Asylum in Latvia: procedure and rights

Latvia grants refugee status to a person with a well-founded fear of persecution in the country of nationality or former residence because of race, religion, nationality, membership of a social group or political opinion. Alternative status is for a person who faces serious harm there, such as the death penalty, torture or degrading treatment, or danger from war. OCMA states that leaving a country only because of unemployment or poverty is not a ground for either status. An asylum seeker may withdraw and return home at any time.

The application must be made in person to the State Border Guard: at a border crossing point or in the airport transit zone on arrival, or at a Border Guard unit if you are already in Latvia. In Riga the Border Guard receives applicants at Ieriķu iela 15, by phone appointment on 6707 5732 on working days or 6732 3994 outside working hours. You can also express the wish for asylum to OCMA, the State Police or a place of detention; they inform the Border Guard within three working days. The Border Guard checks identity and travel documents, takes fingerprints from age 14, records why you need protection, interviews you with an interpreter and issues an asylum seeker’s identity document. Unaccompanied minors get a guardian appointed by the state.

The Asylum Affairs Division of OCMA first assesses whether Latvia or another state is responsible. If you applied in another EU member state or hold a visa or residence permit issued by one, OCMA contacts that state under the EU rules on responsibility. Claims are not examined in substance if another state has already granted protection, if you have another first country of asylum, if you came from a safe third country, or if you apply again without new circumstances. Otherwise OCMA holds a personal interview and decides within three months of it; in some cases the procedure can last up to 15 months from the application.

Refugees receive a permanent residence permit, registered every five years, a travel document, the right to work and immediate family reunification. Persons with alternative status receive a temporary permit for one year and then two years, renewed while the grounds continue and requested from OCMA one month before expiry, a travel document if their own state cannot issue one, the right to work and family reunification after two years. Both groups may receive one-off support from OCMA of EUR 278 per adult and EUR 194 per minor, applied for in person within one month of the decision, and a monthly benefit from the State Social Insurance Agency of EUR 139 per adult and EUR 97 per minor, for 10 months for refugees and 7 months for alternative status. First travel documents and permits are free of charge.

The asylum seeker’s document confirms your status and your right to stay in Latvia, but it cannot be used to travel to other countries. If you are not detained you may live in the accommodation centre for asylum seekers in Mucenieki, about 17 km from Riga, or at your own expense elsewhere, telling the Border Guard your address. OCMA’s guide states that residents of the centre without means receive food and a daily allowance of EUR 3.00 per person. If no final decision has been made within three months of your application, you may work until the final decision, after the right has been noted in your asylum seeker’s document by the Border Guard. Detention is possible in limited cases, for example to establish identity or nationality or during a transfer to another member state.

A decision refusing refugee and alternative status can be appealed to the Administrative District Court. OCMA’s guide gives a short deadline counted in working days from the decision’s entry into force, so read the instructions at the end of the decision carefully. During the appeal the state provides free legal aid to a limited extent if you lack means, requested through a questionnaire filed with OCMA; you may also hire a lawyer at your own expense at any stage. Decisions of the Border Guard on legal aid and interpretation can be challenged at the district court.

OCMA publishes a guide for asylum seekers in 14 languages and leaflets on each stage of the procedure. The OCMA Asylum Affairs Department answers questions on travel documents, permits, reunification and support on +371 67219678 and +371 67219667. UNHCR covers Latvia from its regional office for Northern Europe.