Last year, Lithuanian border guards recorded more than a twofold increase in the flow of secondary illegal migration from Latvia, BNS reports, citing the State Border Guard Service of Lithuania.
According to the advisor of the State Border Guard Service Gedrius Mišutis, in 2025, 1,288 migrants were detained after illegally entering Latvia from Belarus and then moving on to Lithuania and Poland. The ultimate goal of these economic defectors is Western Europe, most often Germany. A year earlier, 540 such migrants were detained.
Ideally, these migrants should have been caught and turned back in Latvia. However, they passed by local border guards without hindrance.
Where They Come From
Most of the detained illegal immigrants arriving from Latvia confessed to Lithuanian border guards that they had legally arrived from their countries of origin by plane to Russia with valid travel documents. From there, the migrants traveled by car to Belarus and, with the help of guides, illegally crossed the Latvian border. At a predetermined location, they were met by individuals who were supposed to take them to their destination countries.
Some of the detainees also indicated a route from their countries of origin through the United Arab Emirates or Turkey directly to Belarus.
Among the foreigners caught last year, the majority were citizens of Somalia (459) and Afghanistan (162). Of the 1,288 migrants who followed the so-called "Latvian route" last year, 825 (64%) were detained by Lithuanian border guards, while 436 were detained by Polish border guards.
Such violators are usually returned to Latvia by Lithuanian border guards after the necessary procedures are completed – do with them what you want, just relieve us of the hassle.
In Search of a Better Fate
Of all the detainees, 17% were foreigners who had left their accommodation centers for foreigners in Latvia without permission. Most often, they were detained by Latvian border guards after entering Latvia and then requested asylum.
While their requests were being processed, the offenders were granted the right to move within Latvia. Abusing this, they escaped from the country, planning to move further into target states through Lithuania and the internal borders of the European Union.
The Caravan Leaves by Car
Most often, foreigners illegally left Latvia by car, using the services of carriers, in some cases in groups of several dozen people.
The State Border Guard Service also identified cases where such migrants intended to reach their destination countries by scheduled buses. They used fake or someone else's travel documents, or they had no documents at all (this method was most often used by citizens of African countries).
Ukrainian Guides
Last year, Lithuanian border guards initiated 85 pre-trial investigations regarding the illegal transportation of people across the state border and detained 101 carriers. Among those detained for transporting illegal migrants, the majority were citizens of Ukraine (26), Latvia (24), Lithuania (17), Estonia (11), and other countries.
At the same time, G. Mišutis points out that last year Latvia experienced significant pressure in terms of illegal migration organized by Belarus. This is also related to the trends of secondary illegal migration. Last year, 12,003 migrants attempted to enter Latvia, were detained, and returned to Belarus or were turned back by Latvian border guards on the Belarusian side. In 2024, there were 5,306.
