What are the conditions for Ukrainian citizenship by naturalization?

What naturalization means

Прийняття до громадянства (acceptance into citizenship, or naturalization) is how a foreigner or stateless person acquires Ukrainian citizenship on their own application under Article 9 of the Law "On Citizenship of Ukraine" No. 2235-III. This route is open to people who have no Ukrainian origin and were not born citizens. For a comparison with the other routes, see the guide to the ways of getting Ukrainian citizenship.

Five conditions

Part 2 of Article 9 sets the following conditions:

All five conditions apply together. Failing any one of them leads to refusal, unless your category is exempt from that condition.

• recognising and observing the Constitution and laws of Ukraine, which you confirm in your application;
• knowledge of the basics of the Constitution and the history of Ukraine, and command of the state language at the level set by the National Commission on State Language Standards;
• continuous residence in Ukraine for the last five years;
• a дозвіл на імміграцію (immigration permit);
• lawful means of subsistence.

Continuous residence

The period is counted back from the date you apply. The law defines which trips abroad do not interrupt residence, with separate limits for a single trip and for the total over a year. If you leave Ukraine often, count the days before you file.

Some categories have a different period:

Immigration permit

Most applicants need an immigration permit, which in practice means permanent residence. Exempt from this condition are refugees and people granted asylum, foreigners who serve or have served in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the State Special Transport Service or the National Guard on the grounds set by law, and holders of temporary residence permits under parts 20 and 24 of Article 4 of Law No. 3773-VI. How to obtain the permit is explained in the guide to permanent residence in Ukraine.

Exams

Knowledge of the Constitution, history and language is checked through exams held under rules set by the Cabinet of Ministers. People with outstanding services to Ukraine, contract servicemen and some residence permit holders instead give an undertaking to pass the exams within two years of acquiring citizenship. Fully exempt are people declared legally incapable by a court, people with disabilities related to impaired sight, hearing or speech, and people with mental disorders. Details are in the article on citizenship exams.

Means of subsistence

Lawful means of subsistence may be a salary, business income, a pension, support from a family member or other lawful income. If you rely on your own savings, your bank balance must be at least twelve subsistence minimums per person on the date you apply. Refugees are exempt from this condition.

Foreign citizenship document

With the application you file one of four documents. Citizens of states on the Cabinet of Ministers list file a declaration recognising themselves as citizens of Ukraine. Other foreigners usually give an undertaking to terminate their foreign citizenship and submit proof of this within two years. Stateless persons file a declaration of absence of foreign citizenship. More in the article on multiple citizenship.

Who is not accepted

Part 8 of Article 9 lists the grounds on which a person is not accepted into citizenship:

• a conviction in Ukraine for a grave or especially grave crime until the conviction is expunged, taking into account the level of threat to national security;
• committing an act abroad that the Criminal Code of Ukraine treats as a grave or especially grave crime;
• actions that threaten national security.

How the application is reviewed

You file the application with a territorial office of the ДМС (State Migration Service, DMS). The DMS checks the documents and sends them to the Commission under the President of Ukraine on Citizenship. The Commission reviews the case and makes a recommendation, and the President issues a decree. Your citizenship dates from the day the decree is issued.

Procedure No. 215/2001 sets time limits for individual stages, but the overall timing depends on when the decree is issued. The full list of documents is in the article on documents for citizenship.

After the decree

Once the decree is issued, you apply for a Ukrainian citizen's passport. If you gave an undertaking to terminate your foreign citizenship, you receive a temporary certificate and file the document on leaving your former citizenship with the authority that issued it. Missing that deadline can cost you citizenship acquired through naturalization under Article 19 of the law.

Lawyer's experience

Applicants are rarely let down by one big condition. More often it is a detail, such as a long trip abroad that breaks residence or an income document that does not cover the required period. That is why, before filing, I check all five conditions together rather than one at a time.

My second piece of advice concerns the undertaking to terminate citizenship. Some states do not release their citizens, or take years to do so. Find out your state's procedure before you apply.

If you are planning to apply for naturalization, at a migration law consultation I will check the conditions and prepare the application file.

Frequently asked questions