Immigration law in Libya

Law No. 6/1987 regulates the entry, residence and departure of foreign nationals. An entry visa may be issued for up to 45 days, and the permitted stay may last up to three months from entry. A transit visa may last up to 15 days. Multiple-entry visas are generally valid for up to three months from issue, while a multiple-entry and exit authorization linked to a residence visa may be valid for up to six months. The visa purpose matters, and changing it requires written approval. The General Directorate of Passports and Nationality, also known as the Passport and Immigration Office, operates under the Ministry of Interior. Libyan missions abroad and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs handle consular processing. Current practice may require a referral from the Passport and Immigration Office in Tripoli, a passport valid for at least six months, two photographs, an application and a fee. Published visa categories include visitor, family reunification and business visas, but a visa issued abroad may not be accepted at every port or in every eastern or western area. A foreign national generally registers with the nearest passport authority within seven days. The accommodation provider reports the person's arrival and departure within 48 hours, and the employer reports the start and end of employment within seven days. A residence visa normally has to be converted into a residence permit within one month. The stated exceptions include temporary stays of up to three months and dependants under 16. The permit remains tied to the visa, purpose and permitted period. An absence of more than three months can end lawful residence. A spouse, minor children, unmarried daughters and dependent parents or minor siblings may qualify for residence on the same basis where the applicable requirements are met. A work permit is required before employment begins. The employer needs prior approval for recruitment, the contract and the assignment, and some occupations require approval from the competent authority. The official eJraat process lists ten steps and 22 document items, with a stated fee of zero and an estimated duration of about 1.5 to 9.5 days. A 2025 Wafed regularization exercise for foreign workers who had already entered officially required Wafed registration, a confirmed employment contract and a medical certificate; its deadline has passed and it does not establish a permanent general amnesty. No separate, clearly evidenced national student visa or student-residence process appears in the reviewed official material. Education-related residence therefore depends on a purpose-specific visa and individual review. Family reunification is formally recognized. Libya's 2011 Interim Constitutional Declaration recognizes a right to asylum and prohibits the extradition of political refugees. Libya is not party to the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol, although it ratified the 1969 OAU Refugee Convention. Libya has no national asylum legislation or state procedure for deciding refugee status. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, or UNHCR, is authorized to register people of certain nationalities. Registration may be possible without identity documents, and relevant material can include a passport, identity document, birth certificate, work permit, family record or education record. UNHCR services are free. UNHCR registration does not create Libyan refugee status, a residence permit or reliable protection against return, and it does not replace lawful entry or residence permission. Law No. 19/2010 addresses irregular migration. It covers entry or stay without the required authorization or permit for residence or transit. Related offences include bringing people into or out of Libya, transporting or assisting them, harboring or concealing them, using false travel or identity documents, and organizing or directing such conduct. Law No. 6/1987 also penalizes entry, stay or departure without a valid visa, false information, visa violations, remaining after an order to leave and unauthorized employment. Removal can follow entry without a valid visa, an expired residence permit whose extension is refused, visa revocation or a judicial deportation order. The Director General may order reporting or residence at a specified place and may arrange detention until removal is completed. Return after deportation requires a reasoned decision. Detention and removal practices vary substantially by region and political authority. The Directorate for Combating Illegal Migration, or DCIM, operates official detention sites. UNHCR visits some sites and normally registers people after release or by appointment rather than inside detention centers. Reports identify risks of arbitrary detention, exploitation, trafficking, violence and restricted access to medical care and justice. The legislation provides for a reasoned administrative decision by the Director General and for judicial deportation, but the reviewed text of Law No. 6/1987 does not establish a clear standard appeal process or automatic suspension of removal. UNHCR and United Nations reporting describes limited legal recourse, a lack of individual assessment and a risk of refoulement, meaning return to a place where serious harm may follow. UNHCR can provide advocacy, legal assistance and referrals for possible release, but it cannot guarantee a state remedy. The reviewed sources do not establish a direct permanent-residence or indefinite-residence status. Residence normally remains linked to a visa, purpose and time period, and long residence does not automatically create a permanent status. Citizenship is governed by Law No. 24/2010. Naturalization formally requires lawful entry, a valid travel document, at least ten years of lawful residence, regular income, good conduct, no relevant conviction, freedom from specified disease and an age limit of 50, alongside further public-interest conditions. The law provides exceptions, including special skills and certain foreign wives of Libyan men after more than two years. Birth nationality primarily follows a Libyan father; additional rules address children born abroad, children of Libyan mothers where the father is stateless or unknown, and children whose parents are unknown. Residence alone does not automatically confer citizenship. The law also allows withdrawal of naturalized nationality in specified circumstances, including some conduct within ten years or two years abroad without permission. Fees and processing times are not stable enough to state one national tariff. A Manchester mission published 2025 fees of £200 for a visitor visa, £500 for reunification or business, £200, £300, £500 and £600 for one-, three-, six- and twelve-month visas, and £100 for an extension. These figures describe that mission's published practice and should not be generalized to every Libyan mission or port. English versions of Laws No. 6/1987 and 24/2010 are unofficial translations; the Arabic Official Gazette is authoritative, and current requirements should be confirmed with the relevant Libyan mission, passport authority or Ministry of Labour.