For many European employers, Lithuania has become an important base for employing foreign workers who subsequently work on projects elsewhere in the European Union. The Netherlands is one of those destinations. A significant development in Lithuania could now affect the beginning of that employment chain.
The Lithuanian Migration Department has announced that the country’s 2026 employment quota for newly arriving foreign workers is effectively exhausted.For companies employing third-country nationals in Lithuania and subsequently posting them to the Netherlands, this deserves attention. It does not mean that existing Lithuanian residence permit holders can suddenly no longer work or be posted abroad. Nor does it mean that Lithuania has completely closed its labour market to Third-Country Nationals (TCN’s).
But it does mean that bringing new workers from third countries into Lithuania is becoming considerably more restrictive.
A quota of 24.706 workers
For 2026, Lithuania established an employment quota of 24.706 newly arriving foreign workers. According to the Lithuanian Migration Department, by 21 August 2026, 22.552 quota units had already been used, while another 5.577 applications were still being processed. With pending applications exceeding the remaining quota, the Migration Department considers the quota effectively exhausted.
This development did not come completely unexpectedly. Lithuania introduced its stricter quota mechanism as part of a broader attempt to better control labour migration, while maintaining access for workers who provide higher economic value. The official figures and explanation can be found through the Lithuanian Migration Department and the Lithuanian Ministry of Social Security and Labour.
Does this mean Lithuania will stop issuing residence permits for employment?
This distinction is important. Once the regular quota has been exhausted, Lithuania can still issue temporary residence permits based on employment, but additional salary requirements apply. According to the Migration Department, a newly arriving TCN can still qualify where the employer commits to paying at least 1,2 times the most recently published Lithuanian average gross monthly salary. Based on the current figure, this corresponds to approximately €2.893,00 gross per month. For occupations included on Lithuania’s list of high value-added shortage professions, the threshold is one average gross monthly salary, currently approximately €2.411,00.
From 1 September 2026, the procedures surrounding applications subject to the quota have also been adjusted. Employers must take these requirements into account when submitting the relevant mediation documentation through MIGRIS. The Migration Department explains the revised procedure and salary thresholds in its 21 August announcement.
Why is this relevant to the Netherlands
This is where the development becomes particularly interesting from a cross-border labour mobility perspective. Consider a common situation.
A TCN legally resides and works in Lithuania for a Lithuanian employer. That employer subsequently provides services in the Netherlands and temporarily posts the employee to a Dutch project. Provided the relevant conditions are satisfied, the employee may remain insured under the Lithuanian social security system, demonstrated through an A1 certificate. However, an A1 certificate concerns social security. It does not provide an unlimited right of residence in the Netherlands. For TCN’s, the 90-day residence threshold remains particularly important. Once their physical stay in the Netherlands exceeds the applicable short-stay period, their Dutch residence position must be addressed separately.
This is precisely the situation CIS encounters in practice: TCN’s who are legally employed by an employer established elsewhere in the EU, are posted to the Netherlands and subsequently require a Dutch residence permit because their stay exceeds 90 days.
The first link in the chain is becoming more restrictive
That is why the Lithuanian development should not be viewed purely as a Lithuanian immigration issue. It potentially affects the first link in a much longer European employment chain. Before a Lithuanian employer can post a newly recruited TCN to a project in the Netherlands, that worker first needs a lawful basis to reside and work in Lithuania.
If Lithuania makes access for new workers more restrictive, the consequences may eventually be felt by Dutch contractors and projects that depend on workers who are already employed through Lithuanian companies. The workers who already hold valid Lithuanian residence permits are in a different position. The exhaustion of the 2026 quota does not, by itself, invalidate their existing residence status or prevent lawful cross-border posting. That distinction is essential.
A broader European development
Lithuania’s decision also illustrates something larger. European labour mobility does not operate through one single immigration system. A worker can simultaneously be affected by the immigration rules of the country of employment, European social security coordination rules, posting requirements and the residence rules of the country where the work is actually performed. A change in one country can therefore have consequences elsewhere in the chain. For employers working internationally, understanding those connections is becoming increasingly important.
At CIS, our focus is specifically on the Dutch part of that chain: residence permits for TCN’s who are employed by an employer established elsewhere in the EU and who work and physically reside in the Netherlands for longer than 90 days. The developments in Lithuania do not change that Dutch 90-day requirement. But they may change how easily Lithuanian employers can bring new TCN’s into the employment chain in the first place and that makes this much more than a Lithuanian story.
For companies operating across European borders, it is another reminder that labour mobility starts long before a worker arrives at a Dutch project.