Residence permits in Latvia

What you need to know about obtaining a residence permit in Latvia?

Why do I need a Latvian residence permit in particular? Many foreign clients are asking us this question as they are considering various ways of obtaining the status of a European resident.

First of all, Latvia is a convenient place for commercial activities for the foreign entrepreneurs and investors, as it offers many advantages compared to other countries. For instance, due to beneficial geographic location and well-developed infrastructure, Latvia is ideally suited as a transit hub between the EU and the NVS countries, and you can reach any European capital within less than two hours by plane from Riga. Latvia is also convenient for trade related business, based on series of treaties signed with other countries and the use of a single European currency.  Besides, despite the constantly growing and stable economic situation, labour and facility rent costs in Latvia are still one of the lowest in the EU, which ensures particularly favourable conditions for commercial activities in this country. Due to the generally high level of education and qualification of the local human resources, hiring staff is not only beneficial, but is also an effective contribution to the future success of any business.

Second of all, the benefits of residence permit in Latvia are determined not only by perfect conditions for business, but also for permanent residence for entrepreneurs, their employees and families. Latvia has well-developed educational, medical and tourism sectors, which ensures European standard of services to all residents. Besides, the new residents rarely experience language difficulties due to the bilingual local community – the majority of the population can speak both Russian and English besides their mother tongue – Latvian.

Options for obtaining a residence permit in Latvia for investment

Most common ways to obtain residence permit in Latvia are following:

• Purchasing one real estate object in Latvia;
• Applicant for the residence permit is a member of the Board or Council, procurator, representative of the foreign subsidiary or liquidator of the Latvian company;
• Investing into the registered capital of a new or a currently operating company;
• Investing into the subordinated capital of a bank for at least 5 years;
• Applicant for the residence permit is a representative of a foreign company office in the territory of Latvia;
• Signing an employment contract with a local employer.

There are other ways to obtain a Latvian residence permit as well, which you can find out more on by contacting us.

The above ways allow obtaining a temporary Latvian residence permit with the maximum period of 5 years. Upon the expiry of this term, it is possible to obtain permanent residence permit in Latvia by passing the examination of Latvian language before.

Our company helps the clients not only to obtain residence permits in Latvia through business investments, but also ensures full range of services for direct business registration and support. Contact our specialists for advice on obtaining a Latvian residence permit and choosing the best way for this purpose.

Documents required to obtain the Latvian residence permit

1. Completed form;
2. Photo;
3. Certificate of no criminal convictions;
4. Document confirming the availability of the required minimum subsistence means;
5. Document confirming the perspective place of residence in Latvia;
6. Receipt for the payment of the state tax;
7. Documents confirming the rights to obtain residence permit in the Republic of Latvia;
8. Statement on absence of the tuberculosis;
9. Health insurance with a minimum term of a year;
10. Invitation (required only in certain cases).

The standard term for processing of the application for residence permit in Latvia by the Migration Office is 30 days, but the application processing can be reduced to 5 business days by paying a double or triple fee. Citizens of some countries can obtain residence permit in Latvia according to a simplified procedure. Contact our specialists to receive detailed information on this issue.