Population figures
Total country population
2,692,798
Forcibly displaced population
Refugees (under UNHCR's mandate):
46,861
Asylum-seekers:
310
IDPs (of concern to UNHCR):
0
Other people in need of international protection:
0
Other
Statelessness persons
2,283
Host community
0
Others of concern to UNHCR
0
Country context
Lithuania is situated on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, Poland to the south and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad Oblast to the southwest, with a maritime boundary facing Sweden across the Baltic. Refugees and asylum-seekers are from a range of origins. Since 2022, nationals fleeing conflict in Ukraine have accessed Lithuanian protection, while asylum claims continue to be lodged by persons from Belarus, Russia, Syria and Uzbekistan. These individuals reside primarily in community-based reception facilities and private accommodation in urban areas—notably Vilnius, Kaunas and Klaipėda. They are issued temporary identity documents granting freedom of movement and access to education and healthcare.
Lithuania is a party to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol from 1997. Lithuania also became a party to the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons and the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness in 2000 and 2013 respectively. Lithuania is also a party to important international human rights conventions, including the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.
...The Law on the Legal Status of Aliens lays down the foundations of the national asylum system. It provides for two distinct types of legal status afforded to beneficiaries of international protection– refugee status and subsidiary protection. The latter is inter alia granted to persons who may face indiscriminate violence in situations of armed conflict occurring in their country of origin. The Law provides for the lodging and examination of asylum applications at points of entry or designated reception centres. Applicants undergo eligibility interviews, may receive provisional documentation and enjoy protections against removal pending final determination. Appeals against negative decisions are available before administrative courts. In summer 2021, amendments were adopted under an “extraordinary situation” declaration in response to irregular arrivals, introducing new restrictions on entry points, accelerated procedures and limitations on freedom of movement for asylum-seekers. A subsequent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union in 2022 found aspects of these measures at variance with EU asylum standards.
Statelessness in Lithuania is addressed through treaty obligations and domestic provisions within the Aliens Law, which defines “alien” to include stateless persons and provides for residence permits on the same terms as foreign nationals. Naturalization is governed by the Citizenship Law, which requires legal residence, language proficiency and integration. Birth-registration campaigns and outreach to vulnerable communities have been undertaken to strengthen civil-registration coverage and reduce the risk of new cases. Nonetheless, no dedicated statelessness determination procedure or specialist body has been established.
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