How to Register Ukrainian Citizenship for a Child When One Parent Is Ukrainian

When does Article 14 apply to a child?

Article 14 of the Law of Ukraine on Citizenship provides a specific registration route when a child is a foreign citizen or stateless person and Ukrainian citizenship is connected to the current citizenship of the child's parents or one of them.

The law covers four principal situations:

• a child who is a foreign citizen or stateless person where one parent is Ukrainian and the other is stateless;
• a stateless child where one parent is Ukrainian and the other is a foreign citizen;
• a foreign or stateless child whose parents are both Ukrainian citizens;
• a foreign child where one parent is Ukrainian and the other is a foreign citizen.

For the categories involving one Ukrainian parent, the application is made by that Ukrainian parent. Where both parents are Ukrainian citizens, one parent may apply.

Check first whether the child is already Ukrainian by birth

This distinction is important. Article 14 registration is not the correct route simply because a child has a Ukrainian parent.

Under Article 7 of the current Citizenship Law, a person whose parents or one parent was a Ukrainian citizen at the time of birth is a Ukrainian citizen from birth. The State Migration Service confirms that, for people born after the current Citizenship Law took effect on 1 March 2001, the place of birth does not change that rule.

If the Ukrainian parent's citizenship existed when the child was born, ask the State Migration Service to determine the appropriate citizenship-by-birth procedure rather than automatically filing an Article 14 application. Article 14 is specifically structured around a child who is currently a foreign citizen or stateless person and the statutory parent-citizenship combinations described in that article.

What documents are needed if the other parent is a foreign citizen?

Under the current procedure, where the child is a foreign citizen, one parent is Ukrainian and the other is a foreign citizen, the Ukrainian parent submits the documents prescribed by points 91 and 94 of the citizenship procedure. They include:

• the prescribed application;
• two 35 × 45 mm photographs of the child;
• the child's birth certificate, civil-register birth extract or qualifying foreign birth document;
• the child's foreign passport, if available;
• a declaration concerning the child's foreign or stateless status as prescribed;
• a Ukrainian passport, Ukrainian international passport or another qualifying document proving the applying parent's Ukrainian citizenship;
• a document proving that the other parent holds foreign citizenship;
• the child's consent if the child is aged 14 to 18.

The required combination changes if the child is stateless or the other parent is stateless, so applicants should use the category corresponding to the family's actual citizenship status rather than copying a document list intended for another Article 14 case.

What changes when the child or other parent is stateless?

If one parent is Ukrainian and the other is stateless, Article 14 allows registration of a child who is either a foreign citizen or stateless person. The current procedure requires evidence relating to the second parent's stateless status, including the applicable permanent or temporary residence permit, as well as the documents specified for the child.

If the child is stateless and one parent is Ukrainian while the other is a foreign citizen, the application includes a declaration that the child is stateless and a document proving the other parent's foreign citizenship.

These distinctions matter because the State Migration Service must verify that the particular facts required by Article 14 actually exist.

Does a child aged 14 or older have to consent?

Yes. The current citizenship procedure requires a written statement of consent from a child aged 14 to 18 to acquisition of Ukrainian citizenship. The current form is approved by Ministry of Internal Affairs Order No. 438 of 8 May 2026.

The State Migration Service also states that when a legal representative submits citizenship documents for a child, the child's presence is mandatory from age 14. An application may be submitted without the child's presence where an officially recognized serious reason prevents personal attendance, including specified disability or illness circumstances, natural disaster, applicable quarantine restrictions, or residence in specified active-combat or temporarily occupied territories. In that situation, the DMS requires a qualifying 10 × 15 cm photograph for scanning into the relevant information system.

Do foreign documents need legalization and translation?

Foreign documents issued by a competent authority must be legalized in the prescribed manner unless an international treaty binding on Ukraine provides otherwise.

They must also be submitted with a Ukrainian translation whose accuracy is notarized, except where Ukrainian law or an applicable international treaty provides another rule. The State Migration Service specifically applies the Ukrainian-translation requirement to a foreigner's passport document as well.

Because legalization requirements can depend on the country that issued the document and the applicable treaty framework, do not assume that every foreign birth certificate needs the same authentication procedure. If an apostille is the applicable form for a Ukrainian document you later need to use abroad, Helpydo separately explains how apostilles work for eligible Ukrainian court, civil registry and notarial documents.

Where do you apply?

For this State Migration Service procedure in Ukraine, collect the documents and submit them to a territorial subdivision of the State Migration Service at the place of application. The DMS does not provide this Article 14 procedure as a complete online application.

When submitting the documents, a Ukrainian citizen residing in Ukraine presents a Ukrainian internal passport and supplies its copy. A Ukrainian citizen residing abroad presents a Ukrainian international passport together with the document confirming information about residence abroad, with copies supplied as required.

Ukraine's Citizenship Law also assigns citizenship functions for persons who are legally considered permanently resident abroad to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, embassies and consular institutions within their statutory powers. Applicants permanently resident abroad should therefore use the competent Ukrainian diplomatic or consular authority for the route applicable to their case rather than assuming that the domestic DMS filing route is available overseas.

How much does the procedure cost?

The State Migration Service states that there is no payment for acquiring Ukrainian citizenship itself.

However, the current charge for processing and issuing the certificate of registration of a person as a Ukrainian citizen is UAH 137.75. This certificate is the document issued after successful registration and is the basis for obtaining a Ukrainian passport document.

Separate expenses can arise outside the citizenship fee, for example for notarized translations, legalization of foreign documents or obtaining foreign civil-status records. Those are not the DMS citizenship-acquisition fee and vary according to the document and service provider.

How long does citizenship registration take?

The State Migration Service gives an official consideration period of up to three months from the date the application is accepted.

There is no statutory filing deadline listed by the DMS for this Article 14 application. However, submitting incomplete, incorrectly prepared or mismatched documents can prevent the authority from confirming the legal grounds for acquisition.

Why can the application be refused?

The State Migration Service verifies whether the facts required by the Citizenship Law are established by the documents submitted. The DMS states that the competent official may refuse the application where grounds exist under which the person does not acquire Ukrainian citizenship, where submitted documents do not comply with the prescribed form or belong to another person, or where the documents do not prove the facts to which the law connects acquisition of citizenship.

Common practical points to check before filing are the child's exact citizenship status, the citizenship status of each parent, consistency of names and birth information across foreign and Ukrainian documents, the required legalization and translation of foreign records, and the child's consent when aged 14 to 18.

A citizenship decision can be challenged in court under Article 26 of the Citizenship Law, while actions or inaction that breach the procedure or consideration periods can be challenged through the routes provided by law.

What happens after the application is approved?

For Article 14 cases, the date of acquisition of Ukrainian citizenship is the date the acquisition of citizenship is registered.

After the successful decision, the relevant authority issues a certificate of registration of the person as a Ukrainian citizen. The State Migration Service expressly identifies this certificate as the basis for obtaining a Ukrainian citizen's passport.

Citizenship registration and passport issuance are separate steps. If the next task is obtaining a travel document for the child, see the Helpydo procedure on applying for a Ukrainian international passport for travel abroad.

What should you verify before filing?

• Confirm whether the child actually needs Article 14 registration or is already a citizen by birth under Article 7.
• Identify whether the child is a foreign citizen or stateless person.
• Confirm whether the second parent is Ukrainian, foreign or stateless, because this determines the applicable document set.
• Use the current application and consent forms approved under MIA Order No. 438 of 8 May 2026.
• Make sure foreign documents meet the applicable legalization and Ukrainian-translation requirements.
• Include the child's written consent when the child is 14 to 18 and plan for the child's presence at filing unless an official exception applies.
• Keep citizenship registration separate from the later passport application.