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Process Of Getting A Ukrainian Passport

Published: December 10, 2023

Modified: December 28, 2023

by Lillis Roeder

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Introduction

Obtaining a Ukrainian passport is a significant milestone for individuals looking to establish their Ukrainian citizenship or to access the numerous benefits and privileges associated with being a Ukrainian citizen. Whether you’re a foreign national married to a Ukrainian spouse, an individual with Ukrainian heritage, or a resident of Ukraine, obtaining a Ukrainian passport is a straightforward process that can be accomplished by following a few essential steps.

A Ukrainian passport serves as a valuable travel document, enabling you to explore the world freely and providing visa-free access to several countries. Additionally, it serves as an official proof of identity and citizenship, making it easier to engage in various activities within Ukraine, such as opening bank accounts, obtaining employment, or participating in government services.

In this comprehensive guide, we will take you through the step-by-step process of obtaining a Ukrainian passport. From determining your eligibility to collecting your passport, we will provide you with essential information and valuable tips to ensure a smooth and successful application process. So, let’s dive into the process and embark on your journey towards acquiring your Ukrainian passport!

Step 1: Determine eligibility for a Ukrainian passport

Before beginning the application process, it is crucial to determine if you are eligible for a Ukrainian passport. Ukrainian citizenship laws outline specific criteria for individuals who can apply for a passport. Here are a few common scenarios that may make you eligible:

• Marriage to a Ukrainian citizen: If you are married to a Ukrainian citizen, you may be eligible for a Ukrainian passport. The marriage must be legally recognized in Ukraine, and you will need to provide documentation to prove your relationship.
• Ukrainian ancestry: If you can prove your Ukrainian ancestry, you may be eligible for a Ukrainian passport. This typically requires providing comprehensive documentation, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, or other evidence of Ukrainian heritage.
• Birth in Ukraine: Individuals born in Ukraine, regardless of their current citizenship, are generally eligible for a Ukrainian passport. You will need to provide a birth certificate or other documents confirming your birth in Ukraine.
• Residence in Ukraine: If you are a legal resident of Ukraine, you may be eligible for a Ukrainian passport. You will need to provide proof of your residency status, such as a residence permit or other documentation.

It is important to note that each individual’s circumstances may vary, and it is advisable to consult with the relevant Ukrainian authorities, such as the State Migration Service or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to determine your specific eligibility requirements.

Once you have confirmed your eligibility for a Ukrainian passport, you can proceed to the next step, which involves gathering the necessary documents.

Step 2: Gather necessary documents

After determining your eligibility for a Ukrainian passport, the next step is to gather the necessary documents to support your application. The specific documents required may vary based on your individual circumstances, but here are some common documents that are typically needed:

• Proof of identity: You will need to provide a valid government-issued identification document, such as a national ID card, driver’s license, or passport. This document should contain your full name, date of birth, and a clear photograph.
• Proof of Ukrainian citizenship or eligibility: Depending on your situation, you may need to provide specific documents to demonstrate your Ukrainian citizenship or eligibility. This could include marriage certificates, birth certificates, residency permits, or other supporting documentation. It is essential to verify the specific requirements with the Ukrainian authorities or the embassy/consulate in your country.
• Passport-sized photographs: Typically, two or more recent and identical passport-sized photographs are required for your application. These should meet the specific size and format requirements outlined by the Ukrainian authorities.
• Completed application form: You will need to fill out the application form for a Ukrainian passport, providing accurate and complete information. The application form can usually be obtained from the State Migration Service or downloaded from their official website.
• Supporting documents for special circumstances: In certain situations, additional supporting documents may be required. For example, if you are applying based on a Ukrainian ancestor, you may need to provide family history documents, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates, or naturalization records.

It is crucial to gather all the required documents and ensure they are valid and up-to-date before proceeding with the application process. Keep in mind that some documents may need to be translated into Ukrainian and notarized.

Once you have collected all the necessary documents, you are ready to move on to the next step: completing the application form.

Step 3: Complete the application form

Completing the application form is a crucial step in the process of obtaining a Ukrainian passport. The application form gathers essential information about you as an applicant and helps the Ukrainian authorities assess your eligibility for citizenship and issuance of a passport. Here are the key steps to complete the application form:

• Download the application form: The application form can usually be obtained from the State Migration Service’s official website or through the embassy/consulate in your country. Make sure to download the most recent version of the form to ensure accuracy.
• Provide accurate personal information: Fill in your personal information accurately, including your full name, date of birth, place of birth, and current address. Double-check all the details to prevent any errors that could potentially delay your application process.
• Answer all the questions: Carefully read and answer all the questions on the application form. Be honest and provide complete information to avoid any complications during the review process.
• Enter your travel details: If you plan to use your Ukrainian passport for travel purposes, indicate your travel history and any planned trips. This information may be required for visa applications or passport verification.
• Attach necessary documents: Make sure to attach all the required supporting documents to your application form. Follow the instructions provided and ensure that the documents are organized and clearly labeled.
• Review and verify your application: Before submitting your application, carefully review all the details and documents attached. Check for any errors or missing information. It may be helpful to have a trusted individual review your application as well to ensure its accuracy.

Once you have completed the application form and attached all the necessary documents, you are ready to proceed to the next step: submitting the application.

Step 4: Submit the application

After completing the application form and gathering all the necessary documents, it is time to submit your application for a Ukrainian passport. The process of submitting the application may vary depending on your location and the Ukrainian authorities you are dealing with. Here are the general steps to follow:

• Check the submission requirements: Before submitting your application, double-check the specific requirements outlined by the relevant Ukrainian authorities. This includes making sure you have included all the necessary documents, completed the form accurately, and met any additional criteria.
• Submit in person or by mail: Depending on the requirements, you may need to submit your application in person at a designated office or consulate, or you may have the option to send it by mail. Ensure that you follow the specified instructions for submission carefully.
• Pay any applicable fees: Some application processes may require payment of certain fees. Make sure to inquire about any fees associated with your application and arrange for the appropriate payment method.
• Obtain a receipt or acknowledgment: Upon submission, request a receipt or acknowledgment as proof that your application has been received. This can be helpful for tracking the progress of your application and addressing any potential issues that may arise.

It is important to note that the submission process may take time, and you may need to exercise patience. The processing time can vary depending on various factors, including the volume of applications and the complexity of the case.

Once your application has been submitted, you can proceed to the next step by paying the processing fee, if applicable.

Step 5: Pay the processing fee

After submitting your application for a Ukrainian passport, you will need to pay the necessary processing fee. The fee amount may vary depending on the type of passport and any additional services requested. Here’s what you need to know about paying the processing fee:

• Check the fee requirements: Before making the payment, ensure that you are aware of the specific fee amount and the acceptable payment methods. You can find this information on the official website of the State Migration Service or by contacting the relevant Ukrainian authorities.
• Determine the payment method: The payment method for the processing fee can vary depending on the application process and your location. Common payment methods include cash, bank transfer, or online payment options. Verify the accepted payment methods and choose the most convenient option for you.
• Keep a record of the payment: Once you have made the payment, ensure that you keep a record of the transaction. This can be in the form of a payment receipt, bank statement, or any other proof of payment. It is essential to have documentation in case there are any discrepancies or inquiries regarding the payment.

It is important to note that the processing fee is non-refundable, even if your application is denied. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that you meet all the eligibility requirements and provide accurate and complete documentation before proceeding with the payment.

After paying the processing fee, you may be required to attend an interview as part of the application process. This will be discussed in the next step.

Step 6: Attend an interview (if required)

As part of the Ukrainian passport application process, you may be required to attend an interview. The purpose of the interview is to verify the information provided in your application and to assess your eligibility for a Ukrainian passport. Here’s what you need to know about attending an interview:

• Notification of the interview: If an interview is required, you will receive notification from the Ukrainian authorities specifying the date, time, and location of the interview. It is important to take note of this information and make necessary arrangements to attend the interview.
• Prepare necessary documents: Before the interview, gather all the supporting documents you submitted with your application. It is advisable to review the documents and ensure they are organized and easily accessible for reference during the interview.
• Be punctual and presentable: Arrive at the interview location on time to demonstrate your punctuality. Dress appropriately and professionally to create a positive impression. Remember, the interview is an opportunity to present yourself as a serious and eligible applicant.
• Answer questions honestly and confidently: During the interview, be prepared to answer questions related to your application, personal background, and reasons for applying for a Ukrainian passport. Be honest, concise, and confident in your responses. If you are unsure about a question, it is acceptable to ask for clarification.
• Be respectful and courteous: Show respect and courtesy towards the interviewers and any staff members assisting with the process. Maintain a professional demeanor throughout the interview to leave a positive impression.

Keep in mind that the interview is an important step in the application process, and the decision regarding your passport issuance may be influenced by the outcome of the interview. Therefore, it is crucial to be well-prepared and approach the interview with a positive mindset.

If an interview is not required, you can proceed to the next step, which involves waiting for the passport to be processed.

Step 7: Wait for the passport to be processed

After completing all the necessary steps, including submitting your application and attending an interview (if required), it’s time to wait for the processing of your Ukrainian passport. The processing time can vary depending on various factors, such as the volume of applications and the complexity of the case. Here’s what you can expect during this waiting period:

• Processing time: The processing time for a Ukrainian passport can range from a few weeks to several months. It is important to be patient during this time and avoid unnecessary inquiries or follow-ups that may delay the processing further.
• Tracking the progress: If you would like to track the progress of your application, you can reach out to the relevant Ukrainian authorities. They may provide an update on the status of your application, but keep in mind that the information provided may be limited.
• Be prepared for additional requests: In some cases, the authorities may request additional documents, information, or clarification during the processing period. If this happens, promptly provide the requested documents or respond to their inquiries to ensure a smooth and efficient process.
• Consideration of external factors: External factors, such as holidays, peak seasons, or unforeseen circumstances, may impact the processing time. It is important to factor in these possibilities and be prepared for any potential delays.

During the waiting period, refrain from making any travel plans that depend on the issuance of your Ukrainian passport. It is recommended to wait until you have received your passport before making any firm commitments or arrangements.

Once the processing is complete, you will be notified about the status of your application and instructed on how to collect your Ukrainian passport. This leads us to the final step: collecting your Ukrainian passport.

Step 8: Collect the Ukrainian passport

Congratulations! The moment has finally arrived to collect your Ukrainian passport. After a waiting period, you will receive notification from the Ukrainian authorities regarding the completion of the processing and instructions for collecting your passport. Here’s what you need to know about this final step:

• Notification of passport availability: You will receive communication, either by email or mail, informing you that your Ukrainian passport is ready for collection. Take note of the designated location and any specific instructions provided.
• Arrange a collection appointment (if required): If an appointment is required to collect your passport, make sure to schedule it within the specified timeframe. This ensures a smooth and organized process, minimizing any potential wait times.
• Bring the necessary documents: When going to collect your passport, remember to bring the original documents that you submitted with your application. These documents may be required for verification purposes during the collection process.
• Payment of any outstanding fees: In some cases, there may be outstanding fees or charges related to the passport issuance. Make sure to bring the appropriate method of payment to settle any outstanding payments at the time of collection.
• Check the passport for accuracy: Before leaving the collection location, thoroughly inspect your Ukrainian passport to ensure that all the information, including your personal details and photograph, is accurate and matches your expectations.
• Keep the passport secure: Once you have collected your Ukrainian passport, it is crucial to keep it in a safe and secure place. Protect it from damage, loss, or theft, as it is a valuable travel document and an official proof of your identity and Ukrainian citizenship.

Congratulations on successfully completing the process of obtaining your Ukrainian passport! Your new passport opens up a world of opportunities for travel, exploration, and enjoying the benefits of Ukrainian citizenship. Make sure to familiarize yourself with the specific privileges and responsibilities associated with being a Ukrainian passport holder.

Remember, if you have any concerns or questions regarding your Ukrainian passport, it is always advisable to seek guidance from the relevant Ukrainian authorities or the embassy/consulate in your country.

Enjoy your exciting journey as a Ukrainian passport holder, and may your travels be filled with adventure and discovery!

Obtaining a Ukrainian passport is a significant process that grants you the benefits of Ukrainian citizenship and opens up a world of opportunities for travel, work, and engagement in various activities within Ukraine. While the steps involved may seem daunting at first, this comprehensive guide has provided you with valuable information on each stage of the process, from determining your eligibility to collecting your Ukrainian passport.

By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can navigate through the application process with confidence and efficiency. Remember to gather all the necessary documents, complete the application form accurately, and submit your application along with the required fees. If an interview is required, be prepared to present yourself as a qualified candidate. Finally, once your passport is processed, collect it promptly and keep it secure.

It is important to note that the specific requirements and procedures may vary depending on your individual circumstances and the Ukrainian authorities involved. Therefore, it is advisable to consult with the relevant Ukrainian authorities or the embassy/consulate in your country to gather the most up-to-date and accurate information.

Obtaining a Ukrainian passport is an exciting accomplishment that enhances your connection with Ukraine and grants you the privileges and rights associated with Ukrainian citizenship. Whether you are exploring your Ukrainian heritage, married to a Ukrainian citizen, or simply seeking new opportunities, the Ukrainian passport is your gateway to a world of possibilities.

Embrace the journey, enjoy your travels, and may your Ukrainian passport be a symbol of your connection to the rich and diverse culture of Ukraine.

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Everything you need to know about the Ukrainian passport

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In some countries except an international passport which serves as a certificate when crossing the national borders, there is also a so-called internal passport – an identity card of the citizen of the State within this State. The internal passports are used to control the movement of persons within the country and their places of residence.

In many countries the passports have a single form and international format, most identification fields on the main page are filled with English. In many other countries (e.g. the USA and EU countries) the passport is not obligatory, and identification documents, passport cards or driver’s licenses take a role of an internal identity card.

Types of passports in Ukraine

Passport of the citizen of ukraine.

Passport of the citizen of Ukraine is a document confirming its owner’s identity and citizenship of Ukraine. It is issued by the central executive body implementing the state policy in the field of citizenship to every citizen of Ukraine aged 16.

To cross the border the citizen of Ukraine must have another passport (so-called “ international “), which is issued upon demand to the persons aged 18.

The internal passport is valid for conclusion of civil transactions, banking operations, execution of warrants for other persons in order to be represented before a third person only on the territory of Ukraine, unless otherwise provided by the international treaties of Ukraine.

The internal passport is issued by the territorial departments of the State Migration Service of Ukraine at the residence of the citizen of Ukraine aged 16, and further, if necessary, is exchanged, issued instead of the passport which has been lost, stolen or damaged.

To homeless citizens the passports are issued at the place of their preferred location. Issuance and exchange of the passports are held within a month.

To obtain a passport of the citizen of Ukraine a person submits the basic documents:

• The application for issuance of the passport;
• The application is filled by the applicant in person by hand, legibly, with exhaustive answers to all the questions, without abbreviations and acronyms. Filling in the application form by other persons instead of disabled persons, mentally ill persons etc. is allowed and the appropriate note is entered into the column “service marks” of the application;
• The application and documents prepared improperly are not accepted and are returned to the applicant;
• The birth certificate;
• Two photos of 3.5 x 5 cm. The photos submitted for preparation of the passport must be done of one negative picturing only the full face without headdress, made on a thin white or color photo paper and without corner. For the citizens permanently wearing glasses, photographing in glasses is compulsory;
• The state tax payment receipt or the copy of a document on state tax exemption.

Additional documents for issuance of the passport of the citizen of Ukraine (if necessary):

• The certificate on registration of the citizen of Ukraine or the Ukrainian citizenship certificate;
• The certificate on the person’s return to live in Ukraine with a corresponding mark in the international passport issued by employees of the territorial body of the citizenship, immigration and persons’ registration services in major departments, departments of MIA of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, regions, cities of Kyiv and Sevastopol, or the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travelling abroad – for the citizens of Ukraine who had a permanent place of residence abroad, after their returning for residence in Ukraine;
• The certificate on release from penitentiary, if before conviction the person had no passport or his/her passport was not withdrawn and attached to the personal file;
• The certificate of registration issued by a specialized institution that provides accounting of homeless people (for the homeless citizens).

The passport and two photos of the specified size are submitted for gluing into the passport for the citizens aged 25 and 45.

Original documents are returned to the person with the issued passport.

Exchange of passport of the citizen of Ukraine is held within one month at the place of residence of the citizen. Gluing new photos into the passport of the citizen aged 25 and 45 is performed in five days.

Exchange Ukrainian passport is made in the following cases:

• Change of name, given name or patronymic;
• Ascertainment of differences in the entries;
• Unsuitability for use

To exchange the passport of the citizen of Ukraine a person must submit:

• The application of the form prescribed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine;
• The passport to be exchanged;
• Two photos of 3.5 x 5 cm

For exchanging the Ukrainian passport in connection with change of name, given name or patronymic, or by differences in the entries the documents confirming these facts are also submitted.

A citizen is obliged immediately to notify about the loss of the passport the passport department, which issues a temporary certificate confirming his/her identity. Form of the temporary certificate, procedure of its issuance is set by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.

For exchanging the passport and gluing the new photos a citizen submits the documents and photos no later than a month after reaching the appropriate age or changing name, given name or patronymic, ascertaining differences in the entries or unsuitability of the passport for use.

• Passport blank forms are made in the form of passport booklet or passport card upon a common model approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.
• Introduction terms of the passport card are determined by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine as a state automated system of population counting is developed.
• Pursuant to the law all entries in the passport and information about its owner entered hereto must be done only in Ukrainian.
• Additional information can also be entered into the passport on the glued sheets of the form specified by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.
• Passport booklet is a cut booklet of 88×125 mm, consisting of a cover and 16 pages.
• All pages of the booklet are numbered, on each of them the State Emblem of Ukraine is shown and a series and passport number are perforated.
• The top of the cover front has the inscription “Ukraine”, below the State Emblem of Ukraine is placed and under it – the inscription “Passport”.
• There is the image of the State flag of Ukraine in the center of the inner left side of the cover, below – the inscription “Passport of the citizen of Ukraine.”
• Name, given name and patronymic, date and place of birth are entered on the first and second pages of the passport booklet. On the first page also the photo is glued and a place for the owner’s signature is given. On the second page data on sex, date of issue and the authority issued the passport are entered, the signature of the officer responsible for its issuance is put. The entries are certified with a mastic seal and the photo with a convex dry seal.
• The first page or the first sheet can be covered up after filling the relevant entries and gluing the photo. In the case of covering up all sheets the entries and the photos are not certified with the seals.
• The third, fourth, fifth and sixth pages are for photos, and the seventh, eighth and ninth – for special marks. On the tenth page a mark about the family status of the passport owner is made; the eleventh – sixteenth pages are for registration notes of the citizen’s residence.
• Upon the citizen’s request data on children, blood group and Rh factor can be included into the passport (seventh, eighth and ninth pages) on the basis of the appropriate documents.
• It is forbidden to enter into the passport entries not provided for this Regulation or laws of Ukraine.
• Any entries, marks and photos gluing in the passport are performed by the passport service.
• Validity of the passport made in the form of a passport booklet is not limited.
• New photos are glued into the passport booklet of the citizen aged 25 and 45. The passport without such photos glued upon his/her owner’s achievement of the age aforesaid is considered invalid.
• The passport in the form of a passport card (information sheet) has a size of 80×60 mm. In the information sheet the photo is glued and the information about its owner is entered: name and given name, patronymic, date of birth and personal number, date of issue and authority code issued it.
• The information sheet is covered up on both sides.
• Validity of the passport made in the form of the passport card is determined by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.
• Passport blank forms are produced on request of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine by the Main Department for production of securities and important controlled documents of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine with high quality paper having special protection and are strictly accountable documents.
• Documents for obtaining the passport should be given within 1 month after achieving the age of 16 (or you are required to pay a fine)

Passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travelling abroad

Passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travel abroad ( international passport ) is a document certifying the identity of the citizen of Ukraine when crossing the Ukraine state border and staying abroad. Since Ukraine has been officially recognized on the international arena as a sovereign and independent state the official authorities faced with the task to provide their citizens with the relevant documents guarantying their right to cross the state border in order to visit any country or territory in the world.

According to the normative legal acts adopted by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in 1992 and 1993, President of Ukraine Leonid Kravchuk approved “Regulations on the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travelling abroad” by his Decree of October 28, 1993 No 491/93 and charged the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to issue the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travel abroad from January 1, 1994. Thus the citizens of Ukraine became the right for their own Ukrainian document that would allow them to cross the state border and stay abroad.

INSTRUCTION: How to renew Ukrainian passport that is damaged

Despite this fact the passport of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1991 issued) was not ceased to be effective, and therefore a legal precedent was set when the citizens of Ukraine used the document of the non-existent country (USSR) for travel and stay abroad.

The advantage of getting the first Ukrainian passports was given to public officials, and ordinary citizens of Ukraine could receive the USSR passports more than one year.

Documents required for issuance of the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travelling abroad

• the application form (application form is provided by the Foreign Ministry)
• the state tax payment receipts (or a document confirming the right for exemption);
• the passport of the citizen of Ukraine, and for persons aged under 16 – the birth certificate (after receiving the documents are returned to the service receiver);
• the copy and original of the identification number (returns after receiving documents);
• the paper issued by the internal affairs authority about loss of the passport (available only in case of loss of the passport).

A standard period for passport preparation is 30 working days. Tariff rate increases in 100% in case of exigent consular action. (10 working days).

How to get the Ukrainian passport for travelling abroad

• To submit to the SMS (State Migration Service) department documents required (if living abroad to apply to the relevant diplomatic institutions);
• When preparing the passport with an electronic chip the procedure of scanning the pointing fingers should be underwent by submitting the application in the SMS department. Scanning the child fingers can be carried out after their achievement of the age of 12 and only with the parents’ permission (or legal representatives).
• To verify correctness of the personal information entered into the application form, paying special attention to spelling the name, given name, and to certify accuracy of such data by signing the application form;
• To apply to the territorial agency or to the SMS department and obtain the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travelling abroad giving the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for making an appropriate mark, or to receive the refusal in preparation and issuance of the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travelling abroad.

Cost of the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travelling abroad

• The state tax – UAH 170. (Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine of 21.01.1993 No 7-93 «On State Tax”).
• The cost of the services – UAH 87.15. (Decree of the CMU of June 4, 2007 No 795 “On approval of the list of paid services provided by the departments of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the State Migration Service, and payment amount for their provision”)
• The cost of the blank form is determined by the manufacturer (based on p. 4 of the order of providing paid services by the departments of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the State Migration Service approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine of October 26, 2011 No 1098 “Some issues of paid services providing by the MIA and SMS”)
• with an electronic chip (biometric passport) – UAH 304. 32.
• without an electronic chip – UAH 238. 32.  

The cost of issuance of the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travelling abroad in case of exigent preparation (within 7 days)

• The state tax – UAH 340.
• The cost of the services – UAH 174.30.
• The cost of the blank form determined by the manufacturer
• with an electronic chip
• without an electronic chip – UAH 238.32.

The cost of Ukrainian passport increases from July 01, 2019

Documents required for receiving the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travelling abroad

• the application providing the information about the applicant: name, given name, patronymic, passport data (series, passport number, by whom and when issued, address), phone number. The application is executed by the employee of the SMS of Ukraine;
• the payment document (receipt) with a mark of the bank, post office or code of the operation confirming payment of this administrative service and the passport blank;
• the payment document (receipt) with a mark of the bank, post office or code of the operation confirming state tax payment or a document about full or partly absence of tax obligations
• the passport of the citizen of Ukraine, and for persons aged  under 16 – the birth certificate (after receiving the documents are returned to the service receiver);
• for issuance of the second passport/travel document or for simultaneous preparation of two passports/travel documents the citizens additionally submit an application justifying the need for regular travels abroad (e.g. providing passenger or freight services, participating in sport competitions or concert and theater tours, business, tourist or journalist activities etc.). By simultaneous preparation of two passports/travel documents two application forms with copies of required documents are submitted.
• if the passport is prepared for the person who has not achieved the age of 12 or the person who can not move independently in connection with the lasting health malady, as confirmed by the relevant certificate of the medical center, two colored photos of 3.5×4.5 cm and one photo of 10×15 cm are given for making the person’s digitized image by scanning.

Consideration term for the application for issuance of the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for travelling aboard

The applications for issuance of the passport are considered for not more then 20 working days after submission of the documents, except of the following cases:

• By urgent issuance (on request of the person) with double size payment of the state tax and the cost of the services – up to 7 business days.
• If travel is related to emergency treatment of the departing person, departure of the person accompanying the seriously ill patient or death of the relative who lived abroad – within three working days.
• In the case of departure for permanent residence (immigration) – up to 3 months

In the case when a child – citizen of Ukraine adopted by foreigners departs abroad for permanent residence, the passport is issued within a period of 10 working days.

Validity of the passport of the citizen of Ukraine for traveling abroad

For the citizens under 16 years – 4 years, for the citizens aged over 16 – 10 years from the date of issue

What you need to know when you travel in the EU

In most cases, if you have fled the war in Ukraine you will be able to travel to other EU countries. For Ukrainians with a biometric passport this right comes from the visa free regime in place between the EU and Ukraine. If you come from a third country, you need to check whether your country of origin is on the list of third countries whose nationals are exempt from the requirement to have a visa.

After crossing the EU border for the first time, can I continue to travel to other EU/Schengen countries, or do I need to stay?

Ukrainian nationals holding a biometric passport, as visa-free travelers, have the right to move freely within the EU after being admitted into the territory for 90 days. On this basis, you are able to choose the EU country in which you want to enjoy the rights attached to temporary protection and to join your family and friends in the EU country where they are present.

If you are entitled to temporary protection but hold a non-biometric passport, authorities at the border of the EU country of first entry should issue a short-stay visa valid for 15 days when entering the Schengen area. This will allow travelling to the EU country of destination to enjoy the rights attached to temporary protection.

If you are entitled to temporary protection but do not hold a travel document, it will be up to the authorities at the border of the EU country of first entry to allow you continuing your journey if needed, e.g. by issuing a travel document and a visa or by using transfer forms relating to temporary protection legislation.

If you crossed the EU border for the first time through a country that is not part of the EU area without internal border control (Romania, Bulgaria, Cyprus and Ireland) your documents will, as a general rule, be checked again at the border crossing point of the next Schengen country. Please see also the explanations about the registration of unaccompanied or separated children.

I entered the EU through Romania or Bulgaria. What happens if I want to continue my journey to a country that is part of the area without internal border control?

You can do so, but your documents will be checked again at the border of the first EU country that forms part of the Schengen area. This will be the case, for example, if you are crossing the border between Hungary and Romania.

Can I move between countries that are part of the Schengen area without internal border control?

Yes. Once you enter a country that is part of this area, you can move, in principle without border checks, to other countries that are part of the Schengen area. However, you can only do so for 90 days within a 180 days period.

Note that Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein are not EU countries, but they are Schengen countries. You can travel to those countries once you have entered the Schengen area, but your rights related to international or temporary protection may differ from those you have in EU countries.

While Denmark is an EU and a Schengen country, it does not take part in the temporary protection scheme and does not apply the EU rules on asylum. Therefore, your rights related to international or temporary protection in Denmark may differ from those you have in other EU countries.

My 90 days visa free travel in the EU expires soon and I registered for temporary protection, however, I did not yet receive my residence permit. What can I do in this case, if I need to go back to Ukraine or if I need to travel to another EU country?

According to EU rules, you should receive a residence permit and you can use that to travel for up to 90 days within 180 days to other Schengen countries. With the same permit, you can leave the EU to another third country – for example Ukraine - and re-enter the EU again.

If you have not yet received your residence permit, you may receive national papers or permits. This is different from one EU country to another. Certain papers or permits - those listed in  Annex 22 to the Schengen Handbook  allow you to travel as if you would have a residence permit. However, this is not the case for all national papers/document issued by Schengen countries. Please check with the national authorities of the country where you are registered for temporary protection if the papers you receive allow you to travel.

If this is not the case, but you need to travel to Ukraine and come back, the only viable solution would be for you, when you come back to the EU, to enter directly - by land, air or sea- to the EU country where you are registered for temporary protection.

If you need to travel to another Schengen country you can do so for up to 90 days within 180 days with your residence permit or a national paper/document which is listed in  Annex 22  (and therefore has the same effect as a residence permit). If you don't have such document you are advised not to travel for the time being to other Schengen countries, since your stay there might be considered illegal.

Attention: Residence permits issued by Romania, Bulgaria, Cyprus and Ireland don´t have Schengen wide effect and don't give you the right to travel to other Schengen States. Residence permits issued by States that are in the Schengen area without internal border controls are, however, recognised by Romania, Bulgaria and Cyprus and give a right to travel to these countries.

Can border guards, police or other relevant authorities still ask for my identification documents, even though I am in a Schengen country?

Yes. Police and other administrative checks are always possible including within the territory and at internal borders for security and migration purposes. It is important to cooperate and provide the required documents and information to police or border guards. In certain circumstances you may be required to remain available to the authorities during these checks in designated facilities.

Are there any travel restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic?

Please consult  Re-open EU  for information on travel and health measures in EU and Schengen Associated countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Is my Ukrainian driving license valid in the EU?

As of 27 July 2022, new temporary EU rules ensure that people fleeing Ukraine can continue to use their Ukrainian driving licence, without needing to exchange it for an EU driving licence or to sit a new driving test. The new Regulation sets specific rules on expired, lost and stolen Ukrainian driving licences to reduce the administrative burden for those residing in the EU under the temporary protection regime. Digital driving licences issued by Ukraine (DIIA) may also be recognised once verification tools have been made available and deployed by Ukraine. Read more about these  rules .

The recognition of non-EU driving licenses differs across EU countries. A list of the sources informing about foreign licenses in EU countries is available in the map below.

National contact details and information

In this map by clicking on the country you will find useful information about national authorities in EU countries who you can contact about temporary protection, as well as information on healthcare or employment support.

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• Passports, travel and living abroad
• Travel abroad
• Foreign travel advice

Warnings and insurance

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office ( FCDO ) provides advice about risks of travel to help British nationals make informed decisions. Find out more about FCDO travel advice .

Your travel insurance could be invalidated if you travel against FCDO advice. Consular support is also severely limited where FCDO advises against travel.

FCDO  advises against all but essential travel to the western regions of:

• Zakarpattia
• Ivano-Frankivsk

FCDO  advises against all travel to

• within 50km of the borders of Volyn, Rivne and Zhytomyr with Belarus, due to the ongoing presence of Russian and Belarusian military and security personnel on the Belarusian side of the border
• the rest of Ukraine

Russian invasion of Ukraine

The Russian invasion of Ukraine is ongoing, with missile and drone attacks across the country. Russian missile and drone strikes have caused significant damage to civilian infrastructure, including residential areas, energy and industrial facilities, injuring and killing civilians.  Ukraine’s airspace remains closed.

There is an ongoing risk of harm to British nationals from Russian attacks across all of Ukraine, including from missiles and drones that hit unintended targets or from falling debris. Whilst these are more frequent where FCDO advises against all travel, they could also happen in the western regions, where FCDO advice is against all but essential travel.

In the event of attacks, follow the advice of the local authorities, including responding to air raid sirens.

The situation in Ukraine can change quickly. Local rules and measures may change at short notice or with no notification. FCDO cannot confirm that all information here reflects the latest situation in Ukraine.

Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant

Explosions continue to be reported near the area of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant indicating ongoing military activity. There have been no reports of any radiation release.

Leaving Ukraine

Expect increased documentation checks, transport restrictions and increased security measures. Other measures could include additional border controls, restrictions on public events, curfews, restrictions on telephones, internet and broadcasting, and evacuations of certain areas.

If you are a dual British-Ukrainian national or you have the right to reside in the UK, and want to leave Ukraine, contact the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine on [email protected] for advice.

Ukrainian national and dual-national males aged 18 to 60 are prohibited from leaving the country.

The authorities in the countries bordering Ukraine set and enforce their entry rules. Before you travel, check the foreign travel advice for any countries you plan to travel through. If you need consular assistance, contact the British Embassy in that country (contact details can be found in the relevant foreign travel advice page).

Assisted departure or evacuation

The British Embassy in Kyiv is unable to provide in-person consular assistance.

FCDO cannot facilitate your departure from Ukraine or evacuation. If you are in Ukraine against FCDO advice, or require support to leave Ukraine, take advice from a private security company and take appropriate security measures.

FCDO cannot endorse or recommend any private security companies. Research whether a service provider will be suitable for your requirements and meets code of conduct and safety standards. The Security in Complex Environments Group (SCEG) has several companies listed on their website. These companies have accredited certification for international standards.

FCDO has not completed due diligence checks on these companies. FCDO does not accept any liability arising to any person for any loss or damage suffered through using these service providers or this information. FCDO is not able to provide financial assistance for employing private security or medical evacuation companies.

Visas for the UK

If you are a family member of a British national normally living in Ukraine and intend to apply for a visa under the Ukrainian Family Scheme, read the guidance on visas for family members of British nationals normally living in Ukraine . Call +44 (0)808 164 8810 (select option 1) for assistance before applying.

Under this scheme, which is free, those joining family in the UK can stay in the UK for up to 3 years. They will be able to study, work and access public funds.

Foreign fighters

If you travel to Ukraine to fight, or to assist others engaged in the war, your activities may amount to offences under UK legislation.  You could be prosecuted on your return to the UK.

British nationals fighting in Ukraine have been killed or captured. British nationals undertaking humanitarian work have also been detained by Russian authorities. The risk to life, or of mistreatment, is high.

Our ability to provide consular support in these circumstances is very limited.

Supporting Ukraine

There are many ways to support Ukraine from the UK. For further information, see Ukraine: what you can do to help .

Related content

Invasion of ukraine.

• UK visa support for Ukrainian nationals
• Move to the UK if you're coming from Ukraine
• Homes for Ukraine: record your interest
• Find out about the UK’s response

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Ukrainian Passport

The citizens of Ukraine can visit 112 countries without a visa.

Ukrainian passport holders also have access to get 43 e-visas or 19 visas on arrival .

Ukraine has a population of 44.1M people and the capital is Kiev 🇺🇦.

Visa-free map

Nearby countries.

The nearest visa free countries to visit for Ukrainian passport holders are Moldova, Belarus, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey and Latvia .

Visa free countries

So, where can Ukrainians travel without a visa? We have listed all the countries where Ukraine citizens can travel visa-free, eliminating the hassle of visa paperwork.

• 🇦🇱 Albania (90 days)
• 🇦🇩 Andorra (N/A)
• 🇦🇹 Austria (90 days)
• 🇧🇾 Belarus (90 days)
• 🇧🇪 Belgium (90 days)
• 🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina (30 days)
• 🇧🇬 Bulgaria (90 days)
• 🇭🇷 Croatia (90 days)
• 🇨🇾 Cyprus (90 days)
• 🇩🇰 Denmark (90 days)
• 🇪🇪 Estonia (90 days)
• 🇫🇮 Finland (90 days)
• 🇫🇷 France (90 days)
• 🇩🇪 Germany (90 days)
• 🇬🇷 Greece (90 days)
• 🇭🇺 Hungary (90 days)
• 🇮🇸 Iceland (90 days)
• 🇮🇪 Ireland (90 days)
• 🇮🇹 Italy (90 days)
• 🇱🇻 Latvia (90 days)
• 🇱🇮 Liechtenstein (90 days)
• 🇱🇹 Lithuania (90 days)
• 🇱🇺 Luxembourg (90 days)
• 🇲🇹 Malta (90 days)
• 🇲🇩 Moldova (90 days)
• 🇲🇨 Monaco (N/A)
• 🇲🇪 Montenegro (90 days)
• 🇳🇱 Netherlands (90 days)
• 🇲🇰 North Macedonia (90 days)
• 🇳🇴 Norway (90 days)
• 🇵🇱 Poland (90 days)
• 🇵🇹 Portugal (90 days)
• 🇷🇴 Romania (90 days)
• 🇷🇺 Russia (90 days)
• 🇸🇲 San Marino (N/A)
• 🇷🇸 Serbia (90 days)
• 🇸🇰 Slovakia (90 days)
• 🇸🇮 Slovenia (90 days)
• 🇪🇸 Spain (90 days)
• 🇸🇪 Sweden (90 days)
• 🇨🇭 Switzerland (90 days)
• 🇻🇦 Vatican City (N/A)
• 🇽🇰 Kosovo (90 days within any 6-month period.)
• 🇫🇴 Faroe Islands (90 days)
• 🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda (180 days)
• 🇦🇷 Argentina (90 days)
• 🇧🇧 Barbados (28 days)
• 🇧🇷 Brazil (90 days)
• 🇨🇱 Chile (90 days)
• 🇨🇴 Colombia (90 days)
• 🇨🇷 Costa Rica (180 days)
• 🇩🇲 Dominica (90 days)
• 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic (30 days)
• 🇪🇨 Ecuador (90 days)
• 🇸🇻 El Salvador (180 days)
• 🇬🇩 Grenada (3 months)
• 🇬🇹 Guatemala (90 days)
• 🇭🇹 Haiti (3 months)
• 🇭🇳 Honduras (90 days)
• 🇯🇲 Jamaica (30 days)
• 🇳🇮 Nicaragua (90 days)
• 🇵🇦 Panama (90 days)
• 🇵🇾 Paraguay (90 days)
• 🇵🇪 Peru (90 days)
• 🇰🇳 Saint Kitts and Nevis (90 days)
• 🇻🇨 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (3 months)
• 🇸🇷 Suriname (90 days)
• 🇺🇾 Uruguay (90 days)
• 🇬🇱 Greenland (90 days)
• 🇬🇫 French Guiana (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇬🇵 Guadeloupe (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇲🇶 Martinique (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇧🇱 Saint Barthélemy (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇲🇫 Saint Martin (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇵🇲 Saint Pierre and Miquelon (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇦🇼 Aruba (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇨🇼 Curaçao (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇸🇽 Sint Maarten (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇦🇲 Armenia (180 days)
• 🇦🇿 Azerbaijan (90 days)
• 🇧🇳 Brunei (30 days)
• 🇬🇪 Georgia (3 years)
• 🇮🇱 Israel (3 months)
• 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan (90 days)
• 🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan (90 days)
• 🇲🇾 Malaysia (30 days)
• 🇲🇳 Mongolia (90 days)
• 🇴🇲 Oman (14 days / 30 days)
• 🇶🇦 Qatar (90 days)
• 🇹🇯 Tajikistan (90 days)
• 🇹🇭 Thailand (30 days)
• 🇹🇷 Turkey (90 days)
• 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates (30 days)
• 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan (Unlimited)
• 🇭🇰 Hong Kong (14 days)
• 🇸🇿 Eswatini (30 days)
• 🇲🇺 Mauritius (90 days)
• 🇲🇿 Mozambique (30 days)
• 🇳🇦 Namibia (3 months)
• 🇹🇳 Tunisia (30 days)
• 🇾🇹 Mayotte (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇷🇪 Réunion (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇫🇯 Fiji (4 months)
• 🇰🇮 Kiribati (90 days)
• 🇫🇲 Micronesia (30 days)
• 🇻🇺 Vanuatu (30 days)
• 🇵🇫 French Polynesia (90 days within any 180 day period.)
• 🇳🇨 New Caledonia (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇼🇫 Wallis and Futuna (90 days within any 180-day period.)
• 🇨🇰 Cook Islands (31 days)
• 🇳🇺 Niue (30 days)
• 🇵🇳 Pitcairn Islands (14 days)

This data has been sourced from Wikipedia and was last updated on 5/1/2024.

• Moldova visa free countries
• Belarus visa free countries
• Romania visa free countries

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How to Renew a Ukrainian Passport in the U.S.

Home » Passports » How to Obtain a U.S. Passport

Ukrainian Embassy and Consulates in the U.S.

Completing the ukrainian passport application, required supporting documents.

• Completed passport application form printed and signed
• Proof of identity and Ukrainian citizenship (current Ukrainian passport)
• Ukrainian Identification Code (both number and copy of the documents)
• Proof of the right to reside in the U.S (green card, work permit etc)
• Birth certificate plus a copy thereof
• Two photos of 3.5 cm by 4.5 cm and 10 cm by 15 cm
• Receipt of payment of passport fee ($155 for renewal)

Passport Photos Specifications

• Applicant's shoulders and face should appear in the photo
• Applicant's face should take up approximately 70% - 80% of the photo
• The photo must be of good quality and not have an scratches or marks on it
• Applicant should face forwards with eyes directed towards the camera
• Applicant must hold a natural expression with closed mouth and no smile
• No hair, glasses or anything else may obscure the face

Get the Latest Updates

Update May 10, 2024

Information for u.s. citizens in the middle east.

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Other Visa Categories

U.S. Visa: Reciprocity and Civil Documents by Country

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Reciprocity Schedule

Select a visa category below to find the visa issuance fee, number of entries, and validity period for visas issued to applicants from this country*/area of authority.

Explanation of Terms

Visa Classification: The type of nonimmigrant visa you are applying for.

Fee: The reciprocity fee, also known as the visa issuance fee, you must pay. This fee is in addition to the nonimmigrant visa application fee (MRV fee).

Number of Entries: The number of times you may seek entry into the United States with that visa. "M" means multiple times. If there is a number, such as "One", you may apply for entry one time with that visa.

Validity Period: This generally means the visa is valid, or can be used, from the date it is issued until the date it expires, for travel with that visa. If your Validity Period is 60 months, your visa will be valid for 60 months from the date it is issued.

Visa Classifications

Country specific footnotes.

Although care has been taken to ensure the accuracy, completeness and reliability of the information provided, please contact the U.S. Embassy or Consulate where you plan to apply if you believe this information is in error or if you have further questions.

Visa Category Footnotes

The validity of A-3, G-5, and NATO 7 visas may not exceed the validity of the visa issued to the person who is employing the applicant. The "employer" would have one of the following visa classifications:

• G-1 through G-4
• NATO 1 through NATO 6

An E-1 and E-2 visa may be issued only to a principal alien who is a national of a country having a treaty, or its equivalent, with the United States. E-1 and E-2 visas may not be issued to a principal alien if he/she is a stateless resident or national of a country without a treaty.  *When the spouse and children of an E-1 or E-2 principal alien are accorded derivative E-1 or E-2 status and are themselves a national of a country that does not have a treaty with the United States – the reciprocity schedule, including any reciprocity fees, of the principal alien’s country of nationality should be used.  **Spouse and children of an E-1 or E-2 visa principal applicant, where the spouse and children are also nationals of a country that has a treaty with the United States – the reciprocity schedule, including any reciprocity fees, of the spouse and children’s country of nationality should be used.  

*Example 1: John Doe is a national of Country A that has an E-1/E-2 treaty with the U.S. however his wife and child are nationals of Country B which has no treaty with the U.S. The wife and child would, therefore, be entitled to derivative status and receive the same reciprocity as John Doe, the principal visa holder. **Example 2:  Mike Doe is a national of Country Y that has an E-1/E-2 treaty with the U.S. however his wife and child are nationals of Country Z that also has a treaty with the U.S. The wife and child would, therefore, be entitled to derivative status and receive the reciprocity issued to nationals of Country Z.

The validity of H-1 through H-3, O-1 and O-2, P-1 through P-3, and Q visas may not exceed the period of validity of the approved petition or the number of months shown, whichever is less.

Under 8 CFR §214.2, H-2A and H-2B petitions may generally only be approved for nationals of countries that the Secretary of Homeland Security has designated as participating countries. The current list of eligible countries is available on USCIS's website for both H-2A and H-2B visas. Nationals of countries not on this list may be the beneficiary of an approved H-2A or H2-B petition in limited circumstances at the discretion of the Department of Homeland Security if specifically named on the petition.  

Derivative H-4, L-2, O-3, and P-4 visas, issued to accompanying or following-to-join spouses and children, may not exceed the validity of the visa issued to the principal alien.

There is no reciprocity fee for the issuance of a J visa if the alien is a United States Government grantee or a participant in an exchange program sponsored by the United States Government.

Also, there is no reciprocity fee for visa issuance to an accompanying or following-to-join spouse or child (J-2) of an exchange visitor grantee or participant.

In addition, an applicant is eligible for an exemption from the MRV fee if he or she is participating in a State Department, USAID, or other federally funded educational and cultural exchange program (program serial numbers G-1, G-2, G-3 and G-7).

However, all other applicants with U.S. Government sponsorships, including other J-visa applicants, are subject to the MRV processing fee.

Under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Canadian and Mexican nationals coming to engage in certain types of professional employment in the United States may be admitted in a special nonimmigrant category known as the "trade NAFTA" or "TN" category. Their dependents (spouse and children) accompanying or following to join them may be admitted in the "trade dependent" or "TD" category whether or not they possess Canadian or Mexican nationality. Except as noted below, the number of entries, fees and validity for non-Canadian or non-Mexican family members of a TN status holder seeking TD visas should be based on the reciprocity schedule of the TN principal alien.

Canadian Nationals

Since Canadian nationals generally are exempt from visa requirement, a Canadian "TN' or "TD" alien does not require a visa to enter the United States. However, the non-Canadian national dependent of a Canadian "TN", unless otherwise exempt from the visa requirement, must obtain a "TD" visa before attempting to enter the United States. The standard reciprocity fee and validity period for all non-Canadian "TD"s is no fee, issued for multiple entries for a period of 36 months, or for the duration of the principal alien's visa and/or authorized period of stay, whichever is less. See 'NOTE' under Canadian reciprocity schedule regarding applicants of Iranian, Iraqi or Libyan nationality.

Mexican Nationals

Mexican nationals are not visa-exempt. Therefore, all Mexican "TN"s and both Mexican and non-Mexican national "TD"s accompanying or following to join them who are not otherwise exempt from the visa requirement (e.g., the Canadian spouse of a Mexican national "TN") must obtain nonimmigrant visas.

Applicants of Iranian, Iraqi, Libyan, Somalian, Sudanese, Syrian or Yemeni nationality, who have a permanent resident or refugee status in Canada/Mexico, may not be accorded Canadian/Mexican reciprocity, even when applying in Canada/Mexico. The reciprocity fee and period for "TD" applicants from Libya is $10.00 for one entry over a period of 3 months. The Iranian and Iraqi "TD" is no fee with one entry over a period of 3 months.

Q-2 (principal) and Q-3 (dependent) visa categories are in existence as a result of the 'Irish Peace Process Cultural and Training Program Act of 1998'. However, because the Department anticipates that virtually all applicants for this special program will be either Irish or U.K. nationals, the Q-2 and Q-3 categories have been placed only in the reciprocity schedules for those two countries. Q-2 and Q-3 visas are available only at the Embassy in Dublin and the Consulate General in Belfast.

No S visa may be issued without first obtaining the Department's authorization.

V-2 and V-3 status is limited to persons who have not yet attained their 21st birthday. Accordingly, the period of validity of a V-2 or V-3 visa must be limited to expire on or before the applicant's twenty-first birthday.

Posts may not issue a T-1 visa. A T-1 applicant must be physically present in the United States, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands or a U.S. port of entry, where he/she will apply for an adjustment of status to that of a T-1. The following dependents of a T-1 visa holder, however, may be issued a T visa at a U.S. consular office abroad:

• T-2 (spouse)
• T-3 (child)
• T-4 (parent)

The validity of NATO-5 visas may not exceed the period of validity of the employment contract or 12 months, whichever is less.

The validity of CW-1 and CW-2 visas shall not exceed the maximum initial period of admission allowed by DHS (12 months) or the duration of the transition period ending December 31, 2014, whichever is shortest.

The validity of E-2C visas shall not exceed the maximum initial period of admission allowed by DHS (24 months) or the duration of the transition period ending December 31, 2014, whichever is shortest.

General Documents

Original civil documents (called in general certificates of state registration of the acts of civil status) issued or re-issued on the territory of Ukraine are accepted regardless of the country (USSR, Poland, or Ukraine) or date of issuance. 

Re-issuance of a certificate of state registration of the act of civil status is done on the basis of the records of civil status.  Re-issuance applies to the cases when the original certificate was stolen, lost, damaged or destroyed or in case of changes to the record of civil status or its renewal.  The application must be submitted by the person, for whom the record was made, or parents, adoptive parents, guardians, a representative of health, education or other child care facility where the child permanently resides, or a guardian authority.  It is possible for a third party to request the re-issuance if that person has a proper power of attorney.  Certificate of state registration of act of civil status is issued to representatives of the education or other child care facility where the child permanently resides, or a guardian authority upon presentation of a proxy issued by the institution and documents proving the person’s identity.

Persons 16 years of age may apply for the re-issuance of a certificate upon presentation of a passport (a passport document).

Persons who have applied to the Department of state registration of acts of civil status (at the location of the birth record) personally may receive the re-issued certificates of state registration of acts of civil status the same day upon presentation of their passport or a passport document.  If the application for re-issuance of the certificate has been received by mail (by the department at the location of the birth record), the certificate is issued in 15-day period and sent to the department of state registration of acts of civil status at the place of residence of the applicant.

The documents intended for use abroad in all countries that are parties to the Hague Convention on the Abolition of Legalization of Documents need to be apostilled. Documents which have been certified by RAGS or a local notary office can be affixed with an apostille by the Ministry of Justice. Documents that bear an apostille need not be authenticated by an American consular officer for use in the United States. Documents issued in Ukraine are apostilled by the Ministry of Justice , located at: 73 Artema St. in Kyiv at these phone numbers: +38-044-486-4216 (civil registry documents, i.e., death, birth, marriage, divorce certificates, etc.) in Room 155; and +38-044-486-4988 (notarized documents) in Room 118. Hours are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9:00 am until 12:00 noon. A regular apostille takes one day. However, in certain cases the process may take up to 20 business days if the Ministry does not have a copy of the seal and/or signature on file.

An e-Register of Apostilles was introduced in Ukraine in October 2015. The e-Register of Apostilles is a single database of apostilles put on documents issued by judicial and court agencies, as well as documents executed by notaries of Ukraine and on all other kinds of documents. The e-Register of Apostilles can be accessed here .

Some civil records were destroyed during World War II. Local authorities generally will issue a certificate to that effect; the process may easily take several months. In other cases, records of persons in what used to be Ukraine were transferred to neighboring countries when borders shifted.

Marriages and divorces in occupied Crimea or in the non-government controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts (the “Donetsk People’s Republic” [DPR] and the “Luhansk People’s Republic” [LPR]) are not legally recognized in Ukraine and therefore do not establish a valid legal relationship for U.S. immigration purposes.  Only marriages and divorces performed by Ukrainian authorities and evidenced by official documents issued by the Ukrainian authorities are valid. 

Ukrainian authorities do not issue birth or death certificates based solely off certificates issued by Russian authorities in Crimea or by the so-called “DPR” and “LPR.”  Individuals with birth or death certificates issued in these regions may seek a Ukrainian court decree ordering the issuance of a Ukrainian birth or death certificate.

As marriages and divorces performed in Crimea or in the non-government controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts are not legally recognized, individuals will need to legally marry outside Crimea or the non-government controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts to create a legal relationship.   

Notarized/certified copies of civil documents are not accepted and therefore not created in Ukraine.

General Issuing Authority Information:

Civil documents are generally available in Ukraine through local or oblast (district or regional) departments of state registration of acts of civil status (DRATsS).   Diplomatic missions and Consular sections of Ukraine abroad, and also the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine can also accept requests for civil documents.

Birth, Death, Burial Certificates

Birth certificates.

Fees:  <   USD 1

Document Name: Svidotstvo pro narodzhennya

Issuing Authority: District or regional State registration of civil status offices

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: All kinds of birth certificates issued on the territory of current Ukraine are accepted. All of them bear a wet seal and a signature of the executive officer of the issuing authority.

Issuing Authority Personnel Title: Department Head of the State registration of civil status office

Registration Criteria: Defined by Family Code of Ukraine

Procedure for Obtaining: The applicant must request birth certificates from one of the two locations: 1) district DRATsS (Civil Registry Office of the Department of Justice) either at the place of residence or at the place where the registration of document took place; 2) Ukrainian consulate or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (for residents of other countries).

Certified Copies: Certified copies are not available

Alternate Documents:  There are no alternate documents

Exceptions: None

Comments: None

Death Certificates

Fees: None for original issuance;  < USD 1 for re-issuance

Document Name: Svidotstvo pro smert

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: All kinds of death certificates issued on the territory of current Ukraine are accepted.  All of them bear a wet seal and a signature of the executive officer of the issuing authority

Procedure for Obtaining: Similar to that of obtaining the birth certificate.  Close relatives such as grandchildren may apply for the document

Alternate Documents: There are no alternate documents

Exceptions:  None

Comments:  None

Marriage, Divorce Certificates

Fees: < USD 1 for original issuance; < USD 1 for re-issuance

Document Name: Svidotstvo pro shlyub

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: All kinds of marriage certificates issued on the territory of current Ukraine are accepted.  All of them bear a wet seal and a signature of the executive officer of the issuing authority

Procedure for Obtaining: Issued to the married couple on the day of the civil marriage registration. The procedure of obtaining a re-issued document is the same as for the birth certificate.  Re-issuance of the marriage certificate is not possible if the marriage has been terminated. In such case, the extract from the state registry can confirm the dates of marriage and divorce and the surnames prior to marriage registration and after divorce.

Alternate Documents: Extract from the State registry of civil status of citizens about the marriage to confirm the premarital surnames (in case the marriage has been terminated)

Comments: According to the Family Code of Ukraine, religious marriage ceremonies are not recognized as a legal marriage.  A marriage is only considered legal after its registration with the civil registry office and it is only legal from the date it is registered in the registry office.

Same-sex marriages are not possible in Ukraine. According to Article 21 of Ukrainian Family code, marriage is defined as a registered union between male and female partners.

Divorce Certificates

Document Name: Svidotstvo pro rozirvannya shlyubu

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: All kinds of divorce certificates issued on the territory of current Ukraine are accepted.  All of them bear a wet seal and a signature of the executive officer of the issuing authority

Registration Criteria: Defined by Family Code of Ukraine; after July 27, 2010 the certificate is issued only to the couples without minor children or in case one of the couple is duly qualified as missing or incompetent

Procedure for Obtaining: Depends on the article of Family Code under which the marriage is terminated but in general the procedure is similar to that of obtaining the birth certificate

Alternate Documents: Court decree about the marriage termination if it came into effect after July 27, 2010

Exceptions:   None

Comments: Marriage is considered legally terminated in all cases when the applicant produces a divorce certificate and in cases when the applicant produces a court decree which came into effect on or after July 27, 2010, in lieu of the divorce certificate.

Adoption Certificates

Unavailable

Alternate Documents: Adoption court decree or Record from the State Registry.

Comments: These are the optional documents. Adoption court decree and the new birth certificate are sufficient documents for an adoption.

Identity Card

National ID Cards

Fees: There are no fees

Document Name: Passport of citizen of Ukraine – ID card

Issuing Authority: State migration service of Ukraine

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: Plastic card in ID-1 format with dimensions of 54 x 85.6 (+/-0.75) mm. The ID card is made of multilayer polymer material (polycarbonate) with laser data engraving technology. The front side of the ID card has the state flag of Ukraine, the small state coat of arms of Ukraine and the text of national anthem of Ukraine. The back side of the card has an optically variable image of the digitized picture of the passport holder’s face and holder’s year of birth separated by a space in the middle.

Issuing Authority Personnel Title:  There is no issuing authority personnel title

Registration Criteria: ID cards are issued to Ukrainian citizens who have reached the age of 16.

Procedure for Obtaining: The applicant needs to contact the local department of State Migration services based on the place of registration in Ukraine. The applicant needs to provide his or her Ukrainian birth certificate and internal passports of his or her parents.  Average processing time is 30 days.

Alternate Documents: Beginning in 2016, the Passport of Citizen of Ukraine is being replaced by a new format ID card for all those applying for the first time. Holders of Passports of Citizen of Ukraine needing a new document will receive a replacement Passport of Citizen of Ukraine rather than the new format ID card. 

Comments: There are two versions of the ID card available – with electronic chip and without electronic chip.

Police, Court, Prison Records

Police certificates.

Fees: None for regular processing

Document Name:  “Vytiah”

Issuing Authority: Departments of Information and Analysis of Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, central and local

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: Effective April 23, 2022, all police certificates are issued online and are printed on a regular office paper of A4 format, with a serial number, QR code and digital stamp and seal. It must all be a “FULL”/POVNA version and list all current and previous names of an applicant.

Issuing Authority Personnel Title: Head of Department

Registration Criteria: There is no registration criteria

Procedure for Obtaining:  As of April 23, 2022 Ukrainian citizens can request their criminal certificates if they have no criminal record at this link:  vytiah.mvs.gov.ua . Alternatively, they can request it from the nearest Center for Administrative Services in Ukraine (TSNAP)

Alternate Documents: There are no alternate documents.

Exceptions  None

Comments: For immigrant and K visa processing the police certificates must include all previously used names and surnames. In order for a police certificate to include all the previously used names and surnames, the requestor must specifically state so. The applicants then must make sure all these names appear on the police certificate.

Court Records

Fees:  There are no fees

Document Name: Sudove rishennya

Issuing Authority: Courts of Ukraine or Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: Conviction court decrees must carry a wet seal, date they came into effect, signature of the judge(s) and the court's secretary

Registration Criteria:  There is no registration criteria

Procedure for Obtaining: The courts issue these documents. Third parties and parties not present in the court are sent copies via mail

Alternate Documents:  There are no alternate documents

Prison Records

Unavailable - Convicted applicants need to provide original of Court Record with copy and translation.

Military Records

Document Name: Prypysne svidotstvo, Viyskovyy kvytok, Posvidchennya ofitsera (for  officers and generals currently in service)

Issuing Authority: Ministry of Defense (Military Enlistment Office)

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: Military books issued during the Soviet times have red cover; Ukrainian-issued ones have gray or green cover.  The first page features a photograph, wet seal and a signature of the Military Commissioner

Issuing Authority Personnel Title: Military Commissioner

Procedure for Obtaining: All males who turn 17 receive a registration certificate which shows which Military Enlistment Office this person is attached to.  Later the person receives either a military book or a temporary military book (because of the lack of military books).  Officers and generals in active service receive officer’s books.

Exceptions: Although military books never expire, some elderly males may have turned in their military books to their Military Enlistment Office.  Similarly, a person may turn in his military book when he works for certain state organizations (i.e. Secret Service).  In such cases, a certificate may be issued by the Office or the Ministry of Defense to that effect

Comments: Ukraine is a country with universal conscription.  All males aged 18 years old or older, and some females (those who contracted for a military service and those having special occupations: medical; communications; computing; optical and audio measurement tools and metrology; cartography and topogeodesy etc) have military records of some sort.

Passports & Other Travel Documents

Travel Documents

Types Available: Regular, Diplomatic, Official, Travel document of a child.

Fees: Depend on the urgency of issuance; from $45 to $100

Document Name: Pasport gromadyanyna Ukrayiny dlya vyizdu za kordon

Issuing Government Authority: State Migration Service (since 01/01/2013), Embassies/Consulates of Ukraine

Special Seal(s) / Color / Format: Blue cover. Issued for 10 years without a possibility to prolong.  Bio page: map of Ukraine changes color from bronze red to bronze green; last and first name are in Ukrainian and transliterated in English; all symbols are laser-engraved; visa pages contain ornaments and heraldic symbols of different regions of Ukraine.

Procedure for Obtaining: Citizens of Ukraine may apply at any department of State Migration Service; the procedures may be different at different departments

Comments:  As of April 2015, Ukraine discontinued printing the child travel document. Children are now issued a biometric passport valid for four years.  However, passport issuing offices may use the stock of child travel document blanks they have until it is exhausted.

Other Documents Available: There are no other documents available

Other Records

Not applicable. 

• Visa Issuing Posts

Post Contact Information

Post Title: U.S. Embassy Kyiv, Ukraine  - Services currently limited

Address: 4 Igor Sikorsky St, Kyiv 04112 Ukraine

Visa Services: As of April 1, 2024   Ukrainian immigrant visas (IVs), other than diversity visas and fiancé visas will be processed at Embassy Kyiv. Consulate General Frankfurt is process all diversity visas and fiancé visas. 

Post Title:  U.S. Consulate General in  Frankfurt, Germany

Street Address: Giessener Strasse 30 60435 Frankfurt am Main

Tel:  +49-(0)69-7535-0

E-mail:    [email protected]

Embassy Warsaw is processing all IR-3 and IR-4 adoption cases.

Warsaw, Poland  (Embassy)

Street Address: American Embassy Warsaw Aleje Ujazdowskie 29/31 Warsaw 00-540 Poland

Mailing Address: U.S. Embassy-Warsaw Department of State Washington, DC 20510-5010

Consular Section: Piękna 12 Warsaw 00-540 Poland

All times listed herein is local time in Poland (Central European Time).

Telephone: + 48 22 504 2000 Switchboard/After-hours emergencies for U.S. citizens

U.S. Citizen Services: +48 22 504 2784 (8:30 am – 5 pm).  Email:  [email protected]

Consular telephone recorded information system is available for public inquiries 24 hours a day at +48 22 625 1401. Recordings in English and Polish provide information about the entire range of consular services.

General Visa Information +48 22 307 1361 or, in the United States at (703) 988 7101 between 7:00 am - 3:00 pm

Public inquiries:

E-mail: [email protected]

Website:   pl.usembassy

Nonimmigrant visa (NIV) applications may be processed wherever the applicant is physically located and appointments are available.

Visa Services

Visa Services:

Ukrainian immigrant visas (IVs), other than diversity visas, fiancé visas, and adoption cases, are processed at Embassy Kyiv. 

Consulate General Frankfurt is processing all diversity and fiancé visas. Embassy Warsaw is processing all IR-3 and IR-4 adoption cases. 

Nonimmigrant visa (NIV) applications may be processed wherever the applicant is physically located and appointments are available. 

Additional Information for Reciprocity

• Reciprocity: What's New
• Temporary Reciprocity Schedule
• Country Acronyms
• Terrorist Designation Lists
• State Sponsors of Terrorism
• Treaty Countries

Afghanistan

Antigua and Barbuda

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Brunei Darussalam

Burkina Faso

Cayman Islands

Central African Republic

Congo the Democratic Republic of the

Curaçao

Czech Republic

Côte d'Ivoire

Dominican Republic

El Salvador

Equatorial Guinea

Guinea-Bissau

Iran, Islamic Republic of

Israel, Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza

Korea, Democratic People's Republic of

Lao People's Democratic Republic

Liechtenstein

Marshall Islands

Micronesia, Federated States of

Moldova, Republic of

Netherlands

New Caledonia

New Zealand

North Korea

North Macedonia

Palestinian Authority

Papua New Guinea

Philippines

Russian Federation

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Saint Lucia

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Sao Tome and Principe

Saudi Arabia

Sierra Leone

Sint Maarten (Dutch part)

Solomon Islands

South Africa

South Korea

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Switzerland

Timor-Leste

Trinidad and Tobago

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Turks and Caicos Islands

United Arab Emirates

United Kingdom

Virgin Islands, British

Wallis and Futuna

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Ukraine Is Denying Consular Services to Men Outside the Country

New guidance carries a clear message to men abroad who may be avoiding the draft: You don’t get the benefit of state services if you don’t join the fight.

• Share full article

By Maria Varenikova

Reported from Kyiv

Ukrainian officials have taken several steps in recent weeks to swell the ranks of an army depleted by more than two years of grueling combat. The government passed a new mobilization bill aimed at increasing troop numbers and has stepped up border patrols to catch draft dodgers.

Now, officials are targeting men who have already left the country. This week the government announced that Ukrainian embassies had suspended issuing new passports and providing other consular services for military-age men living abroad.

Men between the ages of 18 and 60 were prohibited from leaving the country after the start of Russia’s invasion in 2022, but some were abroad before the rule took effect and others have left illegally since then.

By suspending consular services, the government said, it was responding to demands for fairness in society.

The new rules will remain in place until a new mobilization law takes effect on May 18. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said that it was still working out the details about what services would be provided after the broader mobilization law went into effect, but its message was clear: If you are healthy and can fight, come home and join the military.

“How it looks like now: A man of conscription age went abroad, showing his state that he does not care about its survival, and then comes and wants to receive services from this state,” Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said in a statement. “It does not work this way. Our country is at war.”

Critics have said the move could end up sowing divisions between Ukrainians at home and those abroad while not having a real impact on the drive for more soldiers. There are about 860,000 Ukrainian men now living outside the country, in the European Union.

The drive to bring men back to Ukraine is part of a broader effort to enlist new soldiers urgently as Russia seeks to exploit its advantage in arms and numbers across the eastern front. In certain areas, Russians outnumber Ukrainians by more than seven to one, Gen. Yurii Sodol, the commander of forces in the east, told the Ukrainian news media last month.

As American officials pressed lawmakers in Washington to deliver more military aid for Ukraine, they also pressed the government in Kyiv to address problems with its draft.

James O’Brien, the assistant U.S. secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, noted on a visit to Kyiv this week that the country’s mobilization efforts were every bit as critical to stabilizing the front and turning the tide of war as artillery.

“Ukraine needs to make sure it has the people necessary to fight,” he said at a news conference.

The lack of clarity about how the policy would be carried out added to the heated debate inside Ukraine about the measure.

Many soldiers on the front, including tens of thousands who have been fighting with little rest for more than two years, see the rule as a just and fair move.

“This decision is long overdue,” Alina Mykhailova, a military medic and widow of a commander killed in combat, wrote on Facebook, describing it as the restoration of some “small percentage” of justice for Ukrainian servicemen.

“You don’t like it? Give up your citizenship and go to hell,” she wrote, in comments that reflect growing anger among Ukrainian soldiers and military families at men who have avoided fighting.

However, Volodymyr Viatrovych, former head of Ukraine’s National Memory Institute, warned that the move could create resentment from Ukrainians living abroad.

“This decision will bring nothing but damage,” he wrote on Facebook, arguing that it would not force more people to join the army but only “weaken national unity.”

A majority of Ukrainians living abroad, he wrote, will not abandon their jobs, studies, wives and children “to take a one-way trip right now.”

There is particular concern about teenage boys whose parents took them abroad for their safety when the war broke out and who have since turned 18. Under the new law, they may have to return to Ukraine to get their passports, and then they may not be able to leave.

“There has to be some improvement, the creation of some possibility to get registered with the army at the consulate,” Tetyana Senenko, a Ukrainian living in Georgia, said on social media.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it would provide further clarification on the procedure for obtaining consular services, to avoid leaving hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian men abroad in a state of limbo.

Serhiy Fursa, deputy director of the investment company Dragon Capital in Kyiv, said on Facebook that Ukraine should be more wary of alienating men who could be useful to the economy if not to the military: “Yes, these men are needed in Ukraine. And yes, they chose not to be in Ukraine during the war. Ukraine needs all its citizens. And not all citizens of Ukraine are heroes.”

Maria Varenikova covers Ukraine and its war with Russia. More about Maria Varenikova

Ukraine war latest updates: Sky News reports from town under attack - as 'fierce fighting' rages in Kharkiv

Fighting is ongoing in Kharkiv, Ukraine's governor for the region has said - as Russia claims it has taken control of multiple villages. It follows a surprise offensive by Putin's military on Friday morning.

Saturday 11 May 2024 14:05, UK

• Civilians being evacuated in Vovchansk, in Kharkiv, after Friday morning's surprise attack by Putin's military 
• Sky's Deborah Haynes reports from town 'under attack'
• Analysis:  Russia's attack in Kharkiv region not a complete surprise - but the force of it is
• Russia says it downed Ukrainian rockets and drones overnight
• Ed Conway :  Russian oil still seeping into UK - the reasons why sanctions are not working
• Live reporting by Jake Levison

Russia says its troops have taken five villages and the Kharkiv region's governor says they are trying to take more as fierce fighting continues.

But Nazar Voloshyn, a spokesperson for Ukraine's military in the east, insists Moscow's troops are being contained in those villages.

"The enemy is contained in the grey zone, and it is not expanding," he said in a Ukrainian television interview, according to the Kyiv Independent.

The so-called "grey zone" refers to the villages of Borysivka, Ohirtseve, Pylna and Strilecha, all of which are directly on the border with Russia's Belgorod region.

Russian officials said they had also captured another village, Pletenivka.

As we reported earlier, Kharkiv's governor says fighting is ongoing in all the villages Russia has already claimed to have taken.

More now from Kharkiv's governor, who says 2,500 people have now been evacuated from the danger zone in Kharkiv, up from 1,775 this morning.

Oleh Syniehubov says regional authorities are continuing to get civilians out of the areas where fighting continues. 

And while Russia's defence ministry said earlier its forces had taken five border villages in the Kharkiv region, Mr Syniehubov says clashes are still ongoing in all five of the villages.

"As of now the enemy keeps pressing in the north of our region. Our forces have repelled nine attacks," he said in his media briefing.

Top Ukrainian officials have repeatedly said they do not believe Russia has the capacity to launch a successful operation to capture the city of Kharkiv, home to 1.3 million people.

But analysts have suggested Mr Putin's end goal may not be to capture the entire city, but rather to better protect the Russian border and to spread Ukraine's military more thinly.

Our security and defence editor   Deborah Haynes   is reporting to us from a residential area that was just hit by a Russian strike in Vovchansk.

She's standing by a block that's in flames and says local residents she's spoken to are scared the fire will spread to other residential blocks too.

One of the residents of the destroyed block, who had suffered injuries to her leg as a result of the explosion, spoke to Haynes.

"She doesn't know what to do - she's very confused," Haynes says. "This is a scene of chaos and terror."

She says the rest of the town is also "pretty much destroyed", adding explosions can still be heard nearby.

Haynes adds the town is still very much "under attack".

The Russian military is continuing its attacks in Kharkiv, the region's governor says.

Oleh Syniehubov said President Putin's troops were still trying to advance further after reportedly taking up to 1km yesterday.

The fierce fighting is raging across three villages near the Ukrainian border, he added.

His comments came shortly after Russia's defence ministry claimed its forces had taken five border villages in the Kharkiv region. 

Ukraine is yet to directly comment on Russia's claims.

The UK's Ministry of Defence has highlighted reports suggesting a Russian fighter aircraft accidentally dropped a bomb on a civilian area in Belgorod. 

The intelligence update relates to an incident on 4 May - not on the overnight drone strike in Belgorod we reported earlier. 

Here's what the ministry said: 

"It has been reported that a Russian fighter aircraft accidentally released a FAB-500 munition on a civilian area in Belgorod, Russia on 04 May 2024. 

"The Belgorod Regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov confirmed the explosion and damage on Razdobarkina street, Belgorod without identifying the cause. 

"30 houses and 10 cars were damaged, with five individuals requiring hospital care, illustrating the destructive power of the munition.

"This is not an isolated incident. On 18 February a FAB-250 was reportedly released on Soloti in the Belgorod area which led to the evacuation of 150 residents. 

"Media outlets suggest that such discharges are fairly common with 20 lost munitions accidentally dropped in the Belgorod region alone between March to April 2024.

"These instances indicate Russia's continued inability to successfully employ their munitions on intended targets. Such errors have destructive and lethal consequences for the Russian population."

Russia's defence ministry says its forces have taken five border villages in Ukraine's Kharkiv region since its surprise attack began yesterday.

The ministry says Russian forces have taken the villages of Pletenivka, Ohirtseve, Borysivka, Pylna and Strilechna, all of which are directly on the border with Russia's Belgorod region.

In a briefing, it also said Russian troops have taken the village of Keramik in the eastern Donetsk region, where Moscow has made slow but steady advances in recent months.

Ukraine officials have not yet commented on the Russian defence ministry's claims. 

Our military analyst Sean Bell has been looking at Russia's brutal offensive in Kharkiv, which has led to mass evacuations.

It's been described as a surprise attack - but Bell says Ukraine has been warning over a potential attack by Russia in the region for several months.

"So it wasn't a complete surprise," he says. "But this attack by Russia wasn't just a minor thing - it was a coordinated attack.

"They were using air power, so glide bombs, artillery shells, multi-launch rocket systems and infantry."

He says the attack was clearly designed to "probe Ukrainian defences" and Russia has now made advances, with between 30,000 and 50,000 troops in the area.

Why has Russia opened up a second front in the war?

While Bell says it's a question only President Putin could answer for certain, he believes there are two likely reasons for Russia's latest attack.

First, the Russian border town of Belgorod is a logistics hub for Russian military activity, and is regularly targeted by artillery from Ukrainian territory.

As you'll see from our previous post, Russia said Ukraine targeted Belgorod just last night, killing one man and injuring another in a drone attack.

President Putin has long promised to create a buffer zone to push Ukrainian forces out of artillery range, which would limit the attacks on this frontier town, Bell says.

Secondly, although most analysts believe Russia would struggle to seize Kharkiv, the attack does force Ukraine to spread its limited resources across a broader front, leaving it more vulnerable to further attacks, he adds.

Earlier this morning we told you Russia said it downed 21 Ukrainian rockets and 16 drones overnight across its Belgorod, Kursk and Volgograd regions.

The governor of Russia's Belgorod region now says one man was killed and another injured after a Ukrainian drone hit a parked truck on the border village of Novostroyevka-Pervaya.

The Belgorod region borders Ukraine's Kharkiv region and has come under regular attack since the war began.

Kharkiv's regional governor has provided an update on Telegram this morning, where he's outlined how many civilians have fled their homes since Russia's attack yesterday.

Ukraine's second-largest city has seen a total of 1,775 people evacuate, Oleg Sinegubov said.

1,048 of those were from the Chuhuiv district, where Vovchansk is located. As we said earlier, Vovchansk has a population of around 3,000.

He said another 440 people were evacuated from the Kharkiv district, which encircles the city of Kharkiv, and 12 from Bohodukhiv district, located northwest of Kharkiv.

He added another 275 people were evacuated by volunteers across the region.

By Deborah Haynes , security and defence editor

Smoke hung in the air on the road into the border town of Vovchansk in northeastern Ukraine after a surprise Russian offensive.

Woodland that frames the route had caught fire amid the heavy bombardments.

Sky News followed a rescue team as they raced into Vovchansk in a white van to help evacuate residents amid fears of a wider assault by Moscow.

The streets in the part of the town we entered were largely deserted.

We pulled into a residential road of bungalows.

Part the way down there was a group of five elderly residents, gathered around a bench. They did not appear to be in a hurry to flee, despite the danger and warnings from the authorities for the town's around 3,000 residents to leave.

Read more here ...

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Ukrainian children stranded after passport theft

A Ukrainian family living in the UK says they cannot return home after the theft of their passports on holiday.

The Buchko family, who have lived in Britain for two years, were in the Canary Islands last month but now do not have visas to get back to the UK.

Bohdan, who is about to sit his GCSEs, and siblings Daryna and Orest have been in Ukraine waiting for documents to gain entry and return via Poland.

The Home Office said it did not routinely comment on individual cases.

Without travel documents, Bohdan, 16, Daryna, 15, and Orest, nine were forced to return to Ukraine on emergency Ukrainian passports. Mum Mariana Buchko did not lose her passport and so was able to return to the UK.

They have since been issued new Ukrainian passports but Mariana says the Home Office has told her that issuing them with new visas to return to the UK could take up to eight weeks.

She is asking the UK government to speed up the process so that Bohdan can sit his GCSE exams, which begin this Friday.

The children need to get a new BRP visa, which lets you re-enter the UK once only, from Warsaw - a process handled by the Home Office - and then apply for the replacement visas once they are back in the UK.

Surprise holiday

The children's father, Vasyl Buchko, lives in Ukraine while his wife and children moved to Hertfordshire in April 2022, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Vasyl has fought in the war. After sustaining an injury, he was given leave from the army and decided to surprise his children by taking them on holiday to Tenerife - their first in years.

But the holiday turned into a nightmare following the theft on 11 April.

"My children's passports and residency permits were stolen," Mariana Buchko told the BBC.

"This has caused havoc [for] our family as there is no procedure for quickly reissuing children's visas."

She said the nearest Ukrainian consulate was in Malaga - on the Spanish mainland - which they managed to get to after several days.

The consul could only issue them with emergency white passports for return to Ukraine. This meant her husband and children flying to Poland and catching three trains to Ukraine on 19 April. Vasyl has remained in Ukraine to fight.

She says she has been trying for weeks to get her children back to the UK. After being issued with new Ukrainian passports, they are now waiting to be issued new UK visas. But Mariana says she has been told the process could take weeks, meaning Bohdan will miss many of his GCSE exams, including Biology this Friday.

In the meantime, the children are staying with relatives in the capital, Kyiv, which Mariana says is causing them stress and anxiety.

"My children are currently in a war zone without their mother and isolated from their friends."

According to Mariana, in Kyiv they hear air raid sirens up to five times a day and regularly spend time in shelters.

Russia regularly targets the capital with cruise missiles and drones.

'Sad and anxious'

Daryna Buchko recently spent her 15th birthday in Kyiv without her parents.

"My children feel sad and anxious without me," Mariana said.

Monk's Walk school in Hertfordshire confirmed the two older children, who would usually be in attendance at the school, are believed to be in Ukraine.

According to the family, Bohdan is autistic and has gone down a year at school.

The family said two special education needs and disabilities members of staff have arranged to sit with him while he sits his GCSE exams.

Beverley Piggott, of Welwyn, Hertfordshire, hosted the Buchko family for six months when they first moved to the UK. She says the process of sponsoring them to move to the UK in 2022 was much quicker.

She said she has spent the past three weeks attempting to get the family back to the UK.

"I have made hundreds of phone calls and sent hundreds of emails to our local MP, the Ukrainian embassy, British embassy, Home Office, Foreign Office and so-on.

"I am desperate to get these children back to the UK with their mother.

"It is absolutely heartbreaking."

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What went wrong with the electronic passport gates at UK airports?

Passengers waited more than three hours for passport checks on Tuesday, as the country’s 270 e-gates malfunctioned

Thousands of passengers were left waiting in queues for more than three hours at airports, on Tuesday evening, after a nationwide failure of the electronic passport gate technology system.

Nearly all major British airports were affected as the country’s 270 e-gates, the automated facial recognition systems at the border, were closed for more than four hours.

So, what exactly happened, will those affected be able to get compensation and could it happen again?

What happened?

Just before 8pm on Tuesday night, engineers detected a network issue on the system that runs the e-gates, which are in place at 15 air and rail ports around the country. It also affected some policing, passport and immigration systems.

The problem forced the e-gates to be shut at major airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Edinburgh. Border officials had to manually process travellers instead, causing huge delays and tailbacks. The system was back online by 12.30am.

Despite calls for transparency over what was behind the issue, the government has so far been vague, blaming “technical issues within the Home Office network”.

In a statement to parliament, Tom Pursglove, minister of state for legal migration and the border, said that Border Force was confident it had found a permanent fix for the issue.

He ruled out a cyber-attack as the cause, but would not give any more details, saying he did not want to “pre-empt” the investigations the Home Office was carrying out.

Pursglove said: “I sincerely apologise for the disruption that occurred. I can assure the house that the home secretary and I will be unswerving in our determination to ensure that every possible lesson is learned, to ensure that this does not happen again.”

Has this happened before?

The outage was the latest in a long line of failures of the e-gate system.

Two weeks ago, a “nationwide technical outage” led to queues at Edinburgh, Gatwick and Bristol airports.

The most significant breakdown in recent times was in May last year, when passengers at UK airports and ports experienced long delays ahead of the second May bank holiday. Again, the Home Office blamed a system fault which affected all e-gates for arrivals into the country .

This came after three separate e-gate outages across UK airports in three months in the latter part of 2021.

There have been repeated warnings about the system in recent years by government watchdogs.

A report from David Neal, then-independent chief inspector of borders and immigration, warned of failings with the running of e-gate system in 2021. A follow-up report, in February 2024 , which came after a re-inspection of e-gates last summer, found that border protections were neither “effective or efficient” and found that e-gates were sometimes left unstaffed.

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Will affected passengers be in line for compensation?

It is unlikely the majority of passengers would be in line for compensation. Such incidents are seen as “extraordinary events” by airlines, and not covered by European-wide regulations that require airlines to provide assistance or compensation to passengers if a flight is delayed or cancelled.

However, Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, says that some passengers may be able to recoup some money through their travel insurance. He says: “Apart from connecting flights there are other incidental costs that some people can incur, around things like airport parking, or parking charges for late pick-ups, and having to pay for taxis because public transport has stopped.

“It is definitely worth checking your policy to see if you are covered for these.”

Could it happen again?

There are fears that this will not be the last time we will see a system-wide failure.

One government adviser tells the Guardian that travellers could face a summer of chaos because the government could not guarantee that the system would not collapse again.

“One of the vulnerabilities is that it is open to individual errors which can then affect the entire system,” the Whitehall source says. “The problem has been underinvestment under consecutive governments. And it is a glitch that cannot be easily fixed – it will require dismantling the system and starting again.”

Lord Foster, who chairs the Lords justice and home affairs committee, says it is paramount that the government learns lessons from the breakdown, particularly as a new Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) system is due to be rolled out across the remainder of 2024.

The ETA is a permit, similar to the US Electronic System for Travel Authorization, known as an Esta, which all non-UK and Irish travellers will need to enter the UK and is designed to stop potential threats to the country at the border.

He said: “The government’s ambition is to have ‘the most effective border in the world’. In order to achieve this ambition, the government must get the fundamentals right.”

• Air transport

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