Ukraine’s rules on citizenship by descent (also called citizenship by territorial origin, Article 8 of the Law “On Citizenship of Ukraine”) changed materially from 16 January 2026, when Law No. 4502-IX entered into force. The law also introduced, for the first time, a legal framework for multiple citizenship with a defined list of countries.
How we help
- 1.We check your file: the documents you already have, and whether your family line realistically supports a claim.
- 2.We confirm your chances before you commit to the full process.
- 3.We submit the first archive request to locate your ancestor’s birth or residence record.
- 4.If the archives need deeper digging, we arrange a genealogist to trace the record.
- 5.If no record can be found, we take the case to court to establish the fact of birth, residence, or family relationship.
- 6.If court proceedings are not needed, we support you the rest of the way, exams, filing, and follow-up, until you have your Ukrainian passport in hand.
Frequently asked questions
01.Can I get Ukrainian citizenship through a grandparent or great-grandparent?+
Yes. Under Article 8 of the Law of Ukraine “On Citizenship of Ukraine,” you are eligible if you, your parent, your grandparent, your great-grandparent, or a sibling was born or permanently resided, before 24 August 1991, on territory that is now Ukraine, or on territory that historically belonged to the Ukrainian People’s Republic, the West Ukrainian People’s Republic, the Ukrainian State, the Ukrainian SSR, Carpathian Ukraine, or the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.
The connection has to be by blood, and it stops at a great-grandparent: an earlier ancestor does not qualify you on its own. Marrying someone with Ukrainian roots does not make you eligible either, only your own bloodline does. If you qualify, your minor children are automatically covered by your application.
This route is generally faster than standard naturalization under Article 9, which can take several years. Applications by descent are typically processed within about three months, sometimes longer depending on the case.
02.Is this the same process as standard naturalization?+
No. Standard naturalization under Article 9 is a discretionary process built around the Interagency Commission on Citizenship Matters, and for certain categories, it ends with a Presidential Decree admitting the person to citizenship. It commonly takes several years.
Citizenship by descent under Article 8 works differently. It is legally framed as recognizing a claim you already have through your bloodline, not as granting you something new. The decision is made directly by the territorial office of the State Migration Service, or by a Ukrainian consulate if you live abroad, with no Commission review and no Presidential Decree. That is why the timeline is measured in months rather than years, typically around three months once your file, including any exam certificates, is complete, though it can run longer if the State Migration Service requests additional verification.
03.Is dual citizenship allowed, and with which countries?+
Yes, but only with countries on an approved list. The 2026 law added a new Article 5-1 to the Law “On Citizenship of Ukraine,” recognizing multiple citizenship for the first time. The Cabinet of Ministers set the initial list in Resolution No. 1412 (November 2025) and expanded it in Resolution No. 589 (8 May 2026).
Citizens of the following 33 countries can become Ukrainian citizens by descent, or by the simplified declaration procedure, without giving up their original citizenship:
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Canada
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Italy
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- Malta
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- United Kingdom
- United States
Dual citizenship with a country recognized by Ukraine as an aggressor or occupying state is not permitted. Voluntarily obtaining a passport of an aggressor state is itself a new ground for loss of Ukrainian citizenship, with narrow exceptions for people forced to do so while living under occupation.
04.Do I have to pass exams, and does that mean travelling to Ukraine?+
Yes, since 16 January 2026, adult applicants for citizenship by descent must pass exams on the fundamentals of the Constitution of Ukraine, Ukrainian history, and the state language before submitting their citizenship documents. The Ukrainian language exam requires B1-level proficiency and is administered by the National Commission on State Language Standards. The Constitution and history exam is run by the Scientific and Methodological Center for Higher and Professional Pre-Higher Education.
Applicants under 18 are exempt from both the exam requirement and the standard declaration on upholding the Constitution. Exemptions also apply to people declared legally incapacitated by a court, and to people with certain documented disabilities or medical conditions (vision, hearing, or speech impairment, dementia, or similar).
At present, the exams are administered in person in Ukraine (the language exam in Kyiv, Lviv, or Kharkiv; the Constitution and history exam in Kyiv). There is no remote or consulate-based option yet, though the framework created by the 2026 law leaves room for this to change, and officials have signalled that a remote format may be introduced later. We recommend treating any consulate-based exam option as not yet available until it is formally confirmed.
Military personnel and people whose admission to citizenship is treated as being in Ukraine’s state interest get a two-year postponement on the exam requirement.
05.What if the archives have no record of my relative?+
Missing or destroyed Soviet-era records are common, especially for a great-grandparent. When archival searches (regional archives, civil status registries) do not turn up a usable document, there are two main paths.
Establishing the fact in court. A Ukrainian court can formally establish the fact of a relative’s birth, residence, or family relationship on the relevant territory. This decision can then support a citizenship application. The State Migration Service often scrutinizes this kind of evidence closely, so the case needs to be built carefully with corroborating documents.
Foreign Ukrainian (закордонний українець) status. If citizenship by descent cannot yet be proven, a person of Ukrainian origin can apply for foreign Ukrainian status under the Law “On Foreign Ukrainians.” This status lets you immigrate to Ukraine for permanent residence outside the normal immigration quota, together with a spouse and children, and it gives holders a free five-year multiple-entry visa where a visa is otherwise required. From permanent residence, the standard path to citizenship becomes available. In practice this route can be useful while the documentary case for citizenship by descent is still being built.
06.What if I don’t want to take the exams? Is there another option?+
Yes. A person eligible for citizenship by territorial origin is also, under Article 4 of the Law “On Immigration,” a recognized ground for an immigration permit to Ukraine, which leads to a permanent residence permit. The exam requirement applies to the citizenship application itself, not to the immigration permit or permanent residence permit.
A permanent residence permit gives an indefinite right to live and work in Ukraine without a separate work permit, access to social security on the same footing as citizens, and it can be renewed every ten years. It does not by itself make you a Ukrainian citizen, and it does not carry a Ukrainian passport or the right to vote.
For clients who want to live and work in Ukraine now but are not ready to sit the language, history, and Constitution exams, we generally recommend starting with the immigration permit and permanent residence route, and revisiting full citizenship later if and when it suits them.
07.How much does it cost?+
We work in two stages, so you are not paying for the full process before you know it is worth pursuing.
- Stage 1, eligibility check: $100. This covers our legal review of your family documents and the first archive request to check whether a usable record exists.
- Stage 2, full process: $1,700. If eligibility is confirmed, this covers the case through to citizenship, including document preparation and filing, court proceedings to establish a fact if that becomes necessary, and support through the exam and application stages.
Total legal fee: $1,800. Translation and notary costs are billed separately, based on the actual volume of documents in your case. A genealogist, if one is needed to trace records beyond the first archive request, is also quoted and billed separately.
Not sure which route fits your family’s documents?
Every citizenship by descent case turns on the specific paper trail available. We review your documents, tell you honestly whether descent, a court case, foreign Ukrainian status, or an immigration permit is the realistic starting point, and handle the filing.