Ukraine has forbidden to issue passports to its citizens abroad - those who are subject to the army

Hundreds of Ukrainians blocked the passport center in Warsaw. Documents cannot be obtained, even if they are already ready

The Government of Ukraine has banned the issuance of a citizen’s passport abroad or foreign passports to Ukrainian men aged 18 to 60 years, who are subject to draft in the army. Corresponding amendments were adopted on April 23. The next day, they became widely known about them.

The document says that now male Ukrainians aged 18 to 60 can receive passports in the territorial body/territorial unit of the State Migration Service (HMS) of Ukraine, and the transfer of passports to such citizens "to a separate division or foreign diplomatic institution of Ukraine to organize them is not carried out." At the same time, innovations do not apply to a number of categories of Ukrainians, including citizens of Ukraine who are entitled to cross the border during martial law introduced in the country after the start of a full -scale Russian invasion.

The Foreign Ministry of Ukraine noted that the decree of the government concerns the issuance of passports, which are issued by the State Medical University of Ukraine on statements received through a special passport service - the state enterprise "Document". At the same time, the ministry said that Ukrainians who fall under restrictions will not be able to receive passports in foreign diplomatic institutions of Ukraine, since their shipping to organize documents in such institutions is also prohibited by government decree.

The order of work of the consular service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine will remain unchanged, the explanation said. The agency provides consular services in embassies, consulates and consulates of Ukraine. However, so far the provision of consular services, with the exception of applications for the registration of personality certificates for returning to Ukraine, does not carry out citizens of the country of draft age of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. The fact that the department introduced such restrictions became known on April 22.

The Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba confirmed that he personally ordered to ban the provision of consular services for Ukrainians of draft age abroad. He noted that staying abroad “does not exempt a citizen from duties to the Motherland”, and called the restrictions “measures to restore a fair attitude towards mobilization men in Ukraine and abroad”. “If these people believe that someone there, far at the front, fights and gives their lives for this state, and someone will sit abroad, but at the same time will receive services from this state, then it doesn’t work,” the minister added.

The Foreign Ministry of Ukraine stated that the restrictions were introduced in connection with the recently adopted law on mobilization in the country, which will enter into force on May 18. The document, among other things, provides that without updating military accounting documents, military liability, liable Ukrainians will not be able to receive services in the country's consulates abroad, including issuing a passport. The department explained that after the adoption of the law, they must change the procedure for work taking into account new requirements. At the same time, the ministry promised to provide services for which were submitted until April 23.

Ukrainians living abroad were faced with problems when receiving the services of the passport service of the GP Documents even before the adoption of the mobilization law. In some centers of the GP “Documents”, for example, in Warsaw and Prague , huge queues arose from those who wanted to receive a passport before the adoption of the law.

A few days before the signing of the law on mobilization by the President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky, he said that he was stopping providing services in foreign units in the “live queue” and introducing preliminary records and electronic queue. In social networks, it was reported that the centers began conflicts. On April 23, the GP “Documents” completely suspended the issuance of finished documents in foreign units. “The issuance of passports is possible for children under 12 years of age, due to the lack of the need for biometric verification,” the service said, explaining the restrictions on “technical reasons”.

On April 24, about 300 Ukrainians blocked the work of the Center for the GP “Document” in Warsaw after they could not get passports. According to the Polish and Ukrainian media, many of them have received a notification that their documents were ready, but in the very center they were refused to issue them for various reasons.

Some of the Ukrainians who came to the passport center in the capital of Poland on April 24 were held in line all night, writes Agence France-Presse. At some point, a dispute broke out between visitors to the center: women accused the group of men of blocked the entrance and prevented those who wanted to apply.

“This is the struggle with people who are fleeing the army,” commented on the restrictions by the 38-year-old driver of the Maxim, who turned out to be in line for a new passport. “They don’t ask us on what basis we went abroad ... Why am I a slope if I went abroad legally?”

35-year-old entrepreneur Pavel Lyashenko, who moved to Poland long before the start of a full-scale war, said that the state had put him in a hopeless situation-he also came to get a ready passport, but could not pick it up. “The doors are blocked. They are afraid that if I enter, I won’t leave until I get my passport. I know that he is there, ”he added. The businessman, AFP reported, fears that he would be in the “gray zone” - abroad, but without an existing passport. “I think that our state simply pushes people to the fact that we all have to do this,” Lyashenko said.

Another Ukrainian-the 27-year-old driver of the Bogdan truck-said that the second day is waiting for his documents in the passport service in Warsaw. “I drove 700 kilometers to get my passport, because I received a text message that I can pick it up,” he explained. - No one gives a passport. What are our further actions? What should we do so that we simply give our documents for which we pay? "

Lawyers and human rights activists interviewed by Deutsche Welle predict that after the adoption of the law on mobilization, introduction of restrictions and fines, the Ukrainian authorities risk encountering judicial claims due to disproportionate stiffness of penal measures against all Ukrainian men abroad without exception.

Alexander Pavlichenko, Executive Director of the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights, believes that because of problems with consular services, Ukrainians who do not want to fight will try to get other citizenship or refugee status. At the same time, the interlocutors of Deutsche Welle doubt that the problems with consular services will stop those who leave Ukraine, not wanting to fight.

In turn, labor market experts in Poland believe that prohibitions on issuing passports for Ukrainians can hit the Polish economy. Many citizens of Ukraine who fall under restrictions and work at Polish enterprises, risk actually to become illegal immigrants, RMF FM notes. According to Eurostat, after the start of a full -scale war, about 4.3 million Ukrainians left for the European Union, including 860 thousand adult men. Poland takes the second place after Germany in terms of the number of Ukrainians accepted - it gave a temporary asylum about 950 thousand people.

The Polish authorities announced the readiness to help Ukraine return the male recruiting age who went abroad after the outbreak of war. “I think that many Poles are outraged when they see young Ukrainians in hotels and cafes and hear how much we do to help Ukraine,” said the head of the Polish Ministry of Defense Vladislav Kosinyak-Kamysh. How Poland will help to return the male recruiting to Ukraine, the minister did not specify, saying only that "any help is possible."

The fact that Ukraine can be helped to return male recruiting age, Laurinas Kashchunas, Minister of Defense of Lithuania, also said . According to him, Lithuania has not yet been considering specific measures for this and monitors what decisions Poland will make. “Of course, no one will collect them and take them to Ukraine - this will not. But [you can introduce restrictions] in social benefits, work permits, documents - these are options, as I hear from the Polish side. So let's wait and see what option they will offer, maybe it is suitable for Lithuania, ”he added.

In Germany, Ukrainian refugees can remain with expired documents, writes Deutsche Welle with reference to the representative of the Government of Germany. To obtain or extend the temporary residence permit in Germany, the official said, it is not necessary to have a valid passport - the main thing is that the German authorities have the opportunity to verify the personality of a person. In exceptional cases, if a citizen of Ukraine refuses to issue or extend the passport on the basis of his service in the army, the Berlin Land Administration for Foreigners will issue him a passport for traveling abroad replacing the passport.