Lithuania’s Interior Minister has proposed banning foreign students from working as self-employed individuals, noting that some use student visas to obtain residence permits rather than to pursue an education.Tanjid, a second-year student at Vilnius College who came from Bangladesh, told LRT that he combines his studies with work. He knows his lecture schedule, and if there are only one or two lectures a day, balancing the two is easy. At the same time, it is quite difficult to find a job with a standard employment contract while studying. Tanjid worked a full-time warehouse job over the summer, but found it hard to juggle once classes resumed, so he quit. However, he emphasized that he came to Lithuania to study and works only to earn extra money.According to data from the Lithuanian Migration Department, temporary residence permits have currently been issued to more than 230,000 foreign nationals. Only 5%—or 12,000 individuals—came to study. The majority of international students come from Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Morocco, and Belarus.Interior Minister Martynas Katelynas noted that some students seek entry into Lithuania primarily to work rather than to study. Foreign students reportedly exploit the system, attending only enough lectures to maintain their residence permits. Employers and universities also benefit from the current arrangement, as higher enrollment numbers generate additional revenue for educational institutions. Meanwhile, lecturers report that some migrants show up only to take exams and demand passing grades to avoid having their residence permits revoked. The minister aims to bar foreign students from obtaining self-employed status, which allows for more flexible working arrangements than standard employment contracts.He stated that while European Union directives prevent Lithuania from completely banning foreign students from working, the regulation of self-employed status falls within national jurisdiction.Last year, the Migration Department inspected higher education institutions and identified instances where students were absent from classes they were required to attend. It was also revealed that educational institutions had failed to report in a timely manner when a student suspended their studies—a circumstance that can serve as grounds for revoking a residence permit.Lithuanian Member of Parliament Eugenijus Gentvilas questioned whether the restrictions imposed on foreign students were justified, given that international students make up a very small fraction of the total immigrant population. Gentvilas stated that the educational institutions where violations were found should be named. He argued that applying such restrictions to students was unnecessarily harsh on higher education institutions, especially considering that these institutions are required to admit foreign students.Indrė Gasperė, Director of the Migration Department, said that educational institutions have begun reporting student violations more diligently. The Migration Department must be notified of any changes affecting students, including instances where a student has stopped studying or failed to earn the required number of credits; failure to report such matters carries the risk of a fine.Universities also report that the situation has improved.At the private Kazimieras Simonavičius University, approximately two-thirds of the students are foreign nationals. University representative Edgaras Genys stated that attendance has improved and the number of violations has decreased following the tightening of regulations. Such incidents had occurred in previous years when rules were more lenient and admission criteria lower. However, Genys warned that restricting employment opportunities could make Lithuania less attractive to international students.The Lithuanian University Rectors’ Conference also opposes the restrictions proposed by the Minister of the Interior. Alvidas Šarlauskas, a representative of the association, stated that they do not want students in Lithuania to be at a disadvantage compared to international students in other countries.Katelynas insisted that if the changes are implemented, students will still be able to work under standard employment contracts. In practice, however, this would be nearly impossible, as employers are reluctant to sign standard employment contracts with students or to hire them for part-time work.Read the full article in English here: https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/3081146/lithuanian-minister-proposes-to-ban-self-employment-for-foreign-students
Lithuanian Minister proposes banning self-employed status for foreign students
