Deimantė Jančevska
Chief Specialist, Institutional Licensing and Program Implementation Department
A. Vivulskio str. 13, LT-03162, Vilnius.
Publication date 2026-05-19
Social worker
The document on the recognition of the professional qualifications of a social worker for the purposes of engaging in the professional activity of social work or providing social worker services on a temporary or occasional basis in the Republic of Lithuania is issued to citizens of the EU Member States, states of the European Economic Area, the Swiss Confederation, and third countries, when said citizens want to engage in the business of social work in the Republic of Lithuania on the basis of proof of formal qualifications of social workers as indicated in the Law on the Recognition of Regulated Professional Qualifications of the Republic of Lithuania. The applicant or a person authorised by them fills out and submits to the Social Services Supervision Department under the Ministry of Social Security and Labour (the ‘Department’) a signed application for the recognition of the professional qualifications of a social worker for the purposes of engaging in the professional activity of social work in the Republic of Lithuania (the ‘Application’) and duly notarised or otherwise legalised copies of the documents.
The application and other documents may be presented to the Department in person or submitted by e-mail.
Upon receipt of an application and documents from a citizen of the EU Member State, a state of the European Economic Area, or the Swiss Confederation, the Department will acknowledge the receipt thereof in 5 days and will notify the person about any documents that may be missing. Upon receipt of a person’s application and all of the necessary documents, the Department will forward them to the Commission in 7 calendar days.
Upon receipt of an application and documents from a citizen of a third country, the Department will forward them to the Commission in 3 business days.
The Department will adopt its final well-reasoned decision on the recognition of the professional qualifications of a social worker as soon as possible, but no later than within 3 months of the date of receipt of all of the required documents, and will notify the applicant or a person authorized by them of its decision.
The decision will be sent to the applicant by mail or may be picked up by the applicant (or a person authorized by them) at the Department.
Services are free of charge.
Legal act
The procedure for the recognition of the professional qualifications of a social worker in order to work in the profession of a social worker or to temporarily or occasionally provide social worker services in the Republic of Lithuania is regulated by Order No. V-178 of the Director of the Department for Supervision of Social Services under the Ministry of Social Security and Labour of 5 May 2016 “On the Approval of the Procedure for the Recognition of the Professional Qualifications of a Social Worker in Order to Work in the Profession of a Social Worker or to Temporarily and Occasionally Provide Social Worker Services in the Republic of Lithuania”.
The recognition of the professional qualifications of third-country nationals in order to work in the profession of a social worker in the Republic of Lithuania is regulated by Order No. V1-77 “On approval of the procedure for the recognition of professional qualifications of third-country nationals in order to work as a social worker in the Republic of Lithuania”.