Lithuania has evolved from a transit country to a country where people are seeking temporary protection. However, this country does not have too much experience with asylum as it has only been working with these issues for about ten years. The number of asylum seekers is also very low compared to other countries. Nevertheless, the whole implementation process is undergoing changes and improvements affecting the conditions and procedures of the asylum applications.
Asylum in Lithuania can take one of these forms:
- Refugee Status
- Subsidiary Protection
- Temporary Protection
An asylum application can be lodged at the state border crossing point, in a territorial police office, or at the Foreigners’ Registration Office. If the foreigner arrives in the country illegally, she/he must submit an application urgently in order not to be charged for illegal entrance into the country.
Within 48 hours from the moment of submission of an asylum application, the Migration Department has to make a decision on granting temporary territorial asylum in order for her/his application to be processed while the person is staying in Lithuania.
Processing times for an asylum application in the Migration Department takes from 3 to 6 months.
The process of application contains: Collection of information both on the general situation in the country of origin and on facts provided by the asylum seeker. In addition, the asylum seeker needs a lawyer or an interpreter after submitting the application in accordance with the asylum procedure. The employees of the Information Centre are responsible for arranging this. At the present moment, there are only 15 staff members working in the Asylum Affairs Division.
OBS! An asylum seeker is only allowed to apply for asylum in one country only. The DubliNet system is used to crosscheck the data in order to ensure this.
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For further information contact the Information Centre:
