Latvia Offers Young Recruits €600 a Month and Free University Places

Latvia is offering young people €600 a month and a chance to study without tuition fees if they volunteer for national defense service. The incentives aim to encourage applicants to enlist rather than wait to see whether they are selected for mandatory service.

Men and women aged 18 to 27 can apply for the January and July intakes. Those who volunteer for the 11-month service receive twice the monthly compensation paid to people assigned to service through the mandatory call-up system.

The education benefit applies to volunteers who successfully complete the 11-month term. They can apply for state-funded places at Latvian state universities and other higher-education institutions, although applicants must still meet the minimum entry requirements for their chosen institution and program.

Applicants can also choose among several forms of service. Options for the January intake include 11 months of full-time service in the air force or a headquarters battalion, five years of part-time service in the National Guard, or a five-year reserve officer training program for university and college students.

Latvia’s parliament approved the national defense service law in April 2023. The law requires men to serve. Each intake has a separately determined number of places, which are filled first by volunteers. If too few people volunteer, the remaining recruits are selected by lottery.