The Attractiveness of Ukraine as a Country for Obtaining a Residence Permit

Ukraine can be considered as an attractive country for foreigners wishing to immigrate to Europe. Primarily, this is due to the European vector of development of our country and the desire of Ukrainians to be an integral part of the European community. Secondly, it is the low real estate, services, food prices, convenient geographical location, advanced communications, temperate climate.

Surely, Ukraine is not often considered as a choice of residence for citizens of European Union or the United States. However, for citizens of Pakistan, India, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Libya and other countries from the Middle East Ukraine is interesting because of many reasons, such as: relatively low price of obtaining a residence permit, rather short terms and relatively liberal immigration policy. Let’s consider the benefits of migration to Ukraine in comparison with other countries and consider the so-called business immigration.

The residence permit in Germany, one of the most desirable countries for immigrants is difficult to obtain, as it is in most of Western European countries. The easiest way is to open their own business in the country, the most common form of ownership is the Limited Liability Company, and the sum of the initial capital must not be less than 25 thousand Euro, the registration period is up to 2.5 months, and initially it is necessary to hire a manager who is a citizen of Germany or a person with a residence permit. After this, you must provide the Embassy with a detailed business plan, which is forwarded to the authorities of the federal state where you intend to live and work. The total period of consideration of documents is at least 8-9 months, usually 12-15 months. The actual procedure of the general budget, not counting the cost of the share capital, may be up to 10 thousand Euro.

The new members of the European Union, such as Poland, have simpler requirements for business immigrants, but there are some limitations. So, business migration is allowed to managers of existing enterprises which have been registered in Poland and who are able to provide the licensing authorities statements of account turnover of the company (confirmation of the sale of goods/services and receipt of their payment), and other evidence of means and possibilities (long-term contracts with contractors, the development plan of the company for 12 months, funding, patents, plant and equipment, etc.), proof of the growth of innovation, investment and technology transfer. So, initially it is necessary to open the company and to start work, hire a Polish staff (at least the head of the company), and only then you can apply for a residence permit. Real general budget for the procedure can take up to 6-8 thousand Euro.

In comparison with these countries Ukraine can offer a very liberal terms, namely: there is no fixed requirements for the size of the authorized capital (it can be 200-250 Euro), there is no requirement to provide a business plan and account statements, quite fast procedure of the case (the general term usually is 1.5-2 months, and for an additional fee you can order compact procedure). Real general budget procedure is usually from 1500 to 2000 Euro, which is quite acceptable. Some specific requirements are only the official payment of taxes on the payroll of a migrant during the period of the residence permit, this amount is small and is around 65-70 Euro per month.

Thus, mentioned above information shows that Ukraine can be a very attractive option for business migration for people who have a limited budget. Further we want to consider the basic procedures for obtaining a residence permit.
For a citizen of another country to stay legally in Ukraine for a long time (in fact, to live and work) it is necessary to obtain a residence permit. The residence permit may be permanent and temporary. Permanent gives the opportunity to be on the territory of Ukraine all the time. Temporary let to be in Ukraine for a year. It is important to understand that a temporary residence permit does not have so-called “time windows”. If you leave Ukraine, for example, for two months and then return, this does not mean that your stay will be extended for these two months.

Ukrainian laws provide several opportunities to obtain a residence permit. One way of the legalization a citizen of another country is to get a special quota. It includes well-known cultural figures, scientists, designers and people who have invested into the Ukrainian economy at least 100 thousand dollars. It is possible to legalize your stay in the country without a quota in the case if you have already had Ukrainian citizenship or was born on the territory of our country. The immigration of founders of Ukrainian companies is also possible.

For business immigration applicant a minimum set of documents is required, namely:
– valid passport with expiry date (at least a year, preferably 1.5 years), to start a copy or scanned copy is provided;
– certificate of education, certified by an apostille or consular legalization;
– photos (6 photos);
– Power of attorney.
This is the minimum set of documents which we take from the customer. All other certificates, permits, documents, we get ourselves, as well as carry out all the necessary actions ourselves (filing, certification of copies and translations, etc.). This is the best option for those persons who do not have time to deal with the collection and preparation of all necessary documents.

We also want to note that the residence permit allows foreigners to stay in Ukraine without restriction during the period of validity of the document. However, the document gives a foreigner the right to work legally in Ukraine. So, after receiving he can work at several positions in various companies, in combination, or even register as an individual entrepreneur.

The special advantage of the migration to Ukraine is that when Ukraine gain the right of visa-free entry to the European Union, all holders of the residence permit will have the right for visa-free entry also.

Author: Kydalov Igor