Temporary residence permit for a citizen of Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, New Zealand or South Korea intending to work or engage in other lawful activity in Lithuania
Route status
Active as of 2026-07-01[3]
Open to new applications under the rules recorded below.
| Open only to nationals of | AU, JP, GB, US, CA, NZ, KR as of 2026-07-01[3] Art. 40(1)(16) and art. 49-5: the ground is open only to citizens of Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand and South Korea. A note published in the Register of Legal Acts states that art. 40(1)(16) applies from the end of the transition period set in art. 126 of the 2020 Withdrawal Agreement, which ended on 31 December 2020. |
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Residency route facts
Identity
| Official name (local) | Leidimo laikinai gyventi išdavimas Australijos, Japonijos, Jungtinės Didžiosios Britanijos ir Šiaurės Airijos Karalystės, Jungtinių Amerikos Valstijų, Kanados, Naujosios Zelandijos, Pietų Korėjos piliečiui, kuris ketina dirbti ar užsiimti kita teisėta veikla Lietuvos Respublikoje (49-5 straipsnis) as of 2026-07-01[3] Wording of the article (and, where given, the clause) of the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens that creates the ground. |
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| Official name (English) | Temporary residence permit for a citizen of Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, New Zealand or South Korea intending to work or engage in other lawful activity in Lithuania as of 2026-07-01[3] |
| Legal basis | Law on the Legal Status of Aliens No. IX-2206, art. 49-5, with the grounds provision at art. 40(1)(16) and the general conditions at art. 26 as of 2026-07-01[3] Consolidated text of the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens in force from 1 July 2026. |
| Instrument type | residence permit as of 2026-07-01[3] |
Who can apply
| Nationals not served by this route | EU, EEA, EFTA as of 2026-07-01[3] Chapter IV of the Law on the Legal Status of Aliens governs residence permits for third-country nationals. Citizens of EU, EEA and EFTA member states and their family members exercising the EU free-movement right reside under the Law's separate free-movement regime, so this ground is not open to them. |
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| Minimum age | Not established from a qualifying source No minimum age is stated for this ground in the sources read. |
| Criminal-record condition | Not established from a qualifying source |
Permit terms
| Initial duration | 3 years as of 2026-07-01[3] Art. 49-5(3): the permit is issued and changed for three years, or – where the work or other lawful activity in Lithuania will last less than three years – for the period of that work or activity plus a further 3 months. |
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| How the initial term is set | fixed |
| Renewable | Yes as of 2026-07-01[3] Art. 49-5(1) and (3) provide for issue and change on the same conditions. Art. 50(1)(21) then revokes a temporary residence permit issued on the art. 40(1)(16) ground where the holder's period of unemployment lasts longer than six consecutive months: “21) užsieniečio nedarbo laikotarpis trunka ilgiau negu 6 mėnesius iš eilės, kai leidimas laikinai gyventi buvo išduotas pagal šio Įstatymo 40 straipsnio 1 dalies 16 punktą.”. Art. 50 is the article of revocation grounds, and this is the only one that turns on unemployment. |
| Renewal duration | 3 years as of 2026-07-01[3] Art. 49-5(3). |
| Maximum total duration | Not established from a qualifying source No aggregate ceiling is stated in art. 49-5. |
| Work rights | full as of 2026-07-01[3] Art. 58(13) gives a citizen of one of the seven named states coming to work (including on a posting from an undertaking established in that state) or to engage in other lawful activity the right to work. Art. 62(4) expressly disapplies the single-employer and single-function requirement to holders of permits issued under art. 49-5(1)(1). |
Permanent residence and citizenship
| Counts toward permanent residence | Not established from a qualifying source Not sourced as a property of this ground; the country-level permanent-residence track applies. |
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Requirements
| Job offer required | No as of 2026-07-01[3] Art. 49-5(1) offers three alternative limbs: working under an employment contract or an employer undertaking to employ under one (limb 1); being a participant or manager of an undertaking carrying on the activity stated in its incorporation documents in Lithuania, where the purpose of arrival is work in that undertaking (limb 2); or engaging, or submitting documents showing an intention to engage, in other lawful activity including self-employment (limb 3). Only limb 1 involves an employer. |
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| Salary threshold |
|
| Labour-market test | Not established from a qualifying source The Law states no labour-market test on this ground. |
| Qualification requirement | regulated profession as of 2026-07-01[3] Art. 49-5(2): an alien intending to work or engage in activity in a regulated profession must hold a document confirming that he meets the conditions Lithuanian legal acts set for pursuing it. No general qualification condition applies. |
| Employer sponsorship | No as of 2026-07-01[3] Required only under limb 1, where an employment contract or an employer undertaking is submitted. |
| Job-search route | No as of 2026-07-01[3] The ground requires work, a company role or other lawful activity; it is not a job-search instrument. |
Process
| Where to apply from | either as of 2025-11-02[1] |
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| Statutory processing time | Not established from a qualifying source |
| Fees | |
| Quota |
Physical presence
| maximum consecutive absence | 6 months · to keep the permit as of 2026-07-01[3] |
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Family inclusion
| Family members may be included | Yes as of 2026-07-01[3] Art. 43(1)(2), (5) and (6) provide the family-reunification grounds. Art. 43(6)(2) or 43(6-1) exempts this ground from the two-year prior-residence condition in art. 43(6). Art. 43(6)(2) names the art. 40(1)(16) ground. |
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| Eligible relations | spouse, registered partner, minor child, parent as of 2026-07-01[3] Union of the relations art. 43(1) names: spouse or registered partner (art. 43(1)(5)), a minor alien joining a parent or a parent's spouse (art. 43(1)(2)), and a first-degree direct ascendant relative of a permit holder (art. 43(1)(6)). Art. 43(7) requires both spouses or registered partners to be at least 21. |
| Family may apply at the same time | Yes as of 2026-07-01[3] Art. 40(6): a family member arriving to live with an alien who meets the art. 43(6) and 43(6-1) conditions may apply at the same time, the applications are examined together and decided at the same time, and the family member's permit runs for the same period. Art. 43(6)(2) names the art. 40(1)(16) ground. |
| Family members' work rights | full as of 2026-07-01[3] Art. 58(1): an alien who holds, or applies to change, a temporary residence permit issued on the art. 40(1)(3) family-reunification ground has the right to work in Lithuania. No separate work permit or employer undertaking is required. |
Your next step
Read the requirements above considering your own situation: the income multiple, the absence limits, who you can bring. Check the country record for the reference figure those amounts are calculated from, and for anything that has changed recently.
The next step is your own case. That assessment is legal work. Create profile for our assistance in this.
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Verification
| Sources cited | 3 |
|---|---|
| of which official (tier 1) | 3 |
| Oldest as-of date | 2024-07-11 |
| Newest as-of date | 2026-07-01 |
| Reviewed on | 2026-08-22 |
| Schema version | 1.1 |
Sources
- [1] Lietuvos Respublikos investicijų įstatymas (Law on Investments) No. VIII-1312, consolidated text in force from 2 November 2025
Lietuvos Respublikos Seimas (e-seimas.lrs.lt consolidated-law service) · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2025-11-02 · Accessed 2026-08-17 · Archived copy - [2] Valstybės rinkliavų sąrašas – Leidimai gyventi (state fee schedule for residence permits)
Migracijos departamentas prie Lietuvos Respublikos vidaus reikalų ministerijos · fee schedule · Tier 1 · Published 2024-07-11 · Accessed 2026-08-22 · Archived copy - [3] Lietuvos Respublikos įstatymas dėl užsieniečių teisinės padėties (Law on the Legal Status of Aliens) No. IX-2206, consolidated text in force 1 July 2026 – 31 October 2026
Lietuvos Respublikos Seimas (e-seimas.lrs.lt consolidated-law service) · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-01 · Accessed 2026-08-17