Meridian Migration

Latvia work permit: the process, step by step

The usual route from India is the temporary residence permit with the right to employment, in 7 steps. Who applies: your employer, then you. Official decision time: Set by the fee paid: within 30 days, 10 working days or 5 working days (processing starts when PMLP in Riga receives the file).

Checked on
Open. Stricter from 1 Jan 2027

What are the steps for a Latvia work permit?

  1. 1

    Employer self-publishes the vacancy on the NVA CV and vacancy portal and justifies the vacancies.

  2. 2

    Employer assesses NVA-proposed candidates (by the 8th working day) and reports results; NVA issues its opinion within 10 working days.

  3. 3

    Within 1 month of a positive NVA opinion, employer submits an invitation/summons request to PMLP with the employment contract (or draft) and the worker's education documents, electronically signed (fee EUR 10 via latvija.gov.lv e-service, EUR 17 otherwise).

  4. 4

    Worker files residence-permit documents at a Latvian embassy abroad (in India: Embassy in New Delhi, by appointment) or with PMLP if legally in Latvia.

  5. 5

    PMLP decides within the paid timeframe and emails the decision to the worker and employer.

  6. 6

    If approved, worker gets a 90-day long-stay visa to travel, then collects the permit card at PMLP.

  7. 7

    On arrival: declare place of residence, provide a radiologist's report on an X-ray done in Latvia, register with the State Revenue Service.

pmlp.gov.lvchecked 24 Oct 2026pmlp.gov.lvchecked 24 Oct 2026nva.gov.lvchecked 24 Oct 2026em.gov.lvchecked 24 Oct 2026

How long does a Latvia work permit take?

Only the times the government publishes. Where it publishes none, we say so.

Official decision times for Latvia
RouteOfficial decision time
Temporary residence permit with the right to employmentSet by the fee paid: within 30 days, 10 working days or 5 working days (processing starts when PMLP in Riga receives the file).
Long-stay (D) visa with the right to employment (short-term work)Not confirmed .
EU Blue Card (Latvia)10 or 5 working days depending on the fee (older PMLP fee table).

Not confirmed yet

  • How long the vacancy must stay open (PMLP: at least 10 working days; NVA: at least two months on the portal).
  • Maximum length of a D visa for employment and its processing time.

How do appointments work for Latvia in India?

Long-stay (D) visa for employment: VFS Global visa application centres in India, after Hello Verify document verification (visa.helloverify.com). Residence permit: in person at the Embassy of Latvia, B8 Anand Niketan, New Delhi 110021, by appointment only via pieraksts.mfa.gov.lv/en/india.

The Embassy in New Delhi accepts residence-permit files from citizens of India, Bangladesh, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka, and from residents of those countries who hold a residence permit there. Fees are paid by card only and are not refunded on refusal; processing starts when PMLP in Riga receives the file. Nepal, Maldives and Myanmar nationals use the VFS centres in India for D visas; Bangladesh nationals apply at the Embassy.

www2.mfa.gov.lvchecked 24 Oct 2026www2.mfa.gov.lvchecked 24 Oct 2026www2.mfa.gov.lvchecked 24 Oct 2026

Can an agent get you an appointment or a decision faster?

No. Not us, not anyone.

  • From 1 January 2027, according to a law-firm summary of the new Immigration Law, invitations from labour-supply providers and recruiters for elementary jobs (ISCO group 9) will be refused. Our Latvia work therefore focuses on skilled trades and professional roles. cobalt.legalchecked 24 Oct 2026(secondary)
  • The destination authorities decide every application. Anyone who offers to influence that is a reason to walk away.

Where can you check a Latvia application?

On the official systems and pages below. Government pages come first; secondary sources are marked.

  1. 1.Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (PMLP/OCMA) — Employment of foreigners pmlp.gov.lv, checked 24 Oct 2026
  2. 2.PMLP — How to recruit a citizen of another country (short-term and long-term employment steps) pmlp.gov.lv, checked 24 Oct 2026
  3. 3.State Employment Agency (NVA) — Employment of third-country nationals in Latvia nva.gov.lv, checked 24 Oct 2026
  4. 4.Ministry of Economics — Stricter requirements for recruiting foreign labour from 2025 em.gov.lv, checked 24 Oct 2026
  5. 5.PMLP — Necessary subsistence / salary amounts from 1 April 2026 pmlp.gov.lv, checked 24 Oct 2026
  6. 6.PMLP — New regulations on state fees for migration services from 1 January 2025 pmlp.gov.lv, checked 24 Oct 2026
  7. 7.PMLP — State fee for issuing a residence permit (older table citing Cabinet Regulation 557 of 2017) pmlp.gov.lv, checked 24 Oct 2026
  8. 8.Embassy of Latvia in India — Applying for a residence permit (last updated 17 Apr 2024) www2.mfa.gov.lv, checked 24 Oct 2026
  9. 9.EU Immigration Portal — Employed worker in Latvia (last updated 1 Apr 2025) home-affairs.ec.europa.eu, checked 24 Oct 2026
  10. 10.Embassy of Latvia in India — Long-stay (D) visa for employment (last updated 25 Mar 2025) www2.mfa.gov.lv, checked 24 Oct 2026
  11. 11.Embassy of Latvia in India — Applying for a long-stay visa www2.mfa.gov.lv, checked 24 Oct 2026
  12. 12.EU Immigration Portal — Highly-qualified worker in Latvia (EU Blue Card, last updated 1 Apr 2025) home-affairs.ec.europa.eu, checked 24 Oct 2026
  13. 13.Cobalt — New Immigration Law in Latvia: what employers, investors and temporary residence holders need to know (secondary) cobalt.legal, checked 24 Oct 2026

The full rules for every Latvia route, documents and FAQs are on the Latvia work permit page.