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Укр / Eng
11.03.21

Ivan was born in the late 1960s in the Donetsk region (back then – the Ukrainian SSR). There he studied at a boarding school. After graduating, Ivan entered a vocational school.

At the age of 16, Ivan received a Soviet passport, issued at the place of residence. All his life, the man lived in Ukraine with family, worked in one of the villages of Donetsk region and did not move anywhere out of Ukraine until 2002.

In 2002, as he returned back to Ukraine the need to replace a passport became urgent as the passports of citizens of Ukraine issued using the forms of the former USSR were valid only until January 1, 2005.

When the man applied to the Department of the State Migration Service for a passport of a citizen of Ukraine he was denied due to the fact that his citizenship of Ukraine could not be established. In addition, Ivan lost the original birth certificate and could not obtain it on his own due to the lack of valid documents.

Later, Ivan lost his Soviet passport.

In August 2019, Ivan applied to the office of the Right to Protection CF in the city of Slovyansk. After a detailed study of the case, the lawyer renewed the birth certificate and sent to the court a statement establishing the fact of Ivan’s permanent residence in Ukraine as of August 24, 1991 and as of November 13, 1991.

In the summer of 2020, after receiving a court decision establishing the mentioned above fact, Ivan applied to the State Migration Service department to register as a citizen of Ukraine. Due to quarantine, it took longer than usual. While waiting for a court decision, Ivan suffered a hand injury, and due to the lack of a passport he had difficulty accessing medical care.

Immediately after receiving a certificate of registration as a citizen of Ukraine, Ivan finally had the opportunity to apply for a passport of a citizen of Ukraine in January 2021. On March 3, 2021, he finally received a long-awaited passport.

From the age of 16 with a Soviet passport. The story of Ivan З 16-ти років з радянським паспортом. Історія Івана

UNHCR Ukraine – United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Ukraine


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