Recently, many Russian citizens have been asking - how can one extend a residence permit?
If you have an "investment residence permit" (based on real estate purchase), there are the following options:
- For example, if your five-year period expires in 2024, there are no restrictions for regular (annual) extension.
You submit the documents, pay the fee, and within the specified timeframe you will receive a decision.
- If you have submitted documents to extend your "five-year period" (that is, extending your temporary residence permit for the next five years), but have not yet received a decision, there are two possibilities:
First - wait for the decision (based on our company's experience, the decision will most likely be negative).
Second - "withdraw" your documents. If a decision has not yet been made, you can withdraw your documents at any time and demand that the fees paid for document review be returned to you!
In this case, you will be able to use your residence permit cards until their expiration date. For example, some of our clients submitted documents for residence permit extension in September 2022, although their cards were valid until August 2023. If you withdraw the documents, you can get the fees back and reassess the situation next year (whether residence permit extension will be allowed or not).
- If you have had a temporary residence permit for five years and have lived in Latvia for four years, we recommend urgently taking a Latvian language exam and submitting documents for a permanent residence permit. This is a relatively stable status.