By Goda Malinauskaitė, LRT TV, LRT.lt.

Demand for free Lithuanian language courses in Vilnius is far outstripping the number of available places, leaving some foreigners unable to enrol and instead receiving offers to take paid classes.

About 200 people are currently taking free Lithuanian courses organised by Vytautas Magnus University and the Vilnius municipality. Registration for a new round of courses beginning in September is scheduled to open next week.

But some applicants say they have been told that no free places are available and subsequently received offers for paid courses.

Piotr, a Russian national who has lived in Lithuania for three years, speaks Lithuanian at an advanced level after learning the language independently and paying for his own studies.

“I wanted it simply to be easier, more convenient and more peaceful to live in the country,” he said. “And I managed to do that.”

Read more: LRT.LT