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LATVIA
Comparable to the French legislation, the Latvian law also imposes “double penalization”.
According to Article 43 of the Criminal Code, a foreigner may be sentenced for a criminal
offence and be additionally expelled, after he/she has served the sentence.
Trafficking in human beings is punished in Latvia with a penalty of up to ten years and the
confiscation of property for the illegal transfer of persons over the border. Latvia has ratified the
UN Protocol against trafficking. Assistance to trafficking victims is not specified in legislation,
but is often rendered as witness assistance. In reality, almost no assistance to trafficked victims
is available, or is generally provided only by IOM and some NGOs.
Carrier Liability
Under the new Immigration Law (Section 21), carriers bringing in passengers, who have no
right to enter or transit Latvia, may be requested by an official of the State Border Guard to
return the aliens concerned to the country of origin or to a third country.
Expenses related to the detention, custody and expulsion of an alien are to be covered by the
carrier. Procedures for determining and recovering such expenses shall be determined by the
Cabinet (Section 21 (3)).
1.3 ADMINISTRATIVE AND PROCEDURAL ARRANGEMENTS
Institutions Responsible for Involuntary Return
The Head of the Department of Citizenship and Migration Affairs or the Head of the local office
and the Chief of the Territorial Board of the State Border Guard or his/her Deputy are entitled to
decide on the forced expulsion of a foreigner.
Forcible removals are executed by the Border Guard, as stated in the Immigration Law (Section
50(2)) and in compliance with the procedures for forcible expulsion, as determined by the Latvian
Cabinet.
The Refugee Affairs Department, a unit of the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs, and
falling under the competence of the Ministry of Interior, grants or refuses asylum applications in
the first instance. Rejections may be appealed before the Refugee Appeals Council, which is
under the competence of the Ministry of Justice.
Regarding the identification and provision of missing travel documents, the Immigration Police,
the Border Guard, the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs, the Consular Department of
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Central Bureau of Interpol all cooperate with
the authorities in the country of origin.
(Most CIS countries are considered to be rather slow in confirming the identity of their nationals
and in issuing a return certificate, where travel documents are missing. Most of these countries
generally need around four to six months for this. The Ukraine and Uzbekistan have even longer
processing times). In some cases, Ukrainian migrants have obtained a registration confirmation