No separate work permit card. Your right to work is written into your visa or your temporary residence permit, and your Latvian employer starts the process.

See live vacancies or send your CV.

Quick facts at a glance

• No separate work permit card: your right to work is written into your visa (short jobs) or your temporary residence permit (long jobs).
• Your employer starts it: the employer registers the vacancy, gets the NVA opinion, then asks OCMA (PMLP) to approve an invitation or a sponsorship for you by name.
• Vacancy: published on the NVA CV and vacancies portal, free for at least 10 working days, with the reasons for the vacancy and the number of places stated.
• NVA opinion: generally issued within the 10th working day from publication. The vacancy must stay open on the portal for at least two months from publication.
• Pay: your gross pay must equal the average wage in your sector in the previous calendar year, using the latest Central Statistical Bureau figures. It is a sector figure, not one flat number for every job.
• First permit: you are issued a temporary residence permit first. After 5 continuous years in Latvia and passing the official language test at A2 level, you can be issued a permanent residence permit.
• Rules are changing: a new Immigration Law was adopted in June 2026 and its framework applies from 15 September 2026, with the main provisions from 1 January 2027, so permit lengths and detailed rules may change. Check the current PMLP page linked below before you apply.
• JobVision is free for candidates. Licence 29/2026, registration 40203344680, licence valid until 27 May 2029.
• Our home base: JobVision is a licensed Latvian agency based in Riga. See Latvia is our home base below.

Who this guide is for

Citizens of countries outside the EU, EEA and Switzerland who want to work in Latvia for a Latvian employer. Citizens of the EU, EEA and Switzerland do not need permission to work in Latvia; they register their residence with OCMA if they stay longer than three months.

Why Latvia, in plain terms

• The route is employer led: your employer handles the vacancy, the NVA opinion and the invitation or sponsorship request.
• You apply only after the employer approval exists, so the steps follow a clear order.
• Your permit is tied to a real job: the employer and role named on your permit.

Latvia is our home base

JobVision is a licensed Latvian recruitment agency, and Latvia is where our team is based.

• Licence 29/2026, registration 40203344680, licence valid until 27 May 2029.
• Based at Ģertrūdes iela 33/35-2, Rīga, LV-1011, Latvia. Phone +371 20495241, email info@jobvision.lv.
• Our team of four is listed on our About page: Shahid Arif, CEO and Managing Director; Saeed Rasul, Director Recruitment and Operations; Mohsin Luqman, HR and Company Representative; and a Legal Advisor.

The route, step by step

1. Your employer registers the vacancy. The job must be published on the NVA CV and vacancies portal, free for at least 10 working days, with the reasons for the vacancy and the number of places stated.
2. Local and EU candidates are considered first. Your employer assesses the applicants by the 8th working day after the vacancy is published and publishes the results on the portal.
3. NVA gives its opinion. NVA generally issues its opinion to allow or refuse the recruitment within the 10th working day from publication. The vacancy must stay open on the portal for at least two months from publication.
4. Your employer asks OCMA to approve you by name. Within one month of a positive NVA opinion, the employer submits an invitation request (short-term work) or a sponsorship request (long-term work) to OCMA. OCMA already has access to the NVA opinion, so the employer does not need to send it separately.
5. You apply for your visa or residence permit. An approved invitation is the basis for a visa with the right to employment. An approved sponsorship is the basis for an entry visa where needed, a temporary residence permit and the right to employment. Most applicants apply at a Latvian embassy or consulate abroad. If you already hold a valid residence permit from another Schengen country, are visa-exempt, or already hold a visa with the right to employment, you may apply to OCMA directly.
6. You work for the employer and in the role named on your permit. Your permit is employer-specific at first. If your employer, role, working hours or place of work changes, get the permission changed first.

Pay: what your employer must offer

Your gross pay must equal the average wage in your sector in the previous calendar year, using the latest Central Statistical Bureau figures. That is the rule the NVA publishes. It is a sector figure, not one flat number for every job, so a salary quoted for a different sector does not prove your offer qualifies. Ask your employer to confirm the sector figure for your role before you apply.

What to prepare

• Your passport
• Your employment contract or job offer
• The documents OCMA asks for in your case
• Your employer handles the vacancy registration, the NVA opinion and the invitation or sponsorship request. You handle your own visa or residence permit application once the employer approval exists.
• Never pay anyone for a job offer. JobVision never charges candidates.

Who this is NOT for

• Anyone looking for a guarantee: no job, visa or permit outcome is guaranteed.
• Anyone who wants to buy a job offer: never pay anyone for a job offer.
• Anyone planning to overstay: there is no overstay route in this guide.

Questions applicants ask first

Is there a separate work permit card in Latvia?
No. Your right to work is written into your visa (short jobs) or your temporary residence permit (long jobs).

Who starts the process?
Your Latvian employer. It registers the vacancy with NVA, gets NVA’s opinion, then asks OCMA to approve an invitation or a sponsorship for you by name.

What must my employer pay me?
Your gross pay must equal the average wage in your sector in the previous calendar year, using the latest Central Statistical Bureau figures.

Can I change employer or role later?
Your permit is employer-specific at first. If your employer, role, working hours or place of work changes, get the permission changed first.

Your next step

Send your CV at https://jobvision.lv/job-seekers/ (CV file, PDF or DOC, up to 5 MB), or message us on WhatsApp at +371 20495241. See live vacancies. JobVision is a licensed Latvian recruitment agency, licence 29/2026, registration 40203344680, licence valid until 27 May 2029. We are free for candidates, employers pay.

Sources

• PMLP, Employment of foreigners: https://www.pmlp.gov.lv/en/employment-foreigners
• NVA, Employment of Third-Country Nationals in Latvia: https://www.nva.gov.lv/en/employment-third-country-nationals-latvia

Last verified: 10 November 2026. Disclaimer: general guidance only, not legal advice. No job, visa or permit outcome is guaranteed. Rules change; the PMLP and NVA pages above are the authority.