Pavel Petrenko, Minister of Justice
The Constitution of Ukraine guarantees anyone who is legally resident in the territory of Ukraine freedom of movement, free choice of place of residence, free to leave the territory of Ukraine, except for restrictions established by law.
In addition, a citizen of Ukraine may not, for any reason, be restricted in the right of entry into Ukraine.
What documents entitle a citizen of Ukraine to leave and enter Ukraine?
In addition to the passport of a citizen of Ukraine for traveling abroad, other documents that entitle a citizen of Ukraine to leave and enter Ukraine may be:
• diplomatic passport of Ukraine;
• the service passport of Ukraine;
• the identity of the seafarer;
• Crew ID;
• Return to Ukraine certificate (entitles you to enter Ukraine).
I note that since 2015, the issuance of a biometric passport of a citizen of Ukraine for traveling abroad has been introduced. If the passport of a citizen does not contain a contactless electronic carrier, there is no need to worry. The passport of a citizen of Ukraine for traveling abroad and issued before December 20, 2016, is valid for the period for which he was issued.
Also, keep in mind that a passport for traveling abroad is issued to persons under 16 years of age for 4 years, and persons under 16 years of age - for 10 years.
When can a Ukrainian citizen be temporarily restricted from leaving Ukraine?
The legislation provides for cases where a citizen of Ukraine is temporarily restricted in the right to leave the territory of Ukraine, in particular:
• the citizen is aware of information that is a state secret. A citizen who has been granted admission and access to a state secret and who has been genuinely aware of it may be restricted in the right of permanent residence to a foreign country to declassify relevant information, but for no more than 5 years from the date of termination of activity. state secret;
• a precautionary measure has been applied to the person under the conditions of which he or she is prohibited from traveling abroad - until criminal proceedings are terminated or restrictions have been abolished;
• in cases where a citizen is convicted of a criminal offense - before serving a sentence or being released from punishment;
• when a person evades the obligations imposed on him by a court decision or decision of other bodies (officials) to be enforced - to fulfill obligations or pay arrears of alimony payments;
• the person is under the administrative supervision of the National Police - until termination of supervision;
• in case of imposition on a citizen of administrative punishment for deliberate violation of statutory restriction on the stay of a child outside Ukraine in case of independent decision of the issue of temporary departure of the child outside Ukraine by the parent with whom the court decision was determined or the conclusion of the guardianship and custody body the residence of this child. Such person is temporarily restricted from leaving Ukraine with a child for a period of one year from the date of imposition of an administrative penalty, unless there is a notarized consent for the departure of the child of the second parent.
Let me remind you that the above sanctions were introduced by the Ministry of Justice's #OutdoorChildrenDo not. In addition to the prohibition of traveling abroad, a number of other restrictive measures and financial penalties apply to the debtor who has arrears of child support. Yes, if the child support debt is more than 4 months (and 3 months for parents of a seriously ill child), a temporary restriction applies to:
• driving vehicles;
• use of weapons;
• hunting.
Fine is payable in the case of arrears of more than 1 year - 20%; more than 2 years - 30%; more than 3 years - 50% of the debt.
Moreover, a debtor who has a child support debt cannot influence the decision to temporarily leave the child outside Ukraine.
But sometimes there are cases when the debtor for various reasons may not know about his debt, but to find out at the point of crossing the state border of Ukraine.
Temporary restriction on the right of departure outside Ukraine shall be lifted if the executor issues a decision on the termination of enforcement proceedings or a decision to cancel a temporary restriction on the right of departure of a person from Ukraine - in case of payment of the periodic payment in full.
Is it possible to appeal travel restrictions?
Yes, decisions, actions or inaction of state authorities, officials and officials on the issue of departure from Ukraine and entry into Ukraine of citizens of Ukraine may be appealed.
The court decision on temporary restriction of the debtor in the right to travel outside Ukraine can be appealed to the court of appeal within 15 days from the date of its announcement. If the court order was not served on the debtor on the day of its announcement or conclusion, the term of appeal shall be 15 days from the date of delivery of the corresponding court order to him.
In addition, the court may annul the temporary restriction of an individual in the right to travel outside Ukraine on the reasoned statement of the debtor. The court is considering the application to cancel the temporary restriction of an individual in the right of departure outside Ukraine within 10 days from the date of its receipt in court with the notification of the parties and other interested persons with obligatory participation of the state (private) executor.
As a result of the consideration of the application for the abolition of a temporary restriction of an individual in the right of departure outside Ukraine, a decree is issued that can be appealed.
The refusal to cancel a temporary restriction of an individual in the right of departure outside Ukraine does not prevent the re-appeal with the same statement in case of new circumstances justifying the need to cancel a temporary restriction of the individual in the right of departure outside Ukraine.
Source: Legal newspaper
(translated using Google translator)