Latvian language
The history of the Latvian language (cf. below) has placed it in a peculiar position for a language of its size whereby it is spoken by a large number of non-native speakers as compared to native speakers. The immigrant and minority population in Latvia is 700,000 people: Russians, Belarusians, Ukrainians, Poles, and others. The majority of immigrants came to Latvia between 1940–1991; supplementing pre-existing ethnic minority communities (Latvian Germans, Latvian Jews). In a recent survey, 60% of Latvia's ethnic minorities described their knowledge of Latvian as fluent. Fluency in Latvian is prevalent among the younger generations of the minorities.
Language policy in Latvia
According to Section 6 of Official Language Law, levels of skills in Latvian are defined for various professions, which concern legitimate public interest. Totally, there are six levels and two lists of professions (longer for public sector and shorter for private sector), classified by needed level. For those who didn't get education in Latvian and aren't disabled, an examination is needed to define their skills in Latvian, to work in these professions. Those who fail to show needed level during inspections, can be fined. Labour market shows high demand for skills in Latvian, Russian and English languages.