Twenty questions, three options each, fourteen correct answers to pass. On paper the Lithuanian Constitution exam looks easy, and statistically most candidates do pass. The ones who fail usually make one of two mistakes: they read the Constitution in their own language and are thrown by the Lithuanian wording on the day, or they read everything once and remember none of the numbers. This plan avoids both. It assumes about 30–40 minutes a day for two weeks, which is enough for someone with no legal background and basic Lithuanian.
Before you start: understand what is tested
The exam is written from the official programme, which follows the fourteen chapters of the Constitution. Most questions are factual: who elects or appoints whom, for how long, with what majority, from what age, within how many days. A smaller number ask about principles: what the state language is, whether censorship is allowed, what the presumption of innocence means. Almost nothing requires interpretation. This makes the exam very learnable: you are memorising a finite list of facts, roughly 150 of them, and learning to recognise them in Lithuanian.
The plan
Days 1–2: read the whole Constitution once
Read the full text in your language to understand the structure: fourteen chapters from "The State of Lithuania" to "Amending the Constitution". Do not try to remember anything yet. Then skim the Lithuanian original and note the recurring terms you will see on the screen: Seimas, Seimo narys, Respublikos Prezidentas, Vyriausybė, Ministras Pirmininkas, Konstitucinis Teismas, teisėjas, savivaldybė, referendumas, įstatymas, rinkimai, kadencija, neliečiamybė, apkalta.
Days 3–4: the State and the individual (Chapters I–IV)
Learn: the form of the state (independent democratic republic), who exercises state power (Seimas, President, Government, courts), the referendum threshold (300,000 citizens), the state language, the flag colours, the capital, the voting age (18), the 48-hour rule for detained persons, compulsory education until 16, free education in state schools, objects owned exclusively by the State, the right to strike. Practise the four sections and repeat every question you got wrong.
Days 5–6: the Seimas (Chapter V)
This chapter alone can give you four or five questions. Learn: 141 members, four-year term, candidate age 25, session dates (10 March–30 June and 10 September–23 December), immunity, who has the right of legislative initiative (members, President, Government, 50,000 citizens), how a returned law is re-adopted (more than half of all members; three fifths for constitutional laws), impeachment (three fifths), the Seimas ombudsmen.
Days 7–8: the President and the Government (Chapters VI–VII)
Learn: the President is the head of state; candidate must be a citizen by birth, at least 40, resident for the last three years; five-year term, at most two in a row; the second round of elections two weeks after the first; ten days to sign or return a law; the Speaker of the Seimas substitutes the President. Government: Prime Minister appointed by the President with the approval of the Seimas; ministers on the Prime Minister's proposal; programme presented within 15 days; Government returns its powers after Seimas and presidential elections; resigns after two rejections of its programme or a vote of no confidence.
Days 9–10: the courts (Chapters VIII–IX)
Learn: nine Constitutional Court justices, nine-year single term, one third renewed every three years, nominated by the President, the Speaker and the President of the Supreme Court, appointed by the Seimas, decisions final. Court system: Supreme Court, Court of Appeal, regional courts, district courts. Who appoints which judges. The Prosecutor General appointed by the President with the assent of the Seimas.
Day 11: self-government, finances, State Control, defence (Chapters X–XIII)
Learn: municipal councils elected for four years; the Bank of Lithuania issues money and its Chairperson is appointed by the Seimas for five years; the budget year is the calendar year; the budget is submitted at least 75 days before the year ends; the Auditor General is appointed for five years; the State Defence Council members; who declares martial law, mobilisation and a state of emergency (up to six months).
Day 12: amending the Constitution (Chapter XIV) and the mistakes list
Learn: who may propose an amendment (a quarter of the Seimas or 300,000 voters), which articles are amended only by referendum (Article 1 with three quarters of all voters; Chapters I and XIV), how the Seimas adopts other amendments (twice, two thirds, at least three months apart), the one-year ban on resubmitting a failed amendment. Then open your list of mistakes from the previous days and go through all of them again.
Day 13: two full mock exams
Take two 20-question simulations in Lithuanian under exam conditions: no notes, no going back. Aim for 17 or more. If you score below 15, spend the evening on the sections where you lost points and take a third mock the next morning.
Day 14: rest and logistics
Do not cram. Check the time and address of your base school in MIGRIS, prepare your passport or residence card, and arrive 15 minutes early.
The mistakes that cost the most points
- Mixing up terms and ages. The Seimas is elected for four years, the President for five, the Constitutional Court for nine, the Auditor General and the Chairperson of the Bank of Lithuania for five. Candidates: Seimas 25, President 40. Make a single table and repeat it daily.
- Confusing who appoints whom. The President appoints the Prime Minister with the Seimas' approval, but the Seimas appoints the Constitutional Court justices and the Supreme Court judges on the President's proposal. Draw the arrows.
- Answering from another country's constitution. Lithuania has a unicameral parliament, no vice-president, no state religion and a single presidential term limit of two consecutive terms.
- Reading only the translation. The screen shows the Lithuanian text. If you learned "Government" but do not recognise "Vyriausybė", the question is lost.
- Leaving questions blank. There is no penalty for a wrong answer. Eliminate the option that is clearly wrong and choose between the remaining two.
How much Lithuanian do you need
Less than for the language exam. The questions are short, formulaic and use the same 200–300 words throughout. After a week of practising in Lithuanian with a translation next to each question you will recognise the vocabulary automatically. Pay attention to negations (ne, negali, draudžiama) and to quantifiers (ne mažiau kaip, daugiau kaip pusė, du trečdaliai, trys penktadaliai), because a single word changes the answer.
Tools
You need three things: the text of the Constitution in Lithuanian with a translation, a large set of practice questions in the same bilingual format, and a simulator with the real rules. The Konstitucijos testas app combines them: 350+ questions in the fourteen sections of the programme, an explanation and the exact article quoted after every answer, a mistake list that you can repeat on its own, and a 20-question exam mode with the 14-point pass mark. It works offline, so the daily 30 minutes fit into a commute.