Kozlovskis said the number of residence permit requests has dropped from several thousand a year to a mere eight applications in the last three weeks.
He also said that Latvia's interior police force, the Security Police, have refused to issue or have annulled dozens of residence permits as they have recently stepped up the vetting of the applicants.
According to Kozlovskis, issuing temporary residence permits doesn't pose security risks. He said that as the funding for the Security Police has been upped, applicants are being vetted more thoroughly.
In June Latvian parliament or Saeima passed amendments to the Immigration Law that will see third-country nationals having to pay €5,000 into state coffers to renew residence permits.
