Starting Tuesday, the issuance of a unified temporary travel document for citizens of Latvia and citizens of the European Union who are unrepresented in certain countries will begin, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) informed the LETA agency.
The purpose of the temporary travel document remains the same. It will be issued to individuals who are abroad on a short-term trip if their identity document is lost, damaged, or for other reasons has become unsuitable for travel.
Currently, two types of temporary documents are issued — a return certificate for citizens of Latvia and a temporary travel document for EU citizens who do not have an embassy of their country in the respective state.
According to the new rules of the Cabinet of Ministers, from the moment they come into effect, a unified temporary travel document will be issued for both citizens of Latvia and unrepresented EU citizens.
The new document will consist of a form and personalized stickers and will have a higher level of security. It will include space for visas and stamps related to border crossings. As before, a state fee of 50 euros will be charged for the issuance of the new document.
If the applicant is unable to pay the state fee, they can apply for financial assistance at the diplomatic or consular representation of Latvia abroad or at the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Exemption from the state fee is allowed in accordance with international treaties binding on Latvia, in the interests of the state, or for humanitarian reasons — upon submission of a relevant application.
The decision on exemption from the fee is made by the director of the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or an authorized person within one working day from the moment of receiving a conclusion from the competent authority of the state of citizenship regarding the issuance of the temporary travel document.
For citizens of Latvia, the temporary travel document will be issued by the diplomatic and consular representation of Latvia abroad, by the authorized honorary consul of Latvia, as well as by the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. For EU citizens who do not have a representation of their country in the respective state, the document will be issued by the diplomatic and consular representations of Latvia.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs explains that the temporary travel document is issued for the period necessary for the recipient to reach their destination as quickly as possible, taking into account transfer times and overnight stays. The validity period also includes an additional two-day reserve and does not exceed a total of 15 calendar days. Exceeding this period is only allowed in exceptional cases.
