With Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine under way and still posing threat to the internal security of Latvia, on 27 June 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to extend restrictions on the entry of the citizens of the Russian Federation into Latvia until 4 March 2024.
Current restrictions on the entry of Russian citizens remain in place. The following categories of Russian citizens will be permitted to enter Latvia by crossing its external border: the holders of a residence permit of a member state of the European Union or the European Economic Area or of the Swiss Confederation; the holders of a long-stay visa of a Schengen Agreement member state; the holders of a short-stay visa of a Schengen Agreement member state who are family members of the nationals of the Republic of Latvia, the European Union, a European Economic Area member state, or the Swiss Confederation; persons whose entry is related to humanitarian considerations; employees of freight and passenger transport service providers, and others.
Restrictions on the entry will still apply to Russian citizens who wish to cross the external border of the EU for the purposes of tourism and leisure.
In September 2022, the Baltic States and Poland made an agreement on a joint regional solution to restrict the flow of the citizens of Russia and prevent security risks. In light of that, on 9 September 2022, the Cabinet adopted Order No 599, “On the entry of the citizens of the Russian Federation into the Republic of Latvia” effective from 19 September 2022 to 30 June 2023.
To prevent a situation whereby the citizens of Russia, having crossed Latvia’s external border, could move freely within the EU and cause threats to Latvia’s internal security, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has produced amendments to the said Order providing for the extension of the period of its duration until 4 March 2024.