self-employed persons must prove that they have earned the relevant amount of income in the last six months (based on the average gross monthly salary of workers in the previous year, with a coefficient of 2.5) by submitting a certificate from the relevant national tax administration or social security body, as well as a free-form application explaining the scope of the work to be done and the possibilities of doing it remotely.
The Regulations also specify the time limit for issuing a visa in case a person needs to enter the Republic of Latvia to obtain a residence permit, setting the time limit for issuing a visa for up to 90 days instead of the current 30 days. Such a time limit in cases when a person enters to obtain a residence permit, the granting of which has already been decided, will reduce the possibility of unlawful stay of the person during the procedure of issuing an eID card (residence permit), as due to the limited administrative capacity of the Office for Citizenship and Migration Affairs it is not always possible to ensure the person’s reception time for the transfer of biometric data immediately upon arrival, thus increasing the risk of unlawful stay of the person.
The Regulations also provide for the inclusion on the visa stickers of the remarks required by Directive 2016/801/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2016 on the conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals for the purposes of research, studies, traineeships, voluntary service, student exchange programmes or educational projects and guest work, and introduce a remark on the visa to be issued for the purpose of remote work.
For more information, please contact the Personnel Management and Public Relations Department of the OCMA, e-mail: prese@pmlp.gov.lv, telephone 67219185.
Pictures shown are for illustration purpose only.
Prepared by:
Ministry of the Interior
Communication Department
kn@iem.gov.lv