“Since 2023, we have been working on the comprehensive support of the phenomenon of volunteering in Ukraine in all its manifestations, which includes assistance to foreign volunteers.”, – WRITE: www.pravda.com.ua
However, during this time we realized that the Ukrainian legal field is not sufficiently adapted to attract foreign volunteers. Many of them face numerous legal and bureaucratic barriers that are an obstacle to people who are ready to assist Ukraine and its citizens – and we have prepared legislative changes that will eliminate these obstacles.
It should be noted right away: although we will talk about visas and border crossing, no one proposes to weaken the security of our country. It will only be about volunteers who have the right to entry without visas or have already entered Ukraine legally, after which they worked here for several months without problems with the law.
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What is the problem then? To begin with, we will remind the requirements of the law: if a foreigner wants to stay in Ukraine for a long time, he needs a temporary residence permit. And they give it only if a person has a long-term visa of type D. sounds logical, but the citizens with which we have a visa-free regime (EU Member States, United Kingdom and Canada) such a visa is not needed for entry, but to get it expensive and not easy.
Therefore, most volunteers come to Ukraine under the conditions of visa waiver, but they allow to stay in the country for only 90 days within 180 days. There is a paradox: people who are ready to help Ukraine, are forced to either work further, violating the laws of our country and being sanctioned, or giving up their mission and returning home. In this situation, everyone is losing.
The problem is that type D visa is not affordable for many volunteers. The basic consular fee for most countries is $ 65. And because of the principle of reciprocity – for some countries there are higher rates: more than $ 100 – for Italy, the Czech Republic and France, $ 333 – for the United Kingdom, $ 622 – for Belgium. The urgency will have to pay a double price.
For many volunteers who assist at their own expense or funded from limited humanitarian organizations, such costs are a serious obstacle.
Therefore, we already have examples where foreign volunteers who rushed to the aid of Ukraine in the first weeks of a full-scale war were in the “gray zone”, as they exceeded the 90-day period, and there is no mechanism for legalization for them. People have numerous problems, such as banking services. It is enough to mention the history of Volunteer from Japan Fuminari Tsuchiko, who had problems with the registration of documents for peering in Ukraine.
Similarly, the fact that, according to the survey, which was conducted by the Center for Democracy and the Rule of Law and the National Social Service of Ukraine, more than 70 % of foreign volunteers called the main barrier for their activity the process of document issuance.
How to solve this problem? Two years ago, we started active consultations with civil society organizations, international humanitarian structures and state institutions. And already in March this year, together with 24 other MPs, I registered the bill # 133071, developed on the basis of these discussions. He offers cancel the obligation to open a visa D to obtain a residence permit. This rule will only apply to foreign volunteers and humanitarian workers during martial law and another year after its completion.
In addition, volunteers who entered Ukraine after February 24, 2022 and submitted an application for residence for residence within 60 days after the changes are entered into force, will be automatically considered to be legally in Ukraine. So they will not receive any fines.
Background: The term of stay in Ukraine (90/180) is tied here. That is, a person could enter 5 times and there was no delay, and for 6 visit to stay for a long time and to take a limit at 90 days for half a year.
Already on May 15, the Verkhovna Rada supported our bill in the first reading – no MP opposed. While the Committee on Human Rights, Deoccupation and Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine, National Minorities and International Relations prepares a document for the second reading, Again and Again I call Parliament: As soon as possible to approve the project # 133071and the president – to sign it immediately. This is our way to show European and other foreign partners how highly we appreciate the sincere and voluntary, such timely assistance to their citizens to Ukraine.
What next? As the People’s Deputy of Ukraine, I consider the main task in this direction – as soon as possible the adoption of the Bill No. 133071 in the second reading and its implementation.
Of course, the problems of foreign volunteers are not limited to the situation around obtaining a visa D. Among them, for example, the need to register a place of residence (which is reluctant to go housing) or difficulty with banking services (which is indicated by half of the respondents, data from the already mentioned study of Udem and NSSU). There are also problems in communication with state bodies. After all, volunteers face the lack of standardized English -language information resources, specialized contact centers or hotlines, unified documents, legal advice. And all this is imposed on a language barrier, which is considered an obstacle to 45% of volunteers surveyed.
Therefore, it is necessary to continue to work on systemic changes for foreign volunteers: to update by-laws, to prepare English-language information materials, to simplify the procedure for registration of residence.
Volunteers, including foreign ones, are undoubtedly an important support for our country – and we must provide them with decent conditions for assistance to Ukraine.
Valery tooth, People’s Deputy of Ukraine, co -chairman of the MFI “Support for the volunteer movement”
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