At the beginning of the year, the Ukrainian community in Latvia was shaken by the news - if you want to stay in Latvia, you will have to learn the Latvian language mandatorily. The word spread online - without an A2 level, they won't even renew the residence permit.
But that’s not entirely true: it is necessary to know it, of course, but for obtaining or renewing a residence permit, as established by law for citizens of Russia and Belarus, it is not required.
The publication on the Ukrainian version of the public media portal LSM caused a reaction on social media. It stated that now, to renew the residence permit for refugees from Ukraine, one must master the Latvian language at least at the A2 level. A period of 2 years is given for this, starting from January 1, 2026.
The news sparked a heated reaction in the Facebook group "Ukrainians in Riga." The discussion quickly turned into a sharp debate, with participants dividing into two camps. Some insisted that since Ukrainians are temporarily in Latvia, it is unreasonable to require them to know the language. Others argued that the future is uncertain, and it is worth learning the language now, especially since it is a way to express gratitude to the country that has taken in refugees.
During the dispute, sharp accusations against Latvia were voiced. One of the most active representatives of the first position was a participant under the nickname PrettyElephant6745, who expressed her arguments in the comments:
"I know I will be stoned for this, but why should I learn the language of a country where I am temporarily staying and which is spoken by no more than 2,000,000 people, and which makes my ears curl... I speak English fluently. Latvia is in Europe; I believe that is enough! Instead of trying to lift the country from the bottom, they come up with nonsense forcing us to learn the language. Isn’t it enough that a significant part of my salary is taken away in taxes for the country’s treasury? Nonsense! And once again, nonsense!"
Many Ukrainians noted that they are not on vacation in Latvia and often simply do not have time to learn the language; they need to work:
"Sorry, I work every day and I don’t have time to learn the language; if I learn the language, I won’t have anything to live on," wrote group member Anna Truskalo. "And when to learn it if you work to survive?!?!??!" echoed Pavel Fyodorov. "I work alone. I have two dependents. We rent an apartment. Work from early morning until late evening. I would love to learn the language for three months. But then there would be no time to work. And who will let us live for free in this apartment for those 4 months, covering food, clothing, hygiene, medicine, and so on?"
