Latvia orders more than 800 Russian citizens to leave over lack of language skills

Latvia has ordered 841 Russian citizens to leave the country by Oct.13, 2025 because they failed to prove their knowledge of the Latvian language and have not passed mandatory security checks.

Latvia has tightened its migration laws — in 2022 and 2024 — after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, making new regulations for Russian citizens stricter: to stay in the country legally, they must apply for EU long-term resident status, demonstrate knowledge of the Latvian language at A2 level, and undergo security and background checks by June 30, 2025.

The updated legislation has affected around 30,000 Russian citizens. The majority have met the requirements, about 2,600 chose to leave Latvia voluntarily, and 841 failed to submit their documents on time and were ordered to leave.

“Staying in Latvia after Oct. 13, 2025 will be illegal for such persons, and access to social services will be terminated,” Madara Puķe, head of public relations at Latvia’s Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (OCMA), said. “Failure to comply with the requirements without a valid reason may result in forced expulsion by the State Border Guard.”

Amid rising tensions with Moscow, Latvia has recently taken further steps to strengthen national security.

As reported earlier, the Latvian government planned to adopt a decision on the gradual abandonment of Russian as a second foreign language in schools. The intention to abandon Russian in schools in Latvia was announced back in 2022.

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Main image: Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto

Copy editing: Joy Tataryn