Fraud, Theft and Forgery in Lithuania

Fraud and theft charges in Lithuania are brought under the Criminal Code as fraud (sukčiavimas), theft (vagystė) and forgery of a document (dokumento suklastojimas). English speakers also mention shoplifting, card or online fraud, forged documents and embezzlement (turto pasisavinimas). This page is for the person accused; someone who lost money or property finds information under legal representation for crime victims. It is general information, not legal advice. Some older lists and lawyer pages call this service “Fraud, Theft, Forgery etc”.

Who needs this

Visitors accused of shoplifting, sellers or buyers in an online deal that ended in a complaint, tenants and landlords in a dispute over money, employees accused of taking money from the employer, and people who used a document later found to be false, for example a diploma, a licence or a contract.

How the offences differ

• Theft is taking someone else’s property secretly.
• Fraud is obtaining property, a right or a release from a debt by deceiving someone.
• Forgery is making, changing or using a false document; it is often charged together with fraud.

The value matters. Very small amounts can be an administrative offence or a criminal misdemeanour (baudžiamasis nusižengimas), larger ones a crime (nusikaltimas), and a large value or an organised group makes the offence more serious. The value limits are tied to a base amount set by law and change over time.

How a case runs

The police or another investigating body open a pre-trial investigation (ikiteisminis tyrimas) under a prosecutor. The person is questioned as a suspect (įtariamasis); bank records, messages and camera footage are collected. The injured person can claim the loss inside the criminal case. Some less serious cases can be resolved by a shorter procedure, and in some the law takes into account that the damage was repaid and the parties reconciled.

What to pay attention to

Not every unpaid debt or failed deal is fraud: what counts is whether there was deception from the start, and early explanations to the police shape how the case is seen. A conviction can affect a residence permit and later appears on a criminal record certificate.

What an English-speaking lawyer does

The lawyer explains the suspicion, attends the questioning with an interpreter, reviews the documents and the calculation of the loss, argues where a civil dispute is being treated as a crime, discusses repayment and reconciliation where the law allows it and represents the person in court. Forged invoices at the border are covered under smuggling offences. More on criminal law in Lithuania.

Questions and answers

What is the difference between fraud and theft in Lithuania?

Theft is taking property secretly; fraud is getting it by deceit, for example with false promises or false documents.

I paid the money back. Does the case end?

Repaying the damage can matter a great deal and, in some less serious cases, can lead to the case being closed after reconciliation. The prosecutor or the court decides.

Can a business dispute become a fraud case?

A complaint can be filed, but a failed deal is not fraud by itself. A lawyer examines whether there was deception from the start.

Can I be questioned in English?

Questioning is in Lithuanian, with an interpreter for a suspect who does not understand the language.