Lithuania has suspended the acceptance of employment applications from citizens of Central Asian countries

Lithuania has temporarily suspended the acceptance of job applications from citizens of Central Asian countries

Amid an increase in the number of workers coming to Lithuania from Central Asian countries, the country's Migration Department has temporarily suspended the operation of external service centers in this region. It was through these centers that applications for entry and employment in Lithuania were submitted. This was announced by the head of the department, Indrė Gaspere.

According to her, the flow of arrivals from Central Asia has grown significantly in recent years. Due to the large volume of employment applications, the authorities decided to suspend the operation of external centers and stop accepting new applications.

"Taking into account the expectations of both employers and foreigners who would like to find employment, the operation of external centers has been suspended, and applications are no longer being accepted," BNS quotes Gaspere as saying.

According to the Migration Department, as of September 1, nearly 227,000 foreigners held valid residence permits in Lithuania. Of these, about 80,000 were citizens of Ukraine, almost 48,000 of Belarus, and 13,000 each of Russia and Uzbekistan. In addition, there were 9.4,000 citizens of India and 7.4,000 citizens of Tajikistan in the country.

Lithuania has previously restricted the acceptance of documents from countries in the region. Since October 22, 2025, the acceptance of documents at the external service center in Dushanbe was suspended. The Migration Department of Lithuania explained this at the time as a review of employers' needs and the conclusions of competent state authorities.