Deputy Interior Minister Arnoldas Abramavičius has announced that this year, 2,200 individuals successfully had their Lithuanian citizenship restored, a figure consistent with the previous year's

numbers. The disclosure was made during a session of the Seimas and the World Lithuanian Community (PLB) on Wednesday.

Among the applicants, Israeli citizens led with 485 successful restorations, followed by Brazilian applicants at 445, and South Africans in third place with 401 approvals, as highlighted by Abramavičius.

While there are instances where applications for the restoration of Lithuanian citizenship are rejected, Abramavičius noted a declining trend in the number of rejections. In 2021, there were 352 rejections, and after certain amendments in 2022, only 81 individuals faced refusal.

Typically, individuals are denied citizenship restoration on the grounds that their loss of citizenship before 1940 was formalized by pre-war Lithuanian authorities' decisions. Another reason for denial is if they were categorized as foreigners in the Republic of Lithuania before the Second World War.

Under the Law on Citizenship, those who held Lithuanian citizenship before June 15, 1940, and their descendants, as well as individuals who held Lithuanian citizenship before June 15, 1940, and were exiled or left Lithuania before March 11, 1990, along with their descendants, are entitled to the restoration of their citizenship. Photo by มองโกเลีย๔๔, Wikimedia commons.