Visas
Visas
Visa authority competent for examining and deciding on applications
At the time of submission of the first application, the applicant is required to appear in person. Decisions on the issuance or refusal to issue a visa, annulment and revocation of a visa are made by diplomatic missions and consular posts of the Republic of Lithuania, which are assigned to perform functions related to the issuance of visas by the order of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Lithuania (in further text - visa authorities). The Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania in Chicago is a competent visa authority for examining the applications and issuing Schengen visas and national visas. Documents can be lodged at:
- directly at the Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania in Chicago (EU citizens’ immediate family members) ;
- through an external service provider – VFS. Global
1. The Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania in Chicago is competent for examining and deciding on an application for a uniform visa if:
a) Lithuanian territory constitutes the sole destination of the visit(s);
b) if the visit includes more than one destination, or if several separate visits are to be carried out within a period of two months, Lithuanian territory shall constitute the main destination of the visit(s) in terms of the length of stay, counted in days, or the purpose of stay; or
c) if no main destination can be determined, Lithuanian external border should be first the applicant intends to cross in order to enter the territory of Schengen Member States.
2. The Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania in Chicago is competent for examining and deciding on an application for a uniform visa for the purpose of transit if:
a) in the case of transit through Lithuania only; or
b) in the case of transit through several Schengen Member States, Lithuanian external border should be first the applicant intends to cross to start the transit.
An application shall be examined and decided on by the visa authority of the Republic of Lithuania in whose jurisdiction the applicant legally resides.
Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania in Chicago shall examine and decide on an application lodged by a third-country national legally present but not residing in its jurisdiction, if the applicant has provided justification for lodging the application at that visa authority.
The Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania in Chicago is a competent visa authority for examining the applications and issuing Schengen visas on behalf of Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Portugal.
For the information on the specific supporting documents, also the time of appointments and other specific information, please refer to the Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania in Chicago.
Lodging an application and supporting documents
Applications shall be lodged no more than six months, and for seafarers in the performance of their duties no more than nine months, before the start of the intended visit, and, as a rule, no later than 15 calendar days before the start of the intended visit. In justified individual cases of urgency, the visa authority of the Republic of Lithuania or the central authorities may allow the lodging of applications later than 15 calendar days before the start of the intended visit.
Each applicant shall submit a manually or electronically completed application form in Lithuanian or English. The application form shall be signed. Persons included in the applicant’s travel document shall submit a separate application form. Minors shall submit an application form signed by a person exercising permanent or temporary parental authority or legal guardianship.
The applicant shall present a valid travel document satisfying the following criteria:
- its validity shall extend at least three months after the intended date of departure from the territory of the Member States or, in the case of several visits, after the last intended date of departure from the territory of the Member States. However, in a justified case of emergency, this obligation may be waived;
- it shall contain at least two blank pages;
- it shall have been issued within the previous 10 years.
The following biometric identifiers of the applicant shall be collected:
- a photograph (according to this sample), scanned or taken at the time of application, and
- 10 fingerprints taken flat and collected digitally.
Where fingerprints as part of an earlier application were collected for the first time less than 59 months before the date of the new application, they shall be copied to the subsequent application. If at the time when the application is lodged, it cannot be immediately confirmed that the fingerprints were collected within the period of 59 months, the applicant may request that they be collected.
The following applicants shall be exempt from the requirement to give fingerprints:
- children under the age of 12;
- persons for whom fingerprinting is physically impossible. If the fingerprinting of fewer than 10 fingers is possible, the maximum number of fingerprints shall be taken. However, should the impossibility be temporary, the applicant shall be required to give the fingerprints at the following application;
- heads of State or government and members of a national government with accompanying spouses, and the members of their official delegation when they are invited by Schengen Member States’ governments or by international organisations for an official purpose;
- sovereigns and other senior members of a royal family, when they are invited by Schengen Member States’ governments or by international organisations for an official purpose.
However, where there is reasonable doubt regarding the identity of the applicant, the visa authority of the Republic of Lithuania shall collect fingerprints within the period of 59 months.
Applicants shall pay a visa fee.
Visa and service fee
1. Applicants shall pay the visa fee for examination of visa application and taking decision on it. The visa fee is not refunded if the visa is refused.
2. The visa fee for applicants from the age of 12 years is EUR 90, payable in the US dollars (March 2025 - USD 94). Children from the age of 6 years and below the age of 12 years shall pay a visa fee of EUR 45, payable in the US dollars (March 2025 - USD 47).
3. The visa fee is waived for applicants belonging to one of the following categories:
- children under 6 years;
- school pupils, students, postgraduate students and accompanying teachers who undertake stays for the purpose of study or educational training;
- researchers, as defined in point (2) of Article 3 of Directive (EU) 2016/801 of the European Parliament and of the Council, travelling for the purpose of carrying out scientific research or participating in a scientific seminar or conference;
- representatives of non-profit organisations aged 25 years or less participating in seminars, conferences, sports, cultural or educational events organised by non-profit organisations;
- holders of diplomatic and service passports;
- family members of a citizen of the European Union or a citizen of a Member State of the European Free Trade Association, where such family members are nationals of third countries, as well as to the family members of citizens of the Republic of Lithuania;
- in cases provided for by the agreement between the European Union and a third country on the facilitation of the issuance of visas.
If application for a visa is submitted at a Visa Application Centre of the external service provider Lithuania cooperates with, a service fee is paid. According to the agreement between Lithuania and VFS Global on cooperation in the performance of the tasks related to Schengen visa applications the standard service fee in the US is 17,90 euro, payable in the US dollars.
Prior consultations
On the grounds of a threat to public policy, internal security, international relations or public health, a Schengen Member State may require the central authorities of other Schengen Member States to consult its central authorities during the examination of applications lodged by nationals of specific third countries or specific categories of such nationals. Such consultation shall not apply to applications for airport transit visas.
| Third countries | Specific categories concerned, if applicable |
| Afghanistan | - |
| Algeria | - |
| Azerbaijan | - |
| Bangladesh | - |
| Belarus | - |
| D.R. Congo | - |
| Egypt | Does not apply to holders of diplomatic and service passports. |
| Eritrea | - |
| Ethiopia | - |
| Iran | - |
| Iraq | - |
| Jordan | - |
| Kazakhstan | Does not apply to holders of diplomatic passports |
| Kenya | - |
| Kirgizstan | - |
| (North) Korea | - |
| Kuwait | - |
| Lebanon | - |
| Libya | - |
| Mali | - |
| Mauritania | - |
| Morocco | - |
| Niger | - |
| Niger | - |
| Nigeria | - |
| Pakistan | - |
| Palestine1 | - |
| Russian Federation | - |
| Rwanda | - |
| Qatar | - |
| Saudi Arabia | Does not apply to holders of diplomatic passports. |
| Somalia | - |
| South Sudan | - |
| Sri Lanka | - |
| Sudan | - |
| Syria | - |
| Tajikistan | - |
| Tunisia | - |
| Turkmenistan | - |
| Uzbekistan | - |
| Vietnam | - |
| Yemen | - |
Category of persons
| Refugees | - |
| Stateless Persons |
- |
1This designation shall not be construed as recognition of a State of Palestine and is without prejudice to the individual positions of the Member States on this issue
Decision on the application
Applications shall be decided on within 15 calendar days of the date of the lodging of an application which is admissible. That period may be extended up to a maximum of 45 calendar days in individual cases, notably when further scrutiny of the application is needed.
Applicants who have been refused a visa receives are notified by means of the standard form on the refusal, annulment or revocation of the visa, stating the reasons for the decision. Applicants have the right to appeal against the decisions to the Vilnius Regional Administrative Court (Žygimantų St. 2, LT-01102 Vilnius, tel .: +370 5 264 8703) within 14 days from the date of the delivery of the decision. In accordance with the procedure established by the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on the Legal Status of Aliens and the Law on Administrative Proceedings of the Republic of Lithuania, an appeal must be lodged in Lithuanian, and documents written in other languages must be translated into Lithuanian and approved in accordance with the established procedure. A stamp duty of EUR 30 must be paid for the appeal (if the appeal is lodged to a court only by electronic means, 75 % of the amount of the stamp duty must be paid).
A decision on a refusal to issue a visa is not a subject of administrative appeal.
Mere possession of a uniform visa or a visa with limited territorial validity shall not confer an automatic right of entry. Visa holders at the external border are required to provide evidence that they fulfil the entry conditions as they set in Article 6 of the Schengen Borders Code.
Cooperation with external service providers
According to the agreement between Lithuania and VFS. Global the latter is entrusted with the performance of the following tasks:
a) providing general information on visa requirements and application forms;
b) informing the applicant of the required supporting documents;
c) collecting data and applications (including collection of biometric identifiers) and transmitting the application to the visa authority of the Republic of Lithuania or the central authorities;
d) collecting the visa fee;
e) managing the appointments for the applicant, where applicable, at the visa authority of the Republic of Lithuania or at the premises of an external service provider;
f) collecting the travel documents, including a refusal notification if applicable, from the visa authority of the Republic of Lithuania or the central authorities and returning them to the applicant.
The examination of applications, interviews (where appropriate), the decision on applications and the printing and affixing of visa stickers shall be carried out only by the Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania in Chicago.
Family members of an EU citizen or a citizen of an EFTA Member State
According to the Article 21 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, every citizen of the Union shall have the right to move and reside freely within the territory of the Member States, subject to the limitations and conditions laid down in the Treaties and by the measures adopted to give them effect. These restrictions and conditions are, among others, set out in Directive 2004/38 / EC13 on the right of citizens of the Union and their family members to move and reside freely within the territory of the Member States. If applicants meet the status of a family member of an EU citizen as laid down in the Directive, the visa authority of the Republic of Lithuania will give them every opportunity to obtain the required visa and provide them with the best conditions to obtain it*, including:
- no visa fee;
- visas are issued as soon as possible (the processing of a visa application for more than 15 days can only be exceptional and duly justified), and an appointment should be made on more favourable conditions than for other third-country nationals;
- a limited list of supporting documents (a proof that there is an EU citizen, from whom certain rights are derived, that the visa applicant is a member of the family of such an EU citizen and that the person applying for a visa accompanies the EU citizen in the host Schengen Member State, or joins him or her there).
* The same conditions also apply to family members of a national of an EFTA (European Free Trade Association) Member State.
Complaints procedure
Applicants may lodge complaints about the he conduct of staff at visa authorities of the Republic of Lithuania and, where applicable, of the external service providers or the application process. In accordance with the Article 2 p. 5 of the 1999 June 17 Law on Public Administration of the Republic of Lithuania No. VIII-1234, a complaint is a written application of a person to a public administration entity, stating that his or her rights or legitimate interests have been violated and asking to defend them. Pursuant to Article 3 p. 8, the complaint shall be lodged to the Consulate General of the Republic of Lithuania in Chicago or directly to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Complaints are examined in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 14 and Section 3 of the Law, decisions on appeals shall be taken within 20 working days. Where, for objective reasons, the complaint cannot be dealt with within that period, the period may be extended, but for no longer than 10 working days. The person shall be notified in writing of the extension within 2 working days and the reasons for the extension shall be indicated.
