In recent years, many foreigners became interested in moving to Ukraine. Often, this is due to the intention to do business, for example, in the field of IT or construction. Earlier, we have already talked about the process of creating a company in Ukraine (https://odessa-journal.com/what-to-know-for-foreigners-to-open-a-new-company-in-ukraine/ ). Now, we will consider further steps to legalise the work and stay of foreign citizens in Ukraine.
One of the most common grounds for obtaining a residence permit in Ukraine is the employment in an Ukrainian company. We draw your attention to the fact that this is far from the only way, as the leading positions are also taken by the family reunification with a citizen of Ukraine or a foreigner living in Ukraine legally, studying at a Ukrainian university, working in a branch of a foreign company, but in this article we will not consider these grounds.
Opening a company in Ukraine
After opening your own company, you can become an employee in it (as well as in an existing Ukrainian company). For this, the size of the authorised capital, the scope of the company or the position on which you will work does not matter. It is only important to obtain a work permit.
The fact is that regardless of whether you are a founder or an ordinary employee of the company, in order to hire you, the company must obtain an appropriate permit from the employment center. If you are a founder, the permit can be issued for up to 3 years, if not, up to one year.
Salary
If you are a founder of a company, your salary can be at the level of the minimum wage in Ukraine - at the time of this writing, it is 6,000 hryvnia. If you are not a founder, but just a hired employee, the company must pay you a salary of at least 10 times the minimum wage.
This salary requirement does not apply to programmers in IT companies, representatives of creative professions, university graduates, if the university is included in the first hundred of world university rankings.
Work permit
When issuing a work permit, the employment center does not check the level of education and qualifications; the employer and the employee are responsible for the suitability of the position held.
The procedure for obtaining a work permit takes about a month. To obtain a permit, you will need a notarized translation of a foreigner's passport, his photo and a draft of employment contract.
Temporary residence permit
After obtaining a work permit, you can obtain a temporary residence permit, but for this you first need to get a type D work visa (only citizens of some countries of the former USSR do not need this). To obtain a visa, you will need, in particular, a notarized copy of a work permit and confirmation of the availability of financial security for the period of stay in Ukraine (such can be bank cards and account statements). Unfortunately, a visa can be obtained only abroad.
To obtain a temporary residence permit, in addition to a work permit, you will need an insurance policy and an employer's obligation to notify the employment center and the migration service in case of early termination of the contract. The procedure of obtaining a residence permit also takes about a month. After obtaining a residence permit, you must register your place of residence.
What are the benefits of a temporary residence permit?
You can freely stay on the territory of Ukraine, leave and enter Ukraine an unlimited number of times during the period of validity of the residence permit. This is especially true during a pandemic, when the State can temporarily restrict the entry of foreigners or provide additional conditions for entry. At the same time, a temporary residence permit does not equalise you in rights with citizens of Ukraine, for example, in the field of health care or social protection.
It is important that after you receive a residence permit, your family (spouses, children) can also receive a residence permit in Ukraine on the basis of family reunification.
Renewal of work permit and temporary residence permit
Both the work permit and the temporary residence permit can be renewed an unlimited number of times. At the same time, even a long-term residence in Ukraine on the basis of a temporary residence permit in itself is not a basis for obtaining a permanent residence permit.
The author of this article is Natalia Liashenko, Lawyer of “De-Jure†Law Firm LLC
