Lithuanian government approves package to implement EU Migration Pact requirements

The Lithuanian government on Thursday approved a package of legal amendments to transpose the requirements of the European Union’s Migration and Asylum Pact into national law, LRT reports.

The draft, prepared by the Ministry of the Interior, still requires parliamentary approval. It proposes changes to the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens and other legal acts.

Under the proposed amendments, foreigners would be barred from entering Lithuania if EU regulations subject them to screening, border, or return procedures. Asylum seekers would be accommodated in designated facilities without the right to move freely within Lithuania. The State Border Guard Service and the Reception and Integration Agency would conduct the checks.

The interior and social security ministers would define the functions performed during screening, how they are carried out, and how vulnerability assessments are conducted. The draft also stipulates that applicants subject to border or return procedures would be accommodated without the right to free movement.

Ministers would determine the locations, procedures, and conditions for such accommodation, as well as the applicable security and control measures. However, in exceptional cases, individuals could be granted temporary leave from the facilities if their risk of absconding is managed.

The amendments would also replace the terms “refugee” and “asylum” with “international protection.” Asylum seekers would be referred to as “applicants,” and applications for asylum would be termed “requests for international protection.” The concept of family members of international protection beneficiaries would also be defined, with a separate basis for issuing temporary residence permits.

A mechanism for monitoring fundamental rights would be established. A selected non-governmental organisation would oversee compliance in screening and border procedure locations, while the Seimas Ombudsmen’s Office would prepare annual reports and examine related complaints. The Ministry of Social Security and Labour would monitor reception conditions in cooperation with international and non-governmental organisations and public institutions.

The government would make decisions on solidarity measures, the transfer or admission of foreigners on humanitarian grounds. The deadline for the State Security Department, police, or State Border Guard Service to provide conclusions on threats posed by a foreigner to national security, public order, or society would be extended from 28 to 42 calendar days.

The EU has allocated €73.9 million from the Border Management and Visa Instrument and the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund for the implementation of the pact’s measures, with Lithuania contributing an additional 10%. The monitoring mechanism would require €52,000 annually, including €26,000 for a new position at the Seimas Ombudsmen’s Office. Lithuania’s financial contribution to the solidarity reserve would amount to €1.14 million, due by the end of the first quarter of 2027.

Under the EU solidarity mechanism, Lithuania plans to accept 58 migrants currently in Cyprus and pay a €1.14 million fee. Last December, the government decided that Lithuania would accept half of the migrants and pay for the other half under the pact approved by the EU Council in May 2024.