Several thousand people gathered in Cathedral Square in Vilnius on Sunday to protest a proposed nationwide property tax.
Demonstrators from across Lithuania waved national and municipal flags and carried signs reading, “What’s next – a weather tax?”, “Selling out Lithuanian people for European millions”, and “My home is my fortress”.
Two large screens were set up near the monument to Grand Duke Gediminas, showing clips from television reports about the property tax ahead of the event’s official start.
“Instead of collecting taxes from oligarchs, they are targeting ordinary people,” protest organiser Raimondas Šimaitis told journalists. “Our clear demand is that primary residences must not be taxed, because they were purchased with money on which we have already paid taxes – including taxes on our loans.”
“Your home should be absolutely untouchable,” he added.
Member of Parliament Valius Ąžuolas attended the protest, along with representatives from the Nemunas Dawn party, which is part of the ruling coalition.
Some 4,000 participants
After the end of the rally, at around 18:00, Vilnius Police Public Order Division head Jevgenijus Liepis said it had passed without any major incidents.
“Everything went smoothly, no violations were recorded, the participants expressed their opinions in a civilised manner – everything was quite friendly and good,” Liepis told BNS on Sunday afternoon.
According to him, one protester felt sick at the rally and needed medical assistance. Moreover, a rubbish bin caught fire.
According to police estimates, around 4,000–4,500 people took part in the rally.
‘We are not under attack’
Speaking to BNS, Janina, a working pensioner who travelled from Lentvaris, said that Lithuania’s tax system needs no changes.
“Our whole tax system is a mess,” she said. “Salaries are among the lowest, pensions are among the lowest, and now they want to raise taxes.”
Stasys, a middle-aged Klaipėda resident working abroad, said he opposed the property tax because “soon we’ll have to pay for everything”.
“We already pay VAT, fuel taxes, road taxes,” he said. “And our roads are terrible.”
Under the government’s proposal, half of the revenue from the new property tax would be directed to a national defence fund, with the rest going to municipalities.
“We are not under attack,” said Stasys. “It’s the government that’s attacking us.”
Meanwhile, 67-year-old Vilnius resident Vidas told BNS he generally supported the changes but insisted that all funds collected should be used strictly for defence.
“It must go purely to defence,” he said.
Asta Šalvaitienė, 49, said she feared that although the tax amounts would be small at first, “the value of property will be reassessed every few years, and the taxes will increase”.
Signatures collected against tax
A tent was set up at the edge of Cathedral Square to collect signatures opposing the tax. Before the rally started, a long line had already formed.
One of those signing was 47-year-old Remigijus Kaminickas, originally from Šakiai and currently working in the United Kingdom. He said the proposed tax violates Lithuania’s Constitution.
“A person’s home is inviolable. It seems the Constitution doesn’t apply to those in power,” he said.
Šimaitis said the signatures would be used to organise a petition for a legislative amendment in the parliament.
“Once we have the signatures, we’ll notify everyone and gather the 50,000 needed to submit the amendment to the parliament,” Šimaitis said. “I look forward to looking every MP in the eye who votes against it.”
“And I promise that before the next election, every MP who votes for taxing homes will see their posters on every lamppost,” he added.
Not the first protest
Under the Finance Ministry’s proposal, a tiered tax structure would be implemented for residential other non-commercial properties valued over the threshold of €40,000:
- 0.1% for property value between €40,000 and €200,000
- 0.2% for value up to €400,000
- 0.5% for value up to €600,000
- 1% for any value above that
To reduce the burden on primary homeowners, a 50% reduction in the tax amount would apply to the portion of home value up to €450,000. Additional breaks would apply to families with at least three children.
Further reading
Finance Minister Rimantas Šadžius has said that the real estate tax for a family with an apartment worth around €250,000 would amount to €7 per month.
Currently, property is taxed progressively at 0.5% to 2%, but only on homes valued above €150,000. A very small proportion of homeowners pay the tax.
Šimaitis organised a similar protest in autumn 2023 when the previous government considered a similar tax proposal. At that time, about 3,500 people gathered outside the parliament, according to police estimates.
Šimaitis is a regular protest organiser and has drawn law enforcement attention in the past. In 2024, he burned a fabric resembling an LGBTQI flag during a pride march. An investigation was launched but later dropped after authorities determined there were no grounds for criminal charges.
In 2023, police also collected information about a similar incident during a protest outside the parliament but ultimately decided not to open an investigation.
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