The Senate's Department of Administrative Cases has refused to initiate cassation proceedings in an administrative case in which the District Administrative Court had ruled that the forced expulsion of a Russian citizen from Latvia was lawful.

The Senate's assignment sitting decision states that the District Administrative Court not only assessed the applicant's arguments regarding a possible violation of his privacy, but also reasonably pointed out that the applicant's actions, which threatened Latvia's security, had previously been assessed in administrative proceedings concerning the decision of the Minister of the Interior to include the applicant in the list of foreigners prohibited from entering Latvia. In the said proceedings, the court's judgment, which has entered into force, rejected the applicant's arguments that his right to family life had been violated. Moreover, the assignment sitting decision recognized that, contrary to what was stated in the applicant's claim, the expulsion did not take place in a manner incompatible with the respect for human dignity, as the individual inconveniences experienced in the course of the expulsion were not a sufficient basis for establishing a violation of human dignity. The panel of senators also rejected the argument that the border guards had acted arbitrarily by expelling the applicant from the country without referring to specific unlawful acts, since the expulsion order was based on the same circumstances that had already been assessed when deciding on the entry ban, and neither the entry ban nor the forced expulsion procedure requires that administrative or criminal proceedings be initiated against the person. Finally, the Senate found that, contrary to the applicant's arguments, he had had the opportunity to challenge the initial expulsion decision, as he had been informed of it in a language he understood and had in fact exercised that right.

It follows from the circumstances of the case that the applicant, who was a non-citizen of Latvia until 2012 but later acquired Russian citizenship, was included by the Minister of the Interior, on the basis of an opinion of the Defence Intelligence and Security Service, in the list of foreigners who are prohibited from entering Latvia. Since it was established that the applicant was physically present on Latvian territory, the State Border Guard had adopted and enforced a decision on the applicant's forced expulsion from the country, detaining him and transporting him to a border control point on the border with Russia. After crossing the Russian border, the applicant challenged the decision on forced expulsion, arguing that the expulsion violated his human rights to privacy and family life and that procedural violations had been committed in the execution of the expulsion order, preventing the applicant from preparing for his expulsion and defending himself against the decision. The District Administrative Court rejected this application and upheld the decision on forced expulsion as being lawful.

Case No SKA-372/2025 (A420102924)

 

Information prepared by Viesturs Lācis, Adviser in the Matters of Senate Communication

Telephone: +371 67020302; e-mail: viesturs.lacis@at.gov.lv