How to obtain Residency in Ukraine

Why seek to obtain residency in Ukraine?

• A huge country with mountains, beaches, and historical cities like Kyiv and Lviv.
• A low cost of living; Ukraine is competitively ranked in the Numbeo Cost of Living Index.
• Affordable, quality real estate.
• Geographic location – in Europe.
• Fun lifestyle
• Multiple international schools.
• Affordable healthcare.

1. What are the options to obtain residency in Ukraine?

1. Residency through Marriage
2. Residency through family reunification
3. Permanent Residency through investment (minimum $100,000)
4. Residency through work permit and LLC creation
5. Residency through volunteering
6. Permanent Residency for IT workers

 2. What is the easiest way to obtain residency in Ukraine?

The residency by investment option, though widely promoted online, is not straightforward.

1. It takes at least a year to process as it is quite bureaucratic

2. It is promoted online as “buy $100,000 of real estate in Ukraine and get residency”. It’s not that simple, because you must hold the real estate in a Ukrainian company, which comes with some negative tax consequences. However, it is the best way to obtain permanent residency. And while you wait for your permanent residency, Taras can help you obtain temporary residency through the company you created.

The simplest way to obtain residency, if you don’t care about the permanent aspect or don’t want to invest $100,000, is to either become a volunteer (valid for 1 year), or create a company and apply on the basis on being the director of that company. In this case you can obtain a 3 year visa, renewable.

If you are an IT worker, you can apply for permanent residency immediately through a special government programme to encourage innovation.

3. What documents are needed to obtain residency in Ukraine through LLC creation?

• Passport
• Marriage and birth certificates for your family members
• For residency through a local company – the company documents and proof you are registered as the director
• Medical insurance

All  documents needs to be translated into Ukrainian. The lawyer will take care of this. Documents from back home must be apostilled.

4. How my lawyer can help you obtain residency

My lawyer in Ukraine, Taras, can help you jump through all the bureaucratic hoops. He speaks English, Ukrainian and Russian fluently. He’ll help you in person at the immigration department, as opposed to just handing you over the files and leaving you on your own to go deal with the bureaucracy.

Taras has been helping foreigners conduct business in Ukraine for many years now. He can help in all matters related to immigration, business law, and real estate transactions.

Taras has been helping foreigners conduct business in Ukraine for many years now. He can help in all matters related to immigration, business law, and real estate transactions.

He went to law school Lviv, has been working as a lawyer for a number of years in Kyiv, and processes more than a hundred residence permits and over a dozen real estate transactions per year.

Taras can also help your apply for residency through marriage, family reunification, or apply for Ukrainian citizenship if you are entitled to it. Fill out the form below of send him an email taras@thewanderinginvestor.com.

I interviewed Leonid on the topic of obtaining residency in Ukraine. You can watch the video here.

I also interviewed Taras on the special government innovation programme which gives some IT workers permanent residency, as opposed to temporary residency. It’s a truly unique and attractive programme, especially combined with a 5% tax rate when one creates a local FOP (Private Entrepreneur status) which Taras can also create for you. You can watch the video here.

The residency services are performed by a lawyer. We at The Wandering Investor have no liability.