The Refugees Reception Center (further the Center) is a budgetary institution for the temporary stay, providing the social services, designed for the organizing and the implementing of the social integration of the foreigners granted asylum, to accommodate temporary the unaccompanied minors during the processing of the application for asylum in the Republic of Lithuania. The Refugees Reception Center implements two programs: 2.2. “The Development of the Social Services in the Institutions under the Ministry of Social Security and Labor”, the program “The Administration of the Implementation of the Social Protection and the Labor Policy"

The establisher of the Centre is the Ministry of Social Security and Labor of the Republic of Lithuania.

The Refugees Reception Centre consists of 5 departments. The structure of the Center is formed according to the functions. The Center has 29 staff personnel (including the operating personnel of the Economy Department).

The Center has functioned already for 13 years. During these years about 2000 foreigners were accommodated in the Center.

The objectives of the Refugees Reception Center:

• to seek after the effective providing of the special social services for the foreigners living in the Center;

• to secure the effective support of the state for the foreigners granted asylum, participating in the social integration program in the municipalities.

The first foreigners were accommodated in the Center on March 3, 1997.

2004 the information system of the foreigners granted asylum – PAIS – Information System for the Administration of the Refugees was implemented on purpose to secure the effective records and the control of the data.

On August 18, 2005, by the Order No A1-234 “Relating to the Approval of the Regulations of the Refugees Reception Center” of the Minister of Social Security and Labor of the Republic of Lithuania the regulations of March 29, 2002 of the Refugees Reception Centre were updated. The Centre obtained the additional function – to organize and to implement the social integration of the foreigners granted asylum in the Republic of Lithuania in the municipalities.

The support for the integration for the foreigners granted asylum is provided in the Refugees Reception Center and in the municipalities according to the Order No A1-238 of the Minister of Social Security and Labor of October 21, 2004 “Relating to the Approval of the Description of the Support of the State of Lithuania for the Order of the Integration for The Foreigners Granted Asylum in the Republic of Lithuania”. The support for the integration in the Center is provided until 8 months. If during the determined time the foreigners have not prepared for the integration in the municipality because of the objective reasons, the duration can be prolonged until 12 months. If the foreigners granted asylum belong to the vulnerable groups – unaccompanied minors, pregnant women, tortured people, people with mental disorder, people of the retirement age, disabled people, not full families with minors, this period can be prolonged by their request until 18 months. In the unforeseen situations the support can be continued longer in the center.