Since 2022, millions of Ukrainians have found themselves abroad, making the issue of document legalization a pressing concern for many of them. Finding employment, enrolling at a university, reuniting with family members, or obtaining a residence permit — in most cases, these procedures require Ukrainian documents bearing an apostille. Since February 1, 2026, Ukraine has been operating under an updated apostille procedure, and most instructions available online are already outdated.
We explain how to obtain a Police Clearance Certificate in Ukraine, when an apostille or legalization is required, and how to properly prepare the document for use in other countries.
Ukrainian citizens residing abroad can now request notarial services at embassies and consulates via the Internet. This was reported by the news media Strana, citing Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Andriy Sybiha.
The Ministry of Justice of Ukraine has issued official clarifications regarding which documents do not require legalization by apostille. This was reported by the Judicial and Legal Gazette.
After lengthy discussions, digitally apostilled certificates of no criminal record are becoming available in Ukraine through the “Diia” service. This was reported by the publication RBC-Ukraine.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Justice has officially confirmed the increase in the fee for certification of documents by apostille and justified this decision.
The authorities of Sevastopol plan to collect all notarial documents issued before the events of 2014 in a single archive. This was reported by the media outlet Forpost. It is believed that this experience could be useful for all "new regions."
The Ministry of Justice of Ukraine has explained how to certify documents with an apostille while abroad. The official comment from the department was published by the 'Judicial and Legal Newspaper.
In 2024, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine adopted a resolution on the procedure for maintaining the Electronic Register of Apostilles. It should be applied in practice from June 1, 2025. This was reported by the "Judicial and Legal Newspaper in Ukraine".
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine is creating a unified register that will contain data on all recipients of social assistance, benefits and other social guarantees from the state. At the same time, it will be connected in real time with the register of persons liable for military service “Obereg”, the register of rights to real estate, the register of vehicles, the register of civil status acts and all other registers. According to information from the Judicial-Legal Gazette, the corresponding normative act has already been registered in the Verkhovna Rada.
Before receiving government services falling under the responsibility of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, local citizens of military age will have to report to the military registration and enlistment office.
The Notary Chamber of Ukraine addressed the Ministry of Justice with an official letter. According to representatives of the Notary Chamber, Ukrainian notaries perform notarial acts abroad. In particular, there is information about similar cases in the UK and Spain.
The head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Dmytro Kuleba, has confirmed that he was the one who ordered to limit consular services for Ukrainians abroad.
The recognition of educational documents issued in Ukraine is an important step for individuals who intend to utilize their qualifications in Europe and the United States. Certain procedures such as apostille, legalization, and recognition need to be carried out to ensure the recognition of Ukrainian diplomas in other countries.
At the end of 2022, Ukraine adopted a law on withdrawal from the Convention on Legal Aid and Legal Relations, but then the Cabinet of Ministers decided that documents certified on the territory of foreign states would be accepted on the territory of Ukraine without a special certificate, if such a practice existed before February 24, 2022.
As you probably already know, the situation in Ukraine has sharply escalated due to the military invasion of the Russian military forces. At the moment, the situation is developing very quickly and unpredictably.
A curfew has been introduced on the territory of a number of settlements, the work of state bodies, delivery services and other services has been suspended. Internet access has also been temporarily disabled and some state Internet portals have been shut down. Airports have been closed and all flights have been suspended.
In this connection, at the moment it is impossible or very difficult to process orders in Ukraine.
On March 7, 2020, the order of the Ministry of justice of Ukraine No. 702/5 dated February 27, 2020 "On amendments to the procedure for apostille affixing on official documents issued by justice bodies and courts, as well as on documents that are issued by notaries of Ukraine"came into force.
