Lithuania last year identified 1,721 citizens of Belarus and Russia as posing a threat to national security, public order or public health, the country’s Migration Department said Wednesday.
Based on public and classified information, including data provided by the State Security Department, the agency determined that 1,634 Belarusian citizens posed a threat to national security in 2025.
That figure is nearly three times higher than in 2023, when such decisions were made regarding 598 Belarusians, the department said.
Last year, Lithuanian authorities refused to issue temporary residence permits to 391 Belarusian citizens applying for the first time and declined to renew permits for 1,023 others whose documents had expired. By comparison, in 2024 the figures stood at 232 and 179, respectively, while in 2023, permits were refused to 574 applicants and not renewed for 377.
At the initiative of the Migration Department, valid temporary residence permits were revoked for 214 Belarusian citizens. The number was 175 in 2024 and 462 in 2023.
One Belarusian citizen was denied a permanent residence permit, while five had their permanent permits revoked. In 2024, the corresponding figures were three and nine, and in 2023 seven and eight.
In 2025, authorities identified 87 Russian citizens as posing a threat to national security, fewer than the 125 cases recorded in 2024.
Last year, Lithuania refused to issue temporary residence permits to 14 Russian citizens, down from 35 in 2024 and 75 in 2023. Authorities declined to extend temporary permits for 28 Russians, compared with 36 in 2024 and 88 in 2023, and revoked previously issued temporary permits for 13 others. Those figures stood at 24 in 2024 and 95 in 2023.
Four Russian citizens were denied permanent residence permits when applying for the first time, compared with 16 in 2024 and 10 in 2023. Permanent residence permits were revoked for 28 Russians at the Migration Department’s initiative, roughly in line with 29 cases in 2024 but sharply down from 84 in 2023.
All foreigners deemed a threat were also banned from entering Lithuania.
Since late 2022, all Russian and Belarusian citizens aged 18 and older have been required to complete a special questionnaire when applying for or renewing documents granting the right to live in Lithuania or when seeking a new temporary residence permit.
Applicants must provide information about their education, previous employment, military service, contacts with state institutions of countries outside NATO and the European Union. They are also required to state their views on Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
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