Do Mexican Citizens Need a Visa for Lithuania?
Mexican citizens do not need a visa to visit Lithuania. You may stay 90 days in any 180-day period on your passport alone.
No โ Mexican citizens do not need a visa for a short stay
Your passport is enough for 90 days in any 180-day period. That covers tourism, visiting family, business meetings, conferences and negotiating. It does not cover working โ see below.
This is decided by EU law rather than by Lithuania. Regulation (EU) 2018/1806 places every nationality in one of two annexes โ Annex I needs a visa, Annex II does not โ and Lithuania applies the list as it stands. The consolidated version in force is current to 30 December 2025.
Visa-free status is not permanent
Regulation (EU) 2025/2441, in force since 30 December 2025, revised the suspension mechanism and made it easier for the EU to withdraw a visa waiver. Vanuatu lost its exemption outright, and Georgia's was suspended for diplomatic and service passport holders in March 2026. Check before you book rather than assuming last year's answer still holds.
ETIAS and EES
Two EU border systems that between them account for most of the confusion aimed at visa-free travellers. One is running. One is not, whatever the websites selling it say.
EES โ already live
Nothing to do in advance.
- Fully operational since 10 April 2026
- Replaces passport stamping entirely
- Four fingerprints and a facial image on first entry
- Free โ you are registered at the border
- Later entries reuse your biometrics and move faster
ETIAS โ not yet running
Will apply to you when it launches.
- No start date has been confirmed
- Scheduled for late 2026 as of April, postponed repeatedly before that
- โฌ20, free for under-18s and over-70s
- Valid three years, or until your passport expires
- Applies to visa-exempt travellers only
You cannot buy an ETIAS authorisation today
ETIAS is not in operation and the Commission is not accepting applications. Any site charging you for one right now is selling you nothing. When it does launch it will cost โฌ20 and take minutes.
What EES changes in practice. Allow extra time at Vilnius airport the first time you enter after the system took effect โ biometric enrolment is slower than a stamp. After that it is quicker than the old process. The more consequential change is that your 90-day count is now computed automatically, so the days are counted exactly whether or not anyone looks at your passport.
The 90-Day Limit
Ninety days in any 180 โ a rolling window, not a calendar period that resets. For any day you are present, count back 180 days and add up every day you spent in the Schengen area within that window. The total must not exceed 90.
Three things that catch people out. The count is across all Schengen states together, not per country โ days in Lithuania and days in Spain go in the same total. Your arrival and departure days each count as a full day, however late you land. And leaving the area does not reset anything; the window simply moves with you.
Since EES became fully operational this is enforced arithmetically rather than by an official reading stamps. Overstays are detected by the system, and an entry ban entered by Lithuania goes into the Schengen Information System โ which means it blocks entry to every member state, not just this one.
Staying Longer Than 90 Days
The 90-day allowance is for visiting. Living here โ working, studying, joining family, founding a company โ needs a temporary residence permit, and the permit is what carries the right to work.
Once the permit is granted the practical work starts: an asmens kodas before almost anything else, a Lithuanian bank account, health cover that satisfies the permit condition, and a realistic view of what the month costs โ our cost of living guide has the current numbers.
A short-stay entry does not give you work rights
Since 1 July 2024you cannot work in Lithuania on visa-free entry, a Schengen visa, another country's national visa, or another country's residence permit. Work requires a Lithuanian residence permit, with narrow exceptions. A surprising number of employers still describe the pre-2024 position.
Good news on the 1 November 2026 change
From 1 November 2026, a work- or study-based residence permit application can only be lodged from inside Lithuania by someone holding a Lithuanian permit, a Lithuanian national (D) visa, another Schengen or EU residence permit, or legal visa-free presence. That last category is you. Mexican citizens can still apply while in Lithuania, provided the visa-free stay is still running โ where someone arriving on a Schengen visa now cannot.
The middle option is the national (D) visa, covering 91 days to 12 months for a narrow list of purposes โ exchange students, researchers, seafarers, accredited journalists, seasonal workers and posted employees among them. Full-time study and most skilled work moved off the D visa to residence permits on 1 July 2023.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do Mexican citizens need a visa for Lithuania?
No. Mexican citizens are visa-exempt under Annex II of Regulation (EU) 2018/1806 and may stay 90 days in any 180-day period on a passport alone. ETIAS will add a pre-travel authorisation once it launches, but it is not yet in operation.
How long can I stay?
90 days in any 180-day period. It is a rolling window: for any given day, count back 180 days and add up your days of presence across all Schengen states โ the total must not exceed 90. Arrival and departure days each count as a full day.
Can I work in Lithuania on a short stay?
No. Since 1 July 2024, working in Lithuania requires a Lithuanian residence permit. Visa-free entry, a Schengen visa, another country's national visa and another country's residence permit all fail to give work rights here, with narrow exceptions.
Do I still get a passport stamp on arrival?
No. The Entry/Exit System replaced stamping when it became fully operational on 10 April 2026. Entries and exits are recorded digitally, with fingerprints and a facial image taken at your first crossing.
Is ETIAS required yet?
No. ETIAS is not in operation. In April 2026 the Commission said it was scheduled for the last quarter of 2026, but no start date has been confirmed and the launch has been postponed repeatedly. It will cost โฌ20 and apply to visa-exempt travellers only.
How do I stay longer than 90 days?
Apply for a temporary residence permit, which is what carries the right to work and can be renewed indefinitely. The national (D) visa covers a narrow middle band of purposes for 91 days to 12 months. Full-time study and most skilled work moved from the D visa to residence permits on 1 July 2023.
Related Guides
Disclaimer. General guidance, not legal advice. Visa requirements are set at EU level and applied nationally, and both layers change โ the suspension mechanism was revised as recently as December 2025. Confirm your position with the Lithuanian mission responsible for where you live before booking travel.