Recently lots of foreigners have come to Ukraine for volunteer activities. There are many international programs nowadays working with incurably ill, with youth, etc. They are financed by international organizations, the authorities of certain countries (for example, the USA) or religious organizations. And undoubtedly, all volunteers face the problem of legalizing their stay in Ukraine.
If the program is not time-consuming and lasts for a few weeks, a simple 90-day visa is enough. But if you are going to stay longer you should think about obtaining temporary residence permit. The procedure of obtaining temporary residence permit may seem too complicated for a foreigner who does not speak Ukrainian and does not know all peculiarities of local legislation. In this case professional lawyer will help you to overcome the difficulties.
Attorneys at law “Bachynskyy, Kolomiets and partners” suggest you legal assistance regarding immigration issues. We’ll help you to obtain temporary residence permit as soon as possible.
Residence permit is a document allowing a foreigner to live in Ukraine without visa and without Ukrainian citizenship. There are 2 types of residence permits – temporary and permanent ones. Permanent permit is valid during the whole life of the recipient. But obtaining of such permit is far more complicated than obtaining of temporary residence permit, and is available only for certain categories of people.
Most of those who come to Ukraine for studying, work, religious or volunteer activities, get a temporary residence permit. Even marriage to Ukrainian citizen during the first two years gives a right for temporary residence permit only.
Temporary residence permit is valid for 1 year and can be prolonged annually. However, this document becomes invalid as soon as the grounds on which it was issued, are terminated. In this case, a person must give the residence permit back to the relevant state body and leave Ukraine within the specified period (7 days, as a rule). After 5-year-stay in Ukraine a foreigner gets a right to obtain Ukrainian citizenship.
Under current legislation of Ukraine, the following categories of foreigners have a right to get a temporary residence permit:
- Foreigners who are going to be employed in Ukraine;
- People working under the program of international technical assistance;
- Preachers, missionaries and people engaged in other religious activities invited by the relevant religioun organizations;
- Those who came to work in the organization or branch of a foreign bank or a foreign entity located in Ukraine;
- People who came with the aim of cultural, scientific or educational work under relevant international agreements or programs;
- Volunteers;
- Representatives of foreign media;
- Pupils and students of Ukrainian educational institutions;
- People who came for family reunion;
- Spouses of Ukrainian citizens during the first two years of their marriage (after 2 years they achieve a right to permanent residence permit).
The main goal of these documents is to confirm the legality of your stay in Ukraine and the fact that you meet all the requirements foreseen by the law. One should prepare the following documents:
- Passport with Ukrainian visa (type D), unless otherwise stated by international agreements;
- Translation of the passport in to Ukrainian (notarized);
- Application;
- Motion of the inviting party (volunteer organization);
- Certificate of the volunteer organization’s state registration (copy);
- Medical insurance (copy);
- Bank receipt on paying the state fee;
- 4 photos (sized 3,5 x 4,5 cm);
- Copy of your Ukrainian tax ID (if available, but not compulsory).
The application should be filled in without mistakes according to the example that can be found at the State Migration Service of Ukraine or on the Internet. But in you look for them on web, keep in mind that rules of their filling-in are changeable. Make sure your example is not out-of-date.
Be very careful when filling in the application, because every mistake, even a technical one, is a ground for refusal of residence permit issuance. In that case you will have to submit all the documents again. The documents should be submitted personally to the territorial subdivision of the State Migration Service at the place of your residence.
It lasts for 15 days. After that you can come personally and get your temporary residence permit. Ukrainian legislation foresees the following grounds for refusal of residence permit issuance:
- The applicant is dangerous for Ukraine and the public order, or for rights, interests, health and safety of its citizens;
- The applicant’s passport or other documents are fraud, or false information was mentioned;
- The applicant does not execute judgements or proprietary obligation to a state, individuals or legal entities;
- Mistakes in the documents;
When you come to Ukraine with a type D visa, you have 45 days for getting temporary residence permit. The 30th day of your stay is a deadline for submitting documents, so that 15 days for receiving it is left. Thus, don’t hesitate.
If your volunteer activity requires that you stay in Ukraine for a longer period of time, you are entitled to prolong your residence permit. You should apply to the State Migration Service of Ukraine not later than 15 days before the expiration date of your permit. The prolongation procedure has much in common with the order of getting permit for the first time. The applicant also has to fill in an application, submit the sane documents and 4 new photos.
If you lose your temporary residence permit, you can restore it in the State Migration Service. But in this case you should inform the police, so that nobody could use your document.
FAQ (Frequently asked questions by foreigners while obtaining a temporary permit on the basis of volunteer work):
– Is there enough for foreigner to get invitation from the volunteer organization?
A request from the volunteer organization (public or religious organizations, NGO etc.) should additionally be registered in a state body which carried out the registration of such volunteer organizations. Typically, in Lviv such state body would be a regional administration (Lviv Regional State Administration). The procedure for registration of the invitation (request) by volunteer organization is not envisaged by the law, but in practice, is usually required by State Immigration Department.
– What are the deadlines for the registration of the request (invitation) of volunteer organization?
As the registration procedure of the invitation issued by NGO is not defined by the law, but simply practiced Migration Service, respectively, and the terms are not regulated. Practice shows that such terms may be from 1 to 4 weeks.
– Ist he invitation of the volunteer organization (NGO, religious organizations, etc.) enough basis for obtaining a Temporary Residence?
After registration of the invitation for a foreigner issued by NGO, he/she may contact the Embassy of Ukraine to obtain a visa D. This visa must be obtained by all foreigners, even those who come from visa-free countries. There are exceptions in some countries from the obligation to obtain a visa D under special international agreements (such as the Russian Federation, Belarus, etc.). Only after getting of such visa D to enter Ukraine, the foreigner may apply to State immigration department for a temporary residence permit on the basis of volunteering.
The entire procedure of getting temporary residence permit, its prolongation or restoration is quite complicated. Preparation of the documents, translation, notarization and long queues in public offices are exhausting. The best option to save your time, nerves and money is to use professional legal assistance.
Attorneys at law “Bachynskyy, Kolomiets and partners” are always ready to help. We’ll do everything by ourselves; you’ll have only to come twice – when submitting documents and when receiving your temporary residence permit.
Our company also deals with other migration issues, such as residence registration for foreigners, obtaining permanent residence permit and citizenship of Ukraine. Contact us, and we will be happy to help you.
