← Lietuva

official translation

official translation official translation THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA LAW ON REFUGEE STATUS IN THE REPUBLIC OF LITHUANIA 4 July 1995, No.I-1004 Vilnius

  1. GENERAL PROVISIONS Article
  2. Purpose of the Law The Law shall establish the conditions and procedure for the provision or denial of refugee status to asylum seekers in the Republic of Lithuania, refugee's rights, duties, and the basis for entrance and deportation. Article
  3. Recognition of Foreigner as Refugee In the Republic of Lithuania a foreigner shall be recognised as a refugee, if he/she has well-founded reasons to fear persecution because of his/her racial origin, religion, nationality, membership in some social group, or political views and cannot, or fears to, enjoy the protection of the country of which he/she is a citizen, or if he/she has no corresponding citizenship and is outside the territory of the country where he/she used to reside, and due to above reasons cannot, or fears to, return home. Article
  4. Right of Foreigner to Apply for Asylum and Obtain Refugee Status in the Republic of Lithuania A foreigner shall have the right to apply for asylum and use the Republic of Lithuania as asylum country, and obtain refugee status under the conditions and according to the procedure provided for in this Law. Article
  5. Reasons Preventing Foreigners from Enjoying Asylum in the Republic of Lithuania A foreigner shall not enjoy the right to use the Republic of Lithuania as asylum, if: 1) there are sound reasons to assume that he/she has committed a crime against peace, humanity, or a military crime, as said crimes are defined in international documents; 2) he/she is accused of an actual non-political crime or if the judgement for a crime or action committed by him/her, which contradicts the objectives and principles of the United Nations, has come into force; 3) there are sound reasons to believe that he/she constitutes a threat to the security of the Republic of Lithuania, or a danger to its society; 4) he/she possesses the citizenship of several countries and without sound reasons does not avail him/herself of the protection of a country of which he/she is a citizen; 5) asylum has been given to him/her in another country, the help and protection of which he/she has enjoyed; 6) he/she has come from the country in which he/she could have received asylum; 7) he/she has a very dangerous infectious illness or does not agree to a medical examination under the suspicion that he/she has one; 8) he/she refuses to furnish information about him/herself or provides information that is clearly erroneous about the circumstances of his/her entrance into the Republic of Lithuania; 9) his/her request for refugee status was denied earlier under the procedure and conditions of the present Law, and there is no additional information included in his/her new request; and 10) he/she could enter the Republic of Lithuania under the procedure and conditions of the Immigration Law. If it emerges that a foreigner has no entrance documents and cannot use the Republic of Lithuania as an asylum according to this Law, he/she is not allowed to enter the territory of the Republic of Lithuania. The decision not to allow a foreigner to enter the territory of the Republic of Lithuania shall be adopted according to laws of the Republic of Lithuania in the procedure established by the Government. Article
  6. Foreigner with no Right to Receive Refugee Status in the Republic of Lithuania A foreigner shall not be provided with refugee status in the Republic of Lithuania, if: 1) he/she uses the assistance and enjoys the protection provided by United Nations organisations, other than the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees; 2) the competent authorities of the country where he/she resides acknowledge the rights and duties related to the citizenship of said country; and 3) there are sound reasons to believe that prior to receiving asylum in the Republic of Lithuania he/she committed a serious non-political crime, or is accused of activity that contradicts the objectives and principles of the United Nations. Article
  7. Denial of the Right to Refugee Status The right to refugee status shall be denied, if: 1) a foreigner of his/her own free will has enjoyed the protection of a country of which he/she is a citizen; 2) he/she regains, of his/her own free will, the lost citizenship; 3) he/she has acquired a new citizenship and enjoys the protection of the country of which he/she is a citizen; 4) he/she, of his/her own free will, has returned to the country that he/she left or remained outside its territory fearing persecution; 5) he/she cannot refuse to enjoy the protection of the country of which he/she is a citizen, because the circumstances under which he/she was recognised as a refugee have changed; 6) as a person without any citizenship he/she can return to the country which earlier was his/her permanent place of residence, because the circumstances under which he/she was recognised as a refugee have changed; and 7) he/she has received refugee status in the Republic of Lithuania by dishonest means. The provisions of Items 5 and 6 of this Article shall not apply to refugees if they have sufficient sound reasons relating to the former persecution and refuse to return to the country which was his/her permanent place of residence. The provisions of Item 7 of this Article shall not apply to refugees if the information furnished by the foreigner does not influence significantly the decision to award refugee status. Article
  8. Admittance of Foreigner who Wishes to Obtain Refugee Status, to the Territory of the Republic of Lithuania A foreigner who wishes to obtain refugee status shall be admitted to the territory of the Republic of Lithuania through the border control posts according to laws of the Republic of Lithuania in the procedure established by the Government. Article
  9. Inapplicability of Liability for Illegal Entrance A foreigner shall not be held liable for illegal entrance and stay, if he/she comes to the Republic of Lithuania from a country where his/her life or freedom has been exposed to danger as provided for in Article 2 of this Law, and introduces himself/herself to officers of institutions of local authorities or town (regional) police within 48 hours. Article
  10. Prohibition on the Deportation or Return of a Refugee A foreigner who seeks to receive refugee status in the Republic of Lithuania shall not be deported or returned from the Republic of Lithuania to the country he/she left, if his/her life or freedom is exposed to danger as provided for in Article 2 of this Law. This provision shall not apply to persons provided for in items 1-3 of Article 4 of this Law. Article
  11. Deportation of Foreigner A foreigner who has no right to enjoy asylum in the Republic of Lithuania and obtain refugee status according to this Law, can be deported from the Republic of Lithuania only on the basis provided for in laws of the Republic of Lithuania. The Minister of the Internal Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania shall adopt the decision concerning deportation. The foreigner or a representative authorised by him/her shall be entitled to court appeal against a decision in favour of deportation made by the Minister of the Interior, no later than 14 days after being notified of that decision. The court shall give its ruling no later than 10 days after receiving the request for appeal. The judgement of the court shall be final and cannot be appealed. The procedure for deportation shall be set by the Government according to laws of the Republic of Lithuania.
  12. PROCEDURE FOR PROVIDING REFUGEE STATUS Article
  13. Request of Foreigner for Refugee Status and Provision of Temporary Asylum A foreigner shall file his/her request for refugee status in writing or in oral form at the border control post of the Republic of Lithuania. A request on behalf of under-age children shall be filed by their parents, legal guardians or an authorised representative of the institution for protection of children's rights. A request made in oral form shall be recorded. Information about the filing of the request shall remain confidential, unless otherwise desired by the person submitting the request. Having established that, according to Article 4 of this Law, there are no reasons barring the use of the Republic of Lithuania as an asylum, the foreigner shall be provided with temporary territorial asylum, while the request for refugee status in the Republic of Lithuania is examined, or until he/she obtains a permit to enter another country. A document certifying the temporary asylum shall be issued. This document, at the request of the foreigner, provides for free travel to the refugee centre. Travel expenses shall be covered by the refugee centre. In the procedure established by the Government according to laws of the Republic of Lithuania, restrictions of movement can be imposed on a foreigner who has received temporary territorial asylum. Refugee centres shall be established to settle foreigners who have received temporary asylum. The refugee centres shall be founded, reorganised or liquidated by the Ministry of Social Security and Labour or, upon the approval of the Government of Lithuania, by the Red Cross Society. Funds shall be allotted from the State Budget of the Republic of Lithuania to maintain the refugee centres. The Government of the Republic of Lithuania shall support the founders of the refugee centres, which also have the right to benefit from the support of other countries, international organisations or foreign private persons. A person who has entered the country legally and is within the territory of the Republic of Lithuania shall submit a request for refugee status to the town (regional) police commissariat. A foreigner who has submitted a request for the refugee status at the border control post must go the refugee centre without delay. In exceptional cases, for the sake of public interest, the foreigner shall be escorted to the refugee centre. Article
  14. Time Limits for Examination of a Request for Refugee Status A request for refugee status shall be examined within 6 months of the request being filed. Article
  15. Rights and Duties of the Foreigner while the Request for Refugee Status is Examined A foreigner requesting refugee status, while his/her request is being examined, shall: 1) be exempt from payments and taxes related to processing of documents concerning the request for refugee status; 2) use the services of an interpreter free of charge; 3) live in the refugee centre free of charge and use the services offered by it; 4) use medical services free of charge; and 5) every month obtain a money allowance for minor expenses. The duties of a foreigner requesting refugee status, while his/her request is being examined shall be as follows: 1) to live in the refugee centre and obey laws of the Republic of Lithuania and the established procedure of the refugee centre; 2) to allow a doctor to examine him/her according to the form established by the Ministry of Health Care; and 3) to take an active role in settling affairs related to the request for refugee status. The procedure for offering services set forth in item 3 of Paragraph 1 of this Article and determining the amount of the allowance set forth in item 5 of this Article shall be established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. Article
  16. Provision of Refugee Status and Personal Documents Refugee status shall be provided or denied by the Minister of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania. The document certifying refugee status shall be issued to the foreigner by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. At the refugee's request, the Ministry of Internal Affairs shall issue a travel document for trips outside the boundaries the Republic of Lithuania. In cases where sound reasons of national security or public order prevent a foreigner who has obtained refugee status from travelling abroad, the Ministry of Internal Affairs may not issue the travel document on the basis established by laws of the Republic of Lithuania. The procedure for issuing of the travel document to the refugee shall be set by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania, in cases set forth in items 1-7 of Article 6 of this Law, shall take decisions concerning the revocation of refugee status. The decisions of the Minister of Internal Affairs concerning the provision or denial of refugee status to foreigners can be examined once again by the Council of Refugee Affairs set forth in Article 15 of this Law. Article
  17. Appeal Against Refusal to Provide Refugee Status A foreigner can appeal against a refusal to provide refugee status within 14 calendar days of receiving the decision to the Council of Refugee Affairs. One member of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania of the Committee on Health Care, Social Affairs and Labour, and the Committee on Human and Civil Rights and Ethnic Affairs, as well as representatives of the Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Social Security and Labour, Ministry of Health Care, Ministry of Education and Science, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Red Cross, and the Centre of Human Rights shall be appointed to the Council of Refugee Affairs. On the recommendation of the Minister of Social Security and Labour, the composition of the Council of Refugee Affairs and its terms of reference shall be approved by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. The Council of Refugee Affairs must investigate the foreigner's complaint within 10 calendar days of receiving it. The decisions made by the Council of Refugee Affairs to satisfy the foreigner's complaint shall be final. The foreigner can appeal in court against a decision of the Council of Refugee Affairs not to provide refugee status within 14 days of being notified of this decision. The court must investigate the foreigner's complaint within 10 calendar days of receiving it. The decisions made by the court to satisfy or deny the foreigner's complaint shall be final and cannot be appealed. During the investigation of the appeal the foreigner shall use the Republic of Lithuania as a temporary asylum. Article
  18. Adaptation and Naturalisation of Refugee, and Provision of Humanitarian Aid According to the procedure established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania the refugee shall have the opportunity to learn the Lithuanian language and familiarise himself/herself with the principles of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania, and his/her own rights and duties. The naturalisation shall be implemented according to the procedure and conditions established by laws of the Republic of Lithuania. The refugee may make use of humanitarian aid. Legal and natural persons of the Republic of Lithuania shall establish a humanitarian aid fund for refugees. The activity of the funds can be supported by other states, international organisations and foreign private persons. Article
  19. Rights, Duties and Liability of Refugee A refugee in Lithuania shall enjoy all the rights pertaining to foreigners, which are established in international agreements and laws of the Republic of Lithuania The refugee must obey laws and other legal acts in effect, and shall be liable for their violations under laws of the Republic of Lithuania.
  20. FINAL PROVISIONS Article
  21. Quota for Acceptance of Refugees On the recommendation of the Government, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania shall each year establish a quota for the acceptance of refugees. Article
  22. Co-operation with International Organisations The Republic of Lithuania, while solving the problems of refugees and the issues related to quotas for their acceptance, shall co-operate with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and other institutions, shall create conditions to fulfil their obligations and supervise the compliance with the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees in the Republic of Lithuania, shall furnish necessary information and statistical data on refugees, implementation of the Convention and the Protocol, and effective or coming into force standard acts concerning refugees. Refugees and asylum seekers shall be entitled to appeal to representatives of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, who are in turn allowed, upon the request of refugees and asylum seekers, to contact them immediately. As an exception to the confidentiality provided for in Article 11 of this Law, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees shall be provided with information about requests for asylum. Article
  23. International Agreements Refugee problems may be solved by signing bilateral and multilateral international agreements, the provisions of which must not contradict international documents relating to refugee status. If international agreements signed by the Republic of Lithuania set forth provisions that differ from the present Law, the provisions of the international agreement shall be applied. Article
  24. Registration of Refugees The registration of refugees shall be conducted according to the procedure established by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. Article
  25. Procedure for Implementation of the Law The procedure for implementation of this Law shall be established by the Resolution of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania concerning the Implementation of the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Refugee Status in the Republic of Lithuania. I promulgate this Law enacted by the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC ALGIRDAS BRAZAUSKAS

🔗 Į oficialų šaltinį

DI paaiškinimas pagal oficialų įstatymo tekstą. Orientacinis, nepakeičia teisinės konsultacijos.