Yesterday, on February 1, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Lithuania cancelled the temporary residence permit previously granted to Aliaksandras Macijevičiis, a Belarusian citizen.
Through a statement, the Ministry also announced that the decision is based on the determination that Macijevičius does not meet the eligibility criteria for obtaining a temporary residence permit within the Republic of Lithuania.
Furthermore, the Department of State Security was informed about the case of the Belarusian citizen. If the investigations reveal any potential threat Macijevičius poses to the security of the state, the authorities will consider imposing a ban on his entry into Lithuania.
According to details provided by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the person mentioned above first entered Lithuania by crossing the internal border of the European Union through Poland, using a national visa from another EU member state.
Before issuing or changing a residence permit in the Republic of Lithuania, the Migration Department consults with the competent authorities of the state.
As the Ministry further explains, in November 2022, when issuing a temporary residence permit for the Belarusian citizen Macijevičius, there was no information to suggest that this individual could potentially threaten the state’s security.
In response to the current circumstances, the same has instructed the State Border Guard Service to increase their control of Belarusian citizens transiting through the state border of Lithuania.
At the same time, the Migration Department has been instructed to conduct more thorough assessments of Belarusian citizens who have either received or applied for a temporary residence permit within the Republic of Lithuania for employment reasons. This proactive measure is intended to strengthen national security considerations in light of the evolving situation.
Recently, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Lithuania intends to prolong the existing visa issuance and screening restrictions applicable to Russian and Belarusian citizens entering the country.
The current restrictions for citizens of these two countries will remain in force until May. After the end of this period, the Ministry is seeking to extend the measures for an additional year until 2025. In addition to the extension, it has presented a proposal to tighten some restrictions, especially for Belarusian citizens.
Under the newly introduced proposal, Belarusian citizens entering Lithuania with a Schengen visa will be subject to a comprehensive risk assessment. In the proposed procedure, the Lithuanian authorities are set to conduct thorough checks on Belarusians entering the country. The objective is to assess whether these individuals pose potential threats to Lithuania’s internal security, public order and international relations.
