Lithuanian Displaced Persons Camp Records and
Thousands of Lithuanians fled their homeland during World War II
Many descendants of Lithuanian emigrants first hear about Lithuanian citizenship from a family story or an old document found at home. Legal terms such as restoration, naturalization and dual citizenship can make the next step look harder than it is.
This page explains in plain language who qualifies for Lithuanian dual citizenship, which documents you need and how to confirm your eligibility before you apply — so you know whether you can restore Lithuanian citizenship and keep your current passport.
In short: you are likely eligible if a parent, grandparent or great-grandparent was a Lithuanian citizen before 15 June 1940 and left Lithuania to escape the occupation between 15 June 1940 and 11 March 1990, and you can document every link in that line. You do not need to live in Lithuania or speak Lithuanian.
| Requirement | What it means | Typical evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Lithuanian citizen before 15 June 1940 | Your ancestor was a citizen of independent Lithuania (1918–1940), not only a resident | Interwar passport, internal passport file, archive certificate |
| Involuntary departure, 1940–1990 | They left after 15 June 1940 and before 11 March 1990 to escape the occupation | Refugee or DP camp cards, ship manifests, deportation records |
| Direct line, up to great-grandchildren | Every generation is documented: you → parent → grandparent → great-grandparent | Birth and marriage certificates, name-change documents |
| Legally valid documents | Documents carry an apostille and a professional Lithuanian translation | Apostilles, certified translations |
| No residence or language test | You can apply from abroad without moving to Lithuania or passing a language exam | — |
As a rule, Lithuania does not allow dual citizenship. The Constitution favours a single citizenship, and people who become Lithuanian citizens are usually expected to give up any other citizenship.
History created an important exception. From June 1940 Lithuania was occupied for almost fifty years — first by the Soviet Union, then by Nazi Germany and again by the Soviet Union. Many Lithuanians left not by choice but to escape persecution, deportation and war.
The Law on Citizenship recognises this. Descendants of citizens who left Lithuania during the occupation can restore Lithuanian citizenship and keep their U.S., UK, Canadian or other passport. This is what is usually meant by Lithuanian dual citizenship.
Your options depend on the legal route that fits your family history. There are three main routes to Lithuanian citizenship, and only the first one normally lets you keep your current citizenship.
The most common route for people born in the United States, Canada, the UK or Australia with Lithuanian roots.
You are not applying to become Lithuanian from scratch: you are showing that the right to citizenship passed to you through your family line.
If your ancestor left Lithuania because of the occupation, you can usually keep both passports.
Applies when the ancestor was a Lithuanian citizen but left by choice — for example, emigrated in 1927 to work abroad — rather than to escape the occupation.
Citizenship can still be restored, but dual citizenship is generally not available: to receive a Lithuanian passport you would usually have to give up your current citizenship.
For people without Lithuanian ancestry who move to Lithuania.
It requires around ten years of residence, a Lithuanian language exam, other examinations and proof of income, and you almost always have to renounce your previous citizenship.
To restore Lithuanian citizenship and keep your current one, your family history has to meet each of the criteria below. These are the core Lithuania dual citizenship requirements.
15 June 1940 is the date the Soviet Union occupied Lithuania.
You need to show that your ancestor was a citizen of the independent Republic of Lithuania (1918–1940) — not only a resident. An ancestor who left before independence, for example in 1910, and never held citizenship of the new republic does not qualify.
It is not enough that the ancestor left; the reason matters.
Timeline: the ancestor left Lithuania after 15 June 1940 and before 11 March 1990, the day independence was restored.
Reason: they left to escape the occupation — as refugees, through Displaced Persons (DP) camps in Germany, or because they were deported to Siberia.
Departures after 1990 for economic reasons do not qualify for dual citizenship.
Every generation between you and the ancestor must be documented: you → parent → grandparent → great-grandparent. No link can be skipped, even if a parent never had any connection to Lithuania.
The right currently extends to great-grandchildren. A great-great-grandparent is too distant.
Lithuanian authorities accept only properly certified documents, not photocopies or informal papers.
Apostille: foreign documents must carry an apostille issued by the authority that issued them.
Translation: every document in another language must be translated into Lithuanian by a professional translator.
Restoring citizenship by descent does not require a language test, moving to Lithuania or owning property there.
You can keep living in the United States, Canada, the UK or anywhere else and still hold a Lithuanian passport.
If your family history seems to match the criteria, the next step is to organise the evidence.
Start with your family tree and find the relative who left Lithuania during the occupation (1940–1990). That person is the basis of your claim. A relative who emigrated earlier, for example in 1912, usually cannot give you the right to dual citizenship.
Collect the documents that form the chain between you and the ancestor:
This is usually the hardest part: you need a Lithuanian document from before 1940.
An interwar internal passport is the strongest evidence. If the family does not have one, Lithuanian archives hold birth records, census lists and military records that can be used instead — the key is knowing where to look.
Obtain apostilles for your foreign documents and have every document professionally translated into Lithuanian.
Apply online through MIGRIS, the Lithuanian migration information system, or at a Lithuanian consulate. The form records your family history: names, dates and places for each generation.
After submission, your application is reviewed by the Migration Department. Processing usually takes 6–12 months after a complete filing.
Required documents usually include:
Submitting directly to the Migration Department in Lithuania is usually faster. Embassies and consulates accept applications too, but they forward them to Vilnius, which adds time.
A Lithuanian passport makes you a citizen of the European Union, while you keep your current citizenship.
Most refusals come from avoidable gaps in the evidence:
No proof of citizenship before 1940: without evidence that the ancestor was a citizen on 15 June 1940, the case cannot succeed.
Voluntary departure: if the file suggests the ancestor left for economic reasons, the dual-citizenship exception may be refused — you could restore Lithuanian citizenship only by giving up your current one.
Broken chain: name changes such as “Petrauskas” to “Peters” must be backed by a legal document showing it is the same person.
Restoring citizenship combines family history with detailed legal rules. Our team handles both.
We search Lithuanian archives for missing records, prepare the legal argument for why your ancestor left, arrange apostilles and certified translations, and manage the application — so you can focus on reconnecting with your heritage.
Submit your family details and a citizenship specialist reviews your case and tells you whether you qualify — free of charge.
Full restoration service: archive research, document preparation, translations, filing and follow-up until approval.
Support for descendants of Lithuanian Jews, including searches in Lithuanian and regional archives.
Our staff includes seasoned professionals in citizenship and migration law, supported by translators and a client assistance team working to secure the best results for every case. Get to know the specialists guiding you.
I worked with DE Civitate to restore my Lithuanian citizenship through my grandfather’s side of the family, and I’m very glad I didn’t try to handle it alone. At first, I thought it would be a simple “collect documents and submit” situation, but there were a lot of details that could easily have caused delays—name variations in records, missing certificates, and questions about how to prove the family line properly. DE Civitate broke everything down step by step, told me exactly what mattered, and helped us build a clean, well-organized file. They were responsive, straightforward, and very methodical, which made the whole process feel manageable instead of overwhelming. In the end, we achieved a positive outcome. I would absolutely recommend DE Civitate to anyone going through Lithuanian citizenship restoration.
I used DE Civitate to help restore my mother’s Lithuanian citizenship, and I’m genuinely grateful we chose them. This process is long and paperwork-heavy, and in our case it suddenly got more complicated than we expected. DE Civitate stayed calm, explained what was happening in plain language, and told us exactly what they needed from us and why. They handled the tricky parts, kept things moving, and were quick to respond whenever we had questions. In the end, everything worked out and we got a positive result. If you’re dealing with Lithuanian citizenship restoration and don’t want to risk mistakes or delays, I’d strongly recommend DE Civitate.
Eligibility depends on your family history. These guides explain the situations we see most often.
Mainly descendants of Lithuanian citizens who left Lithuania to escape the Soviet or Nazi occupation between 15 June 1940 and 11 March 1990, provided the family line can be documented.
Yes. Restoration is available to children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren of a qualifying citizen. Later generations are not covered.
Birth and marriage certificates linking every generation, evidence of your ancestor’s departure, and official proof that the ancestor was a Lithuanian citizen before 15 June 1940 — apostilled and translated into Lithuanian.
Yes, when citizenship is restored on this basis. Article 7 of the Law on Citizenship allows people in this situation to keep their other citizenship.
Missing family papers are common. Lithuanian archives often hold birth entries, internal passport files and other records that can replace them.
Usually 6–12 months after a complete filing. Archive searches and missing records can add time.
“By descent” describes the family connection to a Lithuanian citizen; “restoration” is the legal procedure that returns Lithuanian citizenship to descendants of citizens who lost it.
Thousands of Lithuanians fled their homeland during World War II
Lithuanian immigrant passenger lists are valuable historical records for Americans
For Americans researching Lithuanian ancestry, federal census records can provide