Northern Europe (EU, Baltics)
Study in Poland from Lithuania
A practical, honest guide for Lithuanian students — visas, refusal rates, flights, costs and what life is really like. Backed by sources, not marketing.
2022/23 · GUS/NAWA
visa-free entry
€16–70 (one-way est.)
Visas & entry
No visa — EU freedom of movement; register residence if staying >3 months
- Where to apply
- local voivodeship office (EU residence registration)
Key documents
- Lithuanian ID or passport
- EU residence registration certificate
- health insurance (EHIC or private)
Source: eur-lex.europa.eu
Getting there
Vilnius (VNO) → Warsaw (WAW)
- Typical price
- €16–70 (one-way est.)
- Flight time
- 1.1 h
- Airlines
- LOT, Wizz Air, Ryanair, airBaltic
Shortest flight here (~1h05 LOT). A shared land border also makes bus/car realistic.
Prices vary — estimate from omio.com
Cost of living
~€550–800/mo in Poland — comparable to or cheaper than Vilnius, with a wider choice of English-taught programmes. Estimate.
What it's really like
Polish-Lithuanian relations are nuanced and historically sensitive — shared Commonwealth heritage, but also memories of polonisation and the interwar dispute over Vilnius. Some Lithuanian nationalists view past Polish dominance critically, and the rights of the Polish minority in Lithuania can be a sore point. Even so, state relations have warmed markedly (shared EU/NATO membership, cooperation against the Russian threat). Day-to-day, Lithuanians and Poles coexist without hostility, and geographic/cultural closeness eases adaptation.
Community: No data on a large Lithuanian student community, but a strong link is the large Polish minority in Lithuania (~183k, 6.5% of the population, around Vilnius) — many Lithuanians have Polish roots or know Polish.
Tips from students & forums
-
As an EU citizen you need no visa or permit — just an ID and residence registration for stays >3 months.
ipc.gov.cz ↗ -
Poland is cheaper than Scandinavia/Western Europe at a similar quality of student life, with the degree recognised EU-wide.
study.gov.pl ↗ -
English-taught programmes (incl. medicine) mean you don't need Polish, while cultural/linguistic closeness eases daily life.
en.wikipedia.org ↗
Good to know
- Poland and Lithuania share centuries of common Commonwealth heritage (union from 1385/1569) — among the oldest state ties in Europe.
- ~183k Poles live in Lithuania (6.5%, 2021 census), creating a natural cultural and linguistic bridge.
Ready to find your programme?
Compare Lithuanian-friendly, English-taught Bachelor's and Master's across Polish universities.
Last reviewed: 2026-06-07. Visa-refusal figures are Schengen short-stay proxies unless stated; Poland does not publish national (type D) study-visa refusal rates per country. Flight prices and monthly budgets are estimates from aggregators and study.gov.pl and change over time.