In Latvia, the Citizenship and Migration Board sent 3255 letters about the expiration of residence permits to those Russian citizens who have not applied for permanent EU resident status.
Source. The head of the department, Maira Roze, told about this in the LTV Rīta panorāma program, The Insider reports.
Earlier, the department reported that by September 1, 2023, 3541 Russian citizens had not applied for EU permanent resident status or had not signed up for a second Latvian language exam, and therefore must leave the country by November 30, 2023.
As The Insider wrote, according to the law in force as of September 1, 2023, Russian citizens who have received a permanent residence permit in Latvia but have not confirmed their knowledge of the Latvian language at the A2 level (the upper level of the beginner level, i.e., language proficiency sufficient for basic everyday communication) will lose their residence permits.
However, this does not apply to all Russians, but only to those who previously held Latvian citizenship or the status of a non-citizen of Latvia and renounced it in favor of Russian citizenship. In addition, they are entitled to a second attempt to take the exam by the end of November 2023.
If the second attempt is unsuccessful, the Russians can try to "obtain a visa or temporary residence permit."
In total, 13,147 Russian citizens registered for the Latvian language exam, and 11,301 people took it. The first-time pass rate was 39%, and more than 6,500 people signed up for retakes.
Background. Earlier it was reported that Latvia would expel almost 4,000 Russians who failed the state language exam.