No. 45/2026

While a woman from Rēzekne with mental health problems is being treated in a psychiatric hospital, a sworn bailiff has put her flat up for auction during her absence, the programme "Bez tabu" reports. Worried neighbours fear what will happen to her if she loses her home after treatment. The case shows that a debt-enforcement and auction process can proceed regardless of a debtor's actual ability to follow it.

The article discusses a TV3 'Bez Tabu' segment about a former Liepāja resident who received a debt collection letter with no clear basis, over an alleged fare-dodging incident more than ten years earlier. Lawyer Andris Tauriņš argues the letter should state the debt's origin, how the amount was calculated, and its legal basis, so the debtor can understand their rights. He notes that claims over passenger transport usually carry a three-year limitation period, which can extend to ten years for municipal-provided services.

A legal expert at LV portāls clarifies that a bank account is frozen not by a court but by the bank itself, acting on a bailiff's order once a creditor already holds an enforceable court judgment. To avoid a full freeze, the debtor must contact the bailiff and disclose income information, a duty set out in the Civil Procedure Law. For pensioners, deductions are usually made by the State Social Insurance Agency rather than directly by the bank.

Answering whether a bailiff may withhold wages specifically to cover court-awarded moral compensation to a victim, LV portāls explains that once a judgment takes effect, the full amount it specifies is subject to enforcement. Where there are several claimants, such as court costs and victim compensation, the withheld sum is divided according to the order of satisfying claims set out in the Civil Procedure Law. The employer withholds the amount from wages, and the bailiff then allocates it among the different claims in the statutory order.

The article examines how a business should respond when a regular client repeatedly delays invoice payments yet keeps ordering more. It advises assessing the cash-flow risk and requiring prepayment or other security in time, rather than relying on the client's promises.

Kuldīga municipality is offering the six-building Lielīvande manor complex, in a scenic location, for sale through an electronic auction, the local government says on its website. The auction is a public, open procedure for disposing of municipal property under a set process. The article outlines the auction terms for anyone interested in a property with historical value.

A sworn advocate explains that a separate state fee must be paid for an application requesting interim protective measures, even when it is included within a claim to annul a shareholders' meeting resolution. The fee amount is set by Annex 3 of the Civil Procedure Law and applies regardless of how the application is filed. The explainer addresses a common misunderstanding about extra costs in such disputes.

The article discusses the CJEU's 17 September 2026 judgment in case C-876/24 "Vueling Airlines", which clarifies jurisdiction rules where a passenger bought a ticket online but purchased baggage-handling separately at the airport. The ruling builds on the earlier CJEU case C-204/08 "Rehder" on choice of court for air-passenger compensation claims.

Also reported by: sorainen.com

The Riga Arbitration Court has added Mirza Čiragovs to its permanent list of arbitrators, which now totals 58 lawyers from nine countries. He brings over 15 years of experience in corporate and commercial law, including mergers and acquisitions, insolvency proceedings, intellectual property, and LegalTech/FinTech disputes, plus two LL.M. degrees and ongoing doctoral studies. The court notes his familiarity with Azerbaijani and Georgian law lets parties from those countries bring disputes to Riga while choosing their own governing law and procedural language.

The Latvian state continues to incur costs in the international arbitration proceedings with former PNB banka owner Grigory Guselnikov, which have been running since 2017. Since May, an extra 1,922 euros has gone on legal services and almost 134,000 euros on the tribunal's administrative costs, pushing the total cost of the process past 7 million euros. It remains unclear when a ruling will be issued, but the case is one of the few visible arbitration disputes involving the Latvian state.

As part of a US-initiated financial restructuring, airBaltic has asked the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York for permission to reject the lease agreements on six Airbus A220-300 aircraft, continuing a fleet reduction from 54 to 36 planes by year-end. The airline wants the lease rejections to take effect on 17 November and has not disclosed what it will have to pay for the move. Board chair Andrejs Martinovs confirmed a payment is not ruled out, though the exact amount remains unknown.

On 3 November the Court Administration published its October report on insolvency-proceedings-security decisions: 17 deposit-payout decisions in company proceedings (EUR 25,500), 112 in individual proceedings (EUR 86,980), two decisions transferring deposits to the state budget, and six on administrator remuneration. The Employee Claims Guarantee Fund made 58 decisions in October totalling about EUR 191,450, the largest being EUR 100,207 for 30 employees of SIA "LD STELS".

Valka municipality has the largest loan and guarantee obligations of any Latvian local government and, unable to pay creditors on time, has decided to start a financial stabilisation process. LSM explains that, unlike a private company, a municipality cannot formally go bankrupt, but the process resembles an insolvency remedy, involving tighter budget control and restrictions on new borrowing. Finance Ministry data put Valka's obligations-to-budget-revenue ratio at 21.48% for 2026, with elevated levels expected to persist for several years.

The article explains that under the Civil Law's freedom-of-form principle, a deal can be concluded through email correspondence, since the law generally does not require a signed document. Under Section 1537 of the Civil Law, a contract is concluded once the offeror receives the other party's unconditional acceptance, but a reply containing new or different terms does not count as acceptance.

A new law adopted by the Saeima on 22 October and published 4 November (in force from 5 November) gives land owners state compensation for 2025 and 2026 where the statutory land-use fee charged to building owners (4% of cadastral value, minimum EUR 50) falls short of 2.5% of that value. Claims go to the State Land Service between 1 January and 30 June 2027, decisions are due within six months, and the law lapses automatically on 1 July 2030.

The article examines a case where a buyer paid for and began using an apartment before signing a written purchase contract, then later wanted to withdraw. Under Civil Law Sections 1477 and 1487, a deal becomes binding once the parties agree on all essential terms, and neither side can unilaterally withdraw, even though written form is needed to register it in the Land Register.

A lawyer addresses a case where a debt collector demands 2,200 euros in late-payment interest and penalties on a principal debt of only 220 euros. Under Article 1716 of the Civil Law, a contractual penalty for improper performance of an obligation may accrue progressively but overall must not exceed 10% of the principal debt. A calculation exceeding that cap conflicts with the law and consumer-protection rules.

Competition Council Decision No. 47 of 30 October, published in the official gazette on 6 November, clears SIA "Bono Coffee" - whose affiliates work in forestry and timber trade - to acquire decisive influence over SIA "Kafijas pasaule", which runs vending machines and coffee-machine rental and servicing. The Council found the parties operate in unrelated markets and the deal would not change market structure or competition.

The Competition Council cleared, on 30 October, investment fund INVL Private Equity Fund II's acquisition of sole control over three fish-processing company groups — Nordian Group, Norvelita and Saldoga. It found the deal would not materially change competition in the wholesale and production markets for processed fish products.

SPRK granted SIA "Tele2" limited-use rights to two bands in the 900 MHz range (904.1-904.2 MHz and 949.1-949.2 MHz) for commercial use in Latvia from 5 November 2026 to 29 February 2036, matching the term of bands it already holds. The rights were awarded through a tender in which Tele2 was the sole bidder, for a EUR 7,000 fee payable within a month of the decision.

LTRK board adviser and head of the Bureaucracy Reduction Group Jānis Endziņš tells LSM that the administrative burden on businesses has fallen by 152.9 million euros since last December, though new requirements have partly offset the gain, so the overall result should be judged cautiously. Endziņš says businesses in construction have yet to feel the promised improvements in practice, and that Latvia sometimes implements EU requirements more strictly than required. The next target is to cut the burden by one billion euros by the end of 2028, including by using AI to review state agencies' functions.

The article looks at the practical side of a board-member handover – what a new board member should take over from the departing one and how to document it. Under Sections 224(8) and 306(3) of the Commercial Law, a board member may resign at any time, but passwords, documents and client contacts can disappear with them, leaving the new member liable only for what was actually taken over.

Latvia's Competition Council opened an in-depth review of AS "VIRŠI-A"'s planned long-term lease of four "ASTARTE-NAFTA" fuel stations, a decision taken on 29 October. It will examine whether the deal could raise VIRŠI-A's incentive to increase fuel prices in local retail markets near Cesvaine, Višķi, Koknese and Preiļi. Interested parties may comment until 17 November.

On 4 November the Patent Office reported that since the scheme opened on 1 December 2025, EUIPO has received 100 applications to register geographical indications (GIs) for craft and industrial products from nine member states, 74 already registered. In Latvia such applications go through the Patent Office, and registrations can be tracked on the GIview platform.

The Defence Ministry has drafted regulations on temporarily taking over property owned by individuals or companies during a threat to national security, along with compensation for resulting losses. A takeover without the owner's agreement will be limited to 14 days, after which the owner can claim compensation from the Defence Ministry. The draft is open for public consultation until 17 November.

On 1 November 2026, ERGO completed its merger with non-life insurer "ADB Gjensidige" across the Baltic states, combining the two insurers' operations in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. "ADB Gjensidige" has been legally merged into ERGO Insurance SE and has ceased to exist as a separate legal entity, while existing client contracts remain in force on their previous terms.

The Competition Council approved, on 30 October, SIA "Bono Coffee"'s acquisition of decisive influence over SIA "Kafijas pasaule", which operates self-service coffee and snack vending machines across Latvia. As the parties do not operate in the same or a related market, the authority concluded the merger would not reduce competition anywhere.

On 2 November the Patent Office published a round-up of eight Industrial Property Appeal Board decisions on cases heard in October: seven concern trademark oppositions (including marks "Chiron Behring", "Segway" and "Nurmuižas pils"), while one invalidates a figurative mark filed by the Latvian Real Estate Transaction Association. No patent or design disputes feature in this batch.

LMT vice-president Ingmars Pukis told TV3 that after two years of failed talks on buying out the Swedish shareholders' stakes in Tet and LMT, the government has handed the task to the companies themselves, which must now present their own vision for further development. Pukis stressed the deal needs no state funding, since the companies are financially strong and can draw on available financial instruments and investor interest. LMT must submit its proposal by 17 November, after which the decision rests with the shareholders: the Latvian state and the Swedish company.

The article explains that reducing share capital is increasingly a rational step to optimise capital structure or cover accumulated losses. Sections 204-208 of the Commercial Law set out two methods – cancelling shares or proportionally reducing their nominal value – and the process requires strict compliance with statutory requirements.

The Procurement Monitoring Bureau's page on the IT-development procurement moratorium (barring ministries, their subordinate bodies and state companies from signing new contracts over EUR 140,000 excl. VAT) was updated 7 November to note that the Prime Minister's resolution of 3 November extended the ban to 16 November. Existing contracts and preparatory work may continue, but urgent exceptions (critical-system continuity, cyber incidents, essential state interests) need the Finance Minister's prior written approval.

On 6 November the Cabinet backed amendments to the Electricity Market Law and sent them to the Saeima; they require grid-connected generation and storage equipment to meet stricter cybersecurity and national-security rules, letting the transmission operator refuse risky connections and restricting non-compliant third-country companies. Switching electricity suppliers becomes free for consumers, and large suppliers (over 200,000 users) must offer at least one fixed-price contract with no early-termination fee.

On 5 November SPRK approved a new unsorted household-waste processing tariff of EUR 148.54 per tonne (excl. VAT) for SIA "Atkritumu apsaimniekošanas Dienvidlatgales starppašvaldību organizācija", including a EUR 130 natural-resources tax for landfilling, effective 1 January 2027. The tariff affects waste generators in Daugavpils city and the Augšdaugava, Preiļi, Krāslava and Līvāni municipalities.

Amendments to the Electronic Communications Law, adopted 29 October and published 4 November, require operators to identify users and register SIM numbers before providing prepaid voice, messaging or internet services, with a warning or a fine of up to 200 fine units for legal entities for breaches. The duty applies to new contracts from 1 September 2027, while the same act makes 112 the sole emergency number.

On 2 November SPRK amended the natural-gas distribution tariff methodology, clarifying how allowable costs are justified and recorded, how planned-versus-actual cost gaps are assessed, and how cost-allocation models are approved, including a two-month deemed-approval period and a 0.4%-of-average-operating-costs cap on communication expenses. The changes first apply to the 2026 regulatory bill and do not themselves set any tariff increase or decrease.

The article notes that the new Immigration Law in force since 15 September 2026 does not change the fact that a valid visa or residence permit does not by itself grant the right to perform any job. Employers must check whether a third-country national has the right to the specific work, since the right to stay and the right to work are legally distinct matters.

From 1 July 2026, as part of austerity measures, the government made a strict decision to remove from state institutions' staffing tables any vacant position left unfilled for more than six months. However, seven categories of civil-service positions are exempt from this rule, meaning staff in them are not threatened with dismissal under this measure. The article describes which job groups fall under this exemption and its legal basis.

The article explains how Section 74(1)(8) of the Labour Law applies – whether an employee on a fixed monthly salary is owed extra pay for a public holiday falling on a working day. It discusses calculating the monthly salary under Section 62 of the Labour Law when an employee has not worked the full accounting month.

Since 2018, Riga City Council has been unable to get the owner of an abandoned Art Nouveau building at 6 Mārijas Street, an Estonian citizen, to put the property in order, despite issuing 17 enforcement orders for fines totalling over 65,000 euros. The council explains that the Satversme protects private property rights, and public authorities cannot seize property without the owner's consent except where strictly necessary for state or municipal functions. The owner regularly challenges the fines, but the courts reject her appeals, so the situation drags on even as the building keeps deteriorating.

Residents of a Riga apartment block complain about odour and pests caused by a neighbour's hoarding disorder, which has turned her flat into a rubbish store, but neither police nor medics can intervene. LSM explains that the owner can be evicted from the flat only by a court judgment, and only if the unsanitary conditions endanger other residents' safety or health. The case shows that even blatant unsanitary conditions leave no faster route than litigation to protect neighbours' rights.

Since 5 November, a new law on compensating the statutory land-use fee has been in force, letting landowners in forced divided-property arrangements claim state compensation for losses incurred in 2025-2026 due to two differing cadastral values. The law was adopted to implement the Constitutional Court's ruling of 10 December 2025 in case No. 2024-21-0103. Claims can be filed only from 1 January to 30 June 2027, and both the filing window and the law's duration are limited.

Answering a question about selling a house whose underlying land is held by three co-owners in ideal shares, a lawyer notes that under Article 1073 of the Civil Law, when a share is sold to someone who is not a co-owner, the other co-owners have a right of first refusal for two months after receiving a copy of the purchase agreement. Each co-owner may otherwise deal with their own share, including selling or pledging it, subject to this limit. If the pre-emption right could not be exercised due to the seller's fault, the co-owners retain a right of redemption.

Responding to a landlord's question about a tenant who, after a self-set move-out date, keeps the flat and repeatedly postpones it, LV portāls explains that under Articles 20 and 27 of the Law on the Lease of Residential Premises the lease ends once the notice period expires, so continuing to occupy the flat afterward is unlawful. Self-help eviction is not permitted: the landlord must go to court to seek the tenant's eviction. In this case the flat was acquired at auction, which complicates matters since the previous tenant never handed over the keys.

The question describes a landowner who received an unsigned email notice about a planned servitude road, stating that silence would be treated as automatic consent. LV portāls cites the Constitutional Court's 2007 ruling that property rights may be restricted only by law, and explains that a servitude acquires legal force only once it is registered in the Land Register. An informal notice sent to a private email address that does not meet the Notification Law's requirements has no legal effect by itself if the owner does not respond.

From 2029, Latvia plans to switch to a new cadastral valuation base, which could sharply increase property tax. To spare residents from a steep rise in payments, the Finance Ministry proposes giving municipalities broader powers to set tax rates and cap the increase. The mechanism's exact details will need to be followed as the proposal moves through the legislative process.

On 6 November the Cabinet backed Finance Ministry amendments to the VAT Law clarifying the distance-selling definition and the EUR 10,000 threshold calculation for cross-border e-commerce, setting an end date for the special warehouse-delivery scheme, and applying a 0% VAT rate to goods and services under SAFE defence-procurement contracts. The bill still needs to go to the Saeima; no entry-into-force date is given yet.

The article explains Latvia's Controlled Transactions Report (CTR), which corporate income tax payers with transactions involving related foreign companies, related individuals, or partners in low-tax jurisdictions must file once annual controlled transactions exceed €250,000. The requirement applies from the 2025 reporting year, and calendar-year companies face a 31 December 2026 deadline, filed electronically via EDS. Late or incomplete filings risk a fine of up to 1% of the transaction value, capped at €100,000.

On 6 November the Finance Ministry proposed that from 2029, when the new cadastral-value base is due to apply, municipalities should set in their own binding regulations the real-estate tax rates and/or limits on tax-base growth, so the new cadastral values do not cause a sharp tax rise for residents. Real-estate tax revenue would also be removed from the municipal equalisation calculation so it stays with each municipality.

On 6 November the Cabinet backed Finance Ministry amendments to the Law on Taxes and Duties that drop outdated provisions, such as privatisation-debt capitalisation, and clarify taxpayer and VID duties. Collecting a payroll tax booklet from one's main employer becomes a right rather than a duty, some warnings can be issued electronically without an official's signature, and violation data on unreported wages will be published only for legal entities; the bill now goes to the Saeima.

Amendments to the Natural Resources Tax Law, backed by the government on Friday, would extend the natural resources tax (DRN) to internal-combustion engine fuel filters from 1 January 2027. The change adds to the existing list of goods subject to the DRN as part of ongoing environmental tax policy. The exact rate and application rules will depend on how the amendments progress through the legislative process.

On 6 November the government approved amendments that, from 1 January 2027, extend the natural resources tax to internal-combustion engine fuel filters and air-polluting substances. (Article is paywalled beyond the lead.)

The Finance Ministry has drafted a bill amending the Law "On Taxes and Fees" aimed at improving tax administration, including the rules on publicising tax debts and submitting declarations. (Article is paywalled beyond the lead.)

Amendments to the State Revenue Service Law, adopted 22 October and published 4 November (in force 18 November), let VID make automated individual decisions in its information systems, but only where a law or directly applicable EU law permits it, and the affected person may demand a written explanation. VID must publish information on the data it uses and its profiling practices, and a review of a contested automated decision cannot rest solely on automated processing.

Latvia's Public Benefit Commission decided, at its 3 November session, to recommend that VID grant public-benefit organisation status to four associations working in civil-society development and sports support. VID makes the final decision, and the status carries tax relief.

Latvia's tax authority VID published its October review of tax legislation. It covers the new beginner micro-enterprise tax starting 1 April 2027, a one-off crypto-asset declaration taxed at 10%, tonnage-tax regime changes from 2027, and an updated low-tax jurisdictions list effective 1 November that adds Russia and drops Panama and Vietnam. The review also notes that from 15 October VID may share taxpayer data with credit information bureaus.

Reinis Znotiņš of the Latvian Blockchain Association argues in an op-ed for a tax amnesty on crypto-assets, noting that Latvia has been among the first EU states to prepare the ground for the EU's MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets) regulation, with Latvijas Banka already issuing the first MiCA licences. He argues an amnesty would let residents legalise previously undeclared digital assets and bring a significant extra revenue boost to the Latvian economy. The piece is a commentary backing a specific policy proposal, not itself a bill or an adopted decision.

Since 23 October 2026, the expanded investment-account framework can also be applied to crypto-asset transactions, while still allowing income to be taxed at a flat 10% rate. (Article is paywalled beyond the lead.)

An initiative published on the ManaBalss.lv platform proposes abolishing the annual vehicle operation tax for private owners and folding it into the fuel price instead. Its authors argue the change would make the tax burden proportional to actual vehicle use. To reach the Saeima, the initiative must gather the legally required number of signatures within the set deadline.

Latvia's consumer rights authority PTAC reminded traders of EU-wide standardised guarantee information rules. Since 27 September, shops and websites must display a notice on the two-year statutory legal guarantee, and products with a voluntary longer manufacturer guarantee must carry the harmonised "GARAN" label. The duties stem from Directive (EU) 2024/825 and Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1960.

Also reported by: plz.lv

Amendments to the compulsory motor insurance (OCTA) law take effect on 13 November, allowing a road-accident victim in certain cases to claim compensation from their own insurer rather than the at-fault party's. The changes also clarify the roles of the Motor Insurers' Bureau (LTAB) and state authorities, restructuring oversight of the OCTA system and setting new requirements for LTAB board members. LTAB's public-administration functions move under the Finance Ministry's supervision.

On 6 November the EBA announced that the first reference date for new supervisory-reporting requirements moves to December 2027, giving institutions at least a year to implement, while liquidity, asset-encumbrance, supervisory-benchmarking and ESG reporting requirements are deferred further, to December 2028. The EBA plans to publish the final ITS report in December 2026 and the supporting technical package (data point model, taxonomies, validation rules) in early 2027.

The article compares loan consolidation and refinancing as ways to manage debt obligations, outlining the risks and suitability of each option in different situations to help consumers choose the more cost-effective route.

Latvian lawyer Jurijs Sokolovskis comments on an important Court of Justice of the EU ruling on whether a bank may refuse to refund money stolen by fraudsters. The legally decisive question is who actually carried out the payment: the deceived account holder or the fraudster who accessed the account without the client's knowledge; in the latter case, the bank cannot automatically cite the client's gross negligence to refuse a refund. The ruling clarifies how EU rules on authorising payment transactions apply and the bank's duty to refund an unauthorised payment immediately, and no later than the next business day after notification.

An opinion piece criticises amendments to the Insurance and Reinsurance Distribution Law that would change how supervision is funded and could raise some of the largest insurance brokers' annual supervisory fee more than sevenfold. The author argues such a steep increase needs a clear, detailed justification, which the bill's explanatory note lacks. The changes are assessed against a backdrop of a growing state budget deficit and rising debt-servicing costs.

On 5 November the EBA published revised Guidelines on internal governance under CRD VI, mapping duties for management-body members and key-function holders, setting a dedicated governance framework for third-country branches, and clarifying conflict-of-interest rules, including where the chair and executive roles are combined. The guidelines apply proportionately by risk, but the page gives no specific application date, noting the text awaits translation into EU languages.

From 1 December, Latvia will introduce a remote qualified electronic signature solution (a remote eID signature) to keep signing uninterrupted after the qualified e-signature certificate on some eID cards is revoked on 9 December. The legal basis comes from amendments to Cabinet Regulation No. 134, driven by eIDAS 2.0 requirements affecting roughly 346,000 issued Latvian eID cards. Revoking the certificate will not affect the eID card's validity as an identity document.

Since 20 October, the State Data Inspectorate (DVI) has changed how it handles complaints about video surveillance by private individuals, clarifying that owners may monitor only their own property, not a neighbour's. Continuous surveillance of a neighbour's land, even unintentional, in most cases breaches GDPR requirements and privacy rights. Anyone suspecting unlawful processing of personal data can complain to the DVI, which can order the camera's position changed.

On 6 November the Cabinet approved amendments to the Law on Taxes and Duties, which now go to the Saeima. The changes remove outdated provisions, including rules on capitalising privatisation-related tax debts, and allow warnings to be issued electronically without an official's signature. They also change how information is published about employers fined for undeclared wages.

On 6 November the Cabinet noted a Justice Ministry report on the principle of transposing EU law at the minimum necessary level, requiring authorities to justify any requirement stricter than the EU's - its necessity, the burden on residents and businesses, and whether a simpler alternative exists. Examples of existing stricter rules cited include mandatory auditors for some small companies, full environmental impact assessments and lower public-procurement thresholds; no specific bill or deadline is named.

Amendments to Article 22 of the Customs Law drafted by the Finance Ministry would transfer certification of TIR vehicles and containers to the guarantee association, merging the current two-stage inspection into one and introducing electronic processing. The SRS keeps supervisory powers, and the association's decisions can be appealed to an administrative court; the draft is open for public consultation until 17 November.

Sorainen's 'Skatupunkts' review for 21 October to 3 November surveys recent Latvian bills, amendments and court rulings. It covers changes to media regulation, a consumer right-to-repair rule, product liability, crypto-asset taxation, a new law on enforcing criminal sentences, and digitalisation of the Enterprise Register. It also lists two pending Constitutional Court cases and Senate rulings on marital property in a forgery case and bribery among healthcare staff.

Sorainen's 'State Law Bulletin' reviews public and administrative law developments from April to October 2026. It covers amendments on consumer protection, public procurement, competition law and cybersecurity, plus Senate rulings on excluding bidders from procurement, forced deregistration of companies, and compensation for unlawful state action. It also lists several pending Constitutional Court cases, including compensation for asset seizure and land-buyback pricing.

Amendments to the Electricity Market Law drafted by the Climate and Energy Ministry, due before the Cabinet on 6 November, would require large electricity suppliers serving over 200,000 end-users to offer at least one fixed-price contract with no early-termination fee. The change aims to protect consumers by making it easier to switch electricity suppliers without fear of a penalty for ending a contract early. The bill is still at the government review stage.

A new draft law "On Lotteries of Goods and Services" prepared by the Finance Ministry would replace the current permit system with a notification model, requiring businesses to notify the SRS at least 10 working days before a lottery starts. The 25% state fee on the prize fund stays unchanged.

Parliament is reviewing amendments to the Personal Income Tax Law, already approved at first reading and moving toward a second. They would change the rules on the wage tax booklet – requiring information on dependants to be submitted to the SRS before the annual declaration – introduce new tax treatment for cashback from customer loyalty programmes, and add relief for volunteers.

Parliament has approved in its second reading amendments to the Personal Income Tax Law introducing several changes to how the tax is applied, including larger compensation amounts and less administrative burden. (Article is paywalled beyond the lead.)

The review compiles what the editors consider the most notable Senate administrative-case rulings published in October 2026. Among them is case SKA-78/2026, on the procedure for verifying and refunding corporate income tax overpayments declared through amended returns, and on a taxpayer's right to amend its declarations.

In a 17 June 2026 judgment in case SKA-105/2026, the Senate assessed whether a person receiving royalty payments for court and police interpretation services should be treated as self-employed, which had caused the loss of unemployed status. The ruling separates the technical tax and social-insurance treatment of income from the determination of a person's legal status.

The Constitutional Court published its October litigation round-up. Among the rejected applications were challenges to Insolvency Law provisions on suspending debt-discharge proceedings and to Civil Law rules on the form of assignment (cession) agreements. The Court also declined to open cases on capping recoverable lawyer's fees in monetary claims and on the bar against appeal in simplified-procedure cases.

Also reported by: ifinanses.lv · plz.lv

The article discusses the Senate's 5 October 2026 decision in case SKA-632/2026, which shows why the State Revenue Service's claim that its taxpayer rating is merely informational is not sufficient. Although the case concerned an ancillary complaint about a refusal to accept an application, the Senate's findings matter for the wider debate on how SRS-published information affects business-partner due diligence.

On 2 November two Constitutional Court cases were opened - No. 2026-20-0103 (applicant SIA "RigaVest CHP") and No. 2026-22-0103 (applicant SIA "GREN SLOKAS") - challenging Section 49(1.5) of the Energy Law and SPRK's 29 June 2026 Decision No. 1/15 setting the procedure for the maximum heat-energy purchase price, as inconsistent with Satversme Articles 1, 91 and 105. Both case-initiation notices were published in the official gazette on 4 November.

iFinanses summarised seven Senate civil rulings from October. Case SKC-444/2026 clarifies that earnest money is forfeited for non-performance of a contract, not merely for a late payment. Other rulings address a property manager's standing to represent an owners' association in court and the procedure for correcting a land-register entry.

On 2 November the Constitutional Court opened a case on a transitional provision of the Criminal Procedure Law that lets a third party ask the Senate to reopen an already final ruling on property ownership. The Senate argues the provision threatens the res judicata principle that protects final judgments from being reopened. The Saeima must file its written response by 4 January 2027.

In a 27 August 2026 ruling in case SKA-523/2026, the Senate declined to open cassation proceedings, holding that eligibility for state support depends on a company's core economic activity, not merely a side activity in the supported sector. Compliance with Cabinet Regulation No. 638 must be assessed for the company as a whole.

The Supreme Court added twelve Civil Cases Department rulings to its October case-law classifiers. They include case SPC-3/2026 on child-support payments during insolvency, SKC-444/2026 on returning earnest money after a missed deadline, and SKC-18/2026 on allocating costs in minority shareholder claims. Other rulings cover correcting land register entries and childcare-leave deadlines.

The Supreme Court added nineteen Administrative Cases Department rulings to its October classifiers. In case SKA-766/2026, the Senate clarified when a court may suspend proceedings pending another case. Case SKA-809/2026 concerns a person's right to sue over allegedly unlawful processing of personal data.

Jurista Vārds published information on decisions taken by the Latvian Bar Council (Zvērinātu advokātu padome) between 28 October and 3 November 2026; the full text is available only to subscribers.

Latvia's Council of Sworn Bailiffs reports that, under a 4 November Justice Ministry order, bailiff Nataļja Bekasova was transferred to Riga Regional Court District No. 73, while continuing to also serve District No. 67. Her practice address and contact details remain unchanged.

Latvia's Council of Sworn Bailiffs announced that, under Justice Ministry order No. 1-1/190 of 4 November, the next regular qualification exam for sworn bailiffs has been set for 11 December 2026.

Amendments to the Advocacy Law, passed by the Saeima on 22 October and published 4 November (in force 18 November), shorten the period before a sworn advocate's assistant may independently handle certain cases and let an advocate employ two assistants instead of one. Time served as an assistant now counts toward the experience needed for admission, with a separate transitional rule for assistants who already have five years of practice.

Also reported by: ifinanses.lv

Latvia's Ministry of Smart Administration and Regional Development (VARAM) has clarified that residents' collective petitions are meant to address important municipal development issues, not to interfere in day-to-day administration or to reopen individual administrative decisions. The clarification follows disputes over how the Jelgava and Ādaži municipal councils handled citizen initiatives that the councils considered resolved but residents disputed. The case illustrates how the law distinguishes development matters from routine administrative decisions in the context of collective petitions.

An opinion piece examines why, since June 2026, employers have had a clear legal basis to check the criminal records of IT specialists with access to a company's critical information systems, mirroring checks already applied to bank and security staff. The author notes an earlier inconsistency, where employers could vet customer-facing staff but not always those managing the same systems. The piece notes that in 2025 the State Security Service vetted nearly 11,000 people with access to critical infrastructure, issuing a negative assessment for 25 of them.

The University of Latvia's Faculty of Law, together with the LU Academic Press, has published a collection of academic articles from the faculty's 10th international scientific conference, "National Legal Systems and EU Law: Reality and Future Challenges in a Comparative Perspective."

Columnist Līna Kovaļevska examines a case where a state institution used numerology for team-building, asking why the State Labour Inspectorate and any affected candidates, who might have grounds to claim compensation for a breach of the equality principle, have stayed silent. The piece notes numerology is not the only unusual method found in personnel selection and management, alongside graphology and astrology. The author concludes that such practices in the public sector raise questions about compliance with non-discrimination and equal-treatment principles in employment relationships.