WHAT TO DO IF YOUR STAY IN UKRAINE IS ILLEGAL?

First, let's look at what it means to be illegal. We will not speak in words quoted from the law, but we will explain everything in human language.

An illegal immigrant is a foreign citizen who came to Ukraine on a visa or within 90/180 days (this factor is only relevant for countries with non-visa entry for Ukraine when applying for a temporary residence permit in Ukraine) and stayed here after the allowed time of stay has expired provided by the temporary corridor or visa.

Also, illegal immigrants can be called people who had a temporary or permanent residence permit in Ukraine and for some reason (they may be different) lost the right to use these documents, were brought to administrative responsibility for their loss or damage and did not leave on time from Ukraine, as well as, after the cancellation of the above documents by the migration service for reasons provided for by the legislation of Ukraine.

How to be in such a situation?

What to do if leaving for your country is not even considered? Especially at a time when the whole world is engulfed in wars, de-stabilization processes within states, against the background of the developing coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

The first thing to do is to generally assess the picture of the state of your documents, study the reasons for staying on the territory of Ukraine and the reasons why a person cannot leave the territory of Ukraine even if he acquires the status of an illegal immigrant. After that, you need to contact the migration service authorities at your place of residence on the issue of extending the period of stay on the territory of Ukraine.

Of the documents you need to have with you:

• original passport of the country of your citizenship;
• notarized translation of the foreign passport of the country of one's citizenship;
• a document confirming the grounds for staying and extending the period of stay in Ukraine (for example, a work permit; marriage certificate; birth certificate of a child who is a citizen of Ukraine; your birth certificate if you were born on the territory of Ukraine; documents of close relatives who are citizens Ukraine or lived on the territory of Ukraine at the time of 1991, etc.).

Arriving at the reception at the migration service, employees of the state agency will carefully study your situation, documents and grounds for stay and accept documents for extending the period of stay.

The result of this procedure will be affixing a stamp in the passport to extend the period of stay. This seal can be valid for a maximum of 6 months. During this time, you can legalize by issuing a temporary or permanent residence permit or, if necessary, a future departure from Ukraine - acquire grounds for obtaining a D visa (for marriage, study, work, etc.).

It cannot be said that the procedure for extending the period of stay solves your illegal status forever or decides your stay in Ukraine in general in terms of documents, but the fact that it is a lifeline and a temporary solution to the legality of stay is for sure. Thanks to this service, you will be able to get the opportunity to acquire a residence permit or even citizenship of Ukraine in the future.

The procedure for extending the period of stay is very complicated, so it would be wise to seek the help of a lawyer who has special knowledge in this matter. The specialists of our company provide you with services at the highest level.