Work in Lithuania as a foreign doctor, nurse or AHP (2026)

• VASPVTState Accreditation Service for Health Care Activities (VASPVT)

  Recognition of foreign qualifications and practice licences for doctors, dentists, nurses, midwives and other health professions (not pharmacists)

  How to register with the VASPVT

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   1. Confirm that VASPVT handles your profession

   VASPVT recognises regulated professional qualifications under the Ministry of Health, including doctor, dentist, general care nurse and midwife, but not pharmacist or pharmacy technician. Check VASPVT's list of administrative services for the exact service that matches your profession and where you trained, because EU and third-country qualifications follow different procedures.
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   2. Prepare your recognition documents

   VASPVT lists proof of citizenship, documents for any change of name, evidence of the formal qualification gained in a third country, documents showing the length and subjects of your training with credits or hours per subject, evidence of work experience, any other documents on your qualification, and a power of attorney if someone applies for you. The course content document is the one most often missing, so request it from your university early.
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   3. Translate into Lithuanian

   VASPVT requires Lithuanian translations of the documents, certified by the translator's signature or a translation agency's stamp. Its licensing service description also says foreign documents must be legalised or carry an apostille, unless a treaty or EU law says otherwise.
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   4. Apply to VASPVT for recognition

   Submit the application form for recognition of qualifications gained in third countries with your documents. VASPVT's 2023 information sheet gives its email address [email protected] for applications; earlier guidance described submission in person or by post to A. Juozapavičiaus g. 9, Vilnius. We did not find a recognition fee in the official sources we could access.
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   5. Receive the decision within 3 months

   VASPVT decides no later than 3 months after receiving all required documents. The decision is issued as an order of VASPVT's director and can be delivered in person, by email or by post. It either recognises the qualification, refuses it with reasons, or sets a professional aptitude test.
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   6. Pass the aptitude test if one is set

   The aptitude test is the compensatory measure for third-country qualifications in VASPVT's service description. The official pages we could access do not describe its format, frequency or fee, so ask VASPVT for these details when you receive the decision.
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   7. Reach Lithuanian category II

   Government Resolution No. 1688 sets three state language categories, matching CEFR A2, B1 and B2, and applies the second (B1) to health care workers who deal with people constantly. The state language exam is run by the National Education Agency (NŠA), and its online registration requires a Lithuanian personal code.
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   8. Apply for your practice licence

   Log in to LICREG and submit the licence application with your passport, qualification and recognition documents (not needed if VASPVT recognised your qualification), a medical certificate no more than 3 months old and your state language certificate. VASPVT's 2023 information sheet gives the state fee as €45 where a foreign recognition procedure was applied, paid before the licence is issued.
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   9. Get your residence permit

   With a job offer, you apply to the Migration Department for a temporary residence permit or an EU Blue Card, usually through an external service provider in your country. In India, the provider accepts applications only on certain grounds, including highly skilled work and family reunification, so check the provider's page for your country first.

• Lithuania does not use IELTS or OET for health professional licensing. The language requirement is the state language, Lithuanian.
• Government Resolution No. 1688 defines three state language proficiency categories: the first matches CEFR A2, the second B1 and the third B2.
• The second category applies to employees in education, culture, health care, social protection and other fields who must constantly communicate with people or fill in documents at work.
• VASPVT's licensing guidance asks for a state language certificate confirming the second category. Its 2023 information sheet for people arriving from Ukraine allowed them to start with proof that they had begun learning Lithuanian and to submit the certificate within one calendar year of the licence; that concession was written for Ukrainian applicants.
• The categories do not apply to people who completed secondary, post-secondary or higher education in Lithuanian, or who passed the Lithuanian state or native-language school-leaving exam.
• The exam is run by the National Education Agency. Registration through its 'Egzaminai eksternams' system needs a Lithuanian personal code. We could not confirm the exam fee or dates from the pages we could access.

• Temporary residence permit for work

  The Migration Department decides on temporary residence permits. Its fee for examining an application and deciding on the permit is €160 in the general order or €320 urgently, plus €45 (or €90 urgently) to personalise a new permit.

• EU Blue Card

  Work in Lithuania, a platform promoting Lithuania to highly skilled professionals abroad, describes the EU Blue Card as a residence and work permit for highly qualified non-EU citizens, valid for up to 3 years and extendable for a further 3, with the right to bring family and to apply for permanent residence after 5 years. We could not confirm the current salary threshold from an official page we could access.

• Where to apply from abroad

  The Migration Department works through external service providers. In India, since 1 March 2024 the provider accepts applications only for family reunification, highly skilled work, study and research, intra-company transfers and teaching or research contracts, and charges a €90 customer service fee. In the Philippines the provider's fee is €125.

• National (D) visa

  The Migration Department charges €140 to examine an application for a national (D) visa. Family members of EU, EFTA and Lithuanian citizens and children under 16 are among those exempt.

• Changing employer

  A permit for work is tied to your employer and job. The Migration Department charges €100 to examine an application to change employer or job function with the same employer.

• Permanent residence

  The fee for examining an application for a long-term resident's permit to reside in the EU is €160, or €320 urgently. The eligibility conditions are set by the Law on the Legal Status of Foreigners; check them with the Migration Department.

We could not confirm an official, current national pay table for doctors or nurses in Lithuania from a government page we could access. Pay is set by the employer, in public and private institutions alike. Ask for the gross monthly salary, the pay coefficient or band and any supplements in writing before you accept an offer.