The Constitutional Court of Latvia has commenced multiple cases over the regulations that require Russian citizens to present a certificate proving their knowledge of Latvian language to maintain their residence permit. Plaintiffs ask the court to assess the compliance of amendments to the Immigration Law with the Constitution.
While other Saeima deputies exercise in discussions about whether Russian citizens who don’t know Latvian language should be deported from Latvia, former chairman of the Constitutional Court and 14th Saeima deputy Gunārs Kūtris told TV24 programme Ziņu TOP: people who challenge amendments to the law have good chances of winning in court.
«If we look at the regulation accurately, all temporary residence permits will be lost on the 1st of September.
Absolutely all permits will be annulled. Regardless of language levels.
Everyone will have to get it again. More than 20 000 people. 18 000 will have to take a language exam. Only those who are older than 75 years are exempt from taking the exam,» explains Kūtris.
The former chairman of the Constitutional Court says plaintiffs reference Section 1 of the Constitution, which is legitimate expectation. «The transition rules provide that on the 1st of September people will request a new residence permit. This document is issued in accordance with section 34 of the law, which details multiple requirements – such as whether or not a person has sufficient finances.
Does a pensioner who has a pension of EUR 400 have «sufficient finances»? The rules of he Cabinet of Ministers requires finances equal to a minimal wage amount (EUR 620). The other case – these rules say the permit is to be issued to a person who has stayed in other countries for no more than 6 months in the past five years. Did people who received their permits last year know about this requirement being adopted soon?»
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