Background information

On 1 July 2022, Law No XIV-1106 Amending Articles 1, 12, 16, 20, 22, 24, 28, 29, 30, 31, 36, 37, 38, 39-1, 40, 44, 46, 47, 48 and 48-1 of Law on Employment No XII-2470 and the Annex to the Law, and Adding Articles 39-2, 39-3 and 48-2 to the Law came into force in Lithuania, providing for the payment of an entry allowance to highly skilled workers recruited from abroad and employed in Lithuania. Skilled Ukrainian workers who have fled the war are also eligible for this allowance. In addition, they are granted more favourable conditions for receiving the one-off entry allowance than foreigners from other countries. The aim of the measure is to attract highly qualified professionals from abroad to cover existing deficits and at the same time to encourage Ukrainians who have fled the war to take up employment in Lithuania.

Content of measure

The amendments to the Law on Employment provide for a one-off payment of €2,993 (4.1 minimum monthly wages (MMW)) to highly skilled foreign workers to partially compensate them for the costs of moving to Lithuania. Ukrainian nationals who have left their country as a result of the Russian military action and who meet all the following conditions are also eligible for the one-off entry allowance:

• they are considered permanent residents of Lithuania in 2022 or later;
• they have permanent employment contracts with their employers for the performance of job functions in Lithuania;
• they receive an average gross wage of at least €1,752 per month (2.4 MMW), if the AW of all employees of the employer was less than €1,752 in the previous calendar year (prior to employment). If the AW of the recruiting employer’s total workforce was higher than 2.4 MMW, then the recruited employee should receive a pay which is at least equal to the AW of the recruiting employer’s total workforce.

There is a higher wage threshold applied to workers from other foreign countries, i.e. their AW should be at least €2,993 (4.1 MMW). In addition, their occupation must be included in the list of shortage occupations in Lithuania having a high value added. This requirement does not apply to Ukrainians.

Ukrainians may apply for the allowance at the PES no earlier than three months (six months for other foreigners) and no later than two years from commencing employment in Lithuania under a non-term employment contract.

A one-off allowance is also granted to employers who have recruited an employee from abroad who meet the mentioned requirements. The amount of the allowance for the employer for each employed person cannot be higher than €5,256 (7.2 MMW)

Use of measure

No information available.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Migrants or refugees in employment	Applies to all businesses	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government Company / Companies Public employment service	National funds

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Unknown	Unknown
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• No involvement
• Main level of involvement: Peak or cross-sectoral level

Involvement

No information available.

Views and reactions

No information available.

Sources

• 09 March 2022: A new entry allowance for foreign recruits and their employers (socmin.lrv.lt)
• 19 May 2022: Law No XIV-1106 of the Republic of Lithuani (www.e-tar.lt)