At a glance
If you have a qualifying job offer from a Lithuanian employer, you may apply for temporary residence to live and work there. Your employer must take part in the application. Highly qualified jobs may instead fit the separate EU Blue Card route.
- Employer
- A Lithuanian employer supporting the application
- Job
- Qualifying full-time work for at least six months
- Limits
- A foreign visa or permit generally does not authorize local work
Summary
Lithuania’s ordinary employee residence route lets a foreign worker live there for a particular full-time job. The Lithuanian employer supports the required residence application. Another country's permit or a visitor stay generally does not authorize this employment. Keep lawful status while applying; submitting a file does not repair an expired right to stay or work.
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Check the job and quota-related pay rules Confirm the qualifying Lithuanian employer and employment terms.
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Arrange the mediation letter and evidence Prepare the employment, qualifications, and personal records.
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Apply through MIGRIS and the appointment process Confirm when work can lawfully begin under the resulting permission.
A tourist stay or job offer alone does not authorize ordinary local employment.
Eligibility
EEA means the EU countries plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.
- You are outside the EU/EEA/Swiss free-movement system and have a qualifying employment arrangement.
- The planned job is full-time and lasts at least six months. The employer must check the applicable qualification, experience, and employment requirements in MIGRIS.
- The employer can provide the required mediation letter and meet its own compliance obligations.
- The job satisfies the applicable quota and salary rules. From September 1, 2026, new mediation letters must commit to at least 1.2 times the official average gross wage, or 1 times that wage for a listed high-value shortage occupation. The August notice gives examples of €2,893.68 and €2,411.40 respectively; check for later changes.
- You can lawfully submit the application and meet the residence-document requirements. Russian nationality can restrict filing even when another citizenship is held.
What This Route Allows
Approval permits residence and the employment authorized under the permit. Follow the rules on changing employer or duties and apply for renewal in time. Family residence must be assessed separately.
What This Route Is Not
This is not an unrestricted work permit or a way to begin local employment on a tourist stay. Since July 2024, Lithuania generally requires its own residence permission for this work; another state’s permit is not enough. An application alone does not cure an expired right to stay or work.
Next Steps
- Have the employer check the job and current quota-related pay rules.
- Arrange the mediation letter and gather employment and personal evidence.
- Apply through MIGRIS and the appropriate appointment channel.
- Confirm when work may legally begin.
Stay up to date on this pathway
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Hong Kong
Hong Kong Skilled Employee Residence
Hong Kong's skilled employment route is for professionals with a confirmed local job that uses their education, technical skills, or substantial relevant experience.
Ireland
Ireland Intra-Company Transfer Permit
A non-EEA senior manager, key employee, or trainee may transfer temporarily from an overseas company to a connected Irish entity under an Intra-Company Transfer Employment…
Netherlands
Netherlands Company Transfer Residence Permit
Managers, specialists, and trainee employees may be able to transfer from a company outside the EU to a Dutch branch under the EU intra-corporate transferee route.
Sources
- Migration Department employment update — Lithuanian permission and limits on working with foreign documents.
- September 2026 application rules — quota-related salary commitments.
- MIGRIS — case-specific employment checklist.
- Nationality restriction — Russian and dual-national filing rules.