How to Get a Residence Permit in Ukraine Through Investments?

For those who have made investments in Ukrainian economy in foreign convertible currency in the amount of USD 100,000 and more, the immigration quota for the year 2021 is not limited. 

But, of course, this process involves many questions and nuances. You should start with determining an investment, and learn how to make the procedure so that you can apply for a permanent residence permit in the future.

Our lawyers will not only answer all of your questions about the procedure of obtaining a residence permit in Ukraine through investment, but also make the whole procedure to be comfortable and safe for you.

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How shall a foreigner or stateless person make a foreign investment?

Foreign investors are persons carrying out investment activity on the territory of Ukraine. Namely, foreign physical persons who do not have a permanent residence in Ukraine and are not limited in capacity. 

To make optimal foreign investment in the economy of Ukraine, you must establish and register a new company in accordance with the laws of Ukraine, or make a contribution to the authorized share capital of the existing company.

These are not the only types of foreign investment in the economy of Ukraine. But this option has a significant demand among foreigners, so let’s consider it in more detail.

For example there is a possibility of obtaining a residence permit in Ukraine through investment in real estate. But the purchase of real estate will be considered an investment only if it is purchased through an LLC. That is, the foreigner still needs to open an account, transfer money there, and only then buy real estate. We will tell you which option would be best in your case.

What currency shall be used for making foreign investment to obtain a residence permit in Ukraine?

You can make investment in a foreign currency that is recognized as convertible by the National Bank of Ukraine. The most common ones are the U.S. dollar and the euro.

Hryvnia can’t be used for investment, as according to the Law of Ukraine “On Immigration” it shall be a foreign convertible currency. The same rule applies to other types of investment. Although shares and corporate rights are also qualified as an investment, they can’t be used as the basis for obtaining a residence permit.

To make an investment, a foreigner or a stateless person must open an investment account in a bank in Ukraine. How to correctly open an account for a foreigner and what difficulties it involves, we have described in detail in this article.

An investment account is an account in foreign currency of the 1st classification group and/or in UAH, which was opened by foreign investor in the authorized bank according to the abovementioned instruction.

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How are foreign investments made in practice? How to confirm them?

A non-resident must make investment in monetary terms in foreign currency, which shall be equivalent to USD 100,000 and more (according to the official exchange rate of NBU on the day of investment).

Since Article 4 of the Law of Ukraine “On Immigration” defines investment in the economy of Ukraine, such investment should correspond to the purpose of making profit, namely production of economic activity or development of economic situation in Ukraine in other ways.

Taking into account the package of documents to be submitted when applying for a permit, it is advisable to invest in the capital of your company, which will then make profit. If the investment is made only for the purpose of obtaining a permanent residence permit, then after obtaining it the foreigner can spend money for their own needs and on behalf of the company (for example, you can buy a house to live in, but the owner of the house will be a company).

Our lawyers will help you develop an investment scheme specifically for your situation and tell you how, when and in what order you can spend the funds further.

What documents do you need to obtain an immigration permit through investments?

The documents for obtaining an immigration permit include:

• A passport of a foreigner or a document confirming the identity of a stateless person with a C-type visa;

• A document confirming the identity of the legal representative and a document confirming the authority (in case of submitting documents by the legal representative);

• Ukrainian translation of a page of the foreigner’s passport or document confirming the identity of a stateless person, including personal data certified in the manner prescribed by law;

• A company’s Charter or registered agreements/contracts about the investment activity;

• A certificate from a bank about investment in the Ukrainian economy in foreign converted currency in the amount of  100 thousand U.S. dollars or more;

• Information on family composition;

• Medical certificates;

• A document confirming the payment of administrative fees, or a document confirming exemption from payment of administrative fees.

Before submitting the documents to the Migration Service, the collected package of papers must be checked and approved by the management of the Migration Service. Our lawyers will help you with this issue. 

The period of consideration of the application for an immigration permit cannot exceed one year from the date of its filing. 

Based on a positive result in the consideration of documents for immigration. you’ll get a permit to immigrate to Ukraine. 

Together with the Permit, citizens of visa countries must apply to the Embassy to obtain a D-01 Visa and enter Ukraine to apply for a Permanent Residence Permit.

The Migration Service is also responsible for this procedure, which takes 15 business days.

For this purpose, you need the following documents:

• A  foreign passport or identity document; 

• Translation of passport into Ukrainian, certified by notary;

• An immigration permit.

After that, a foreigner or a stateless person obtains a permanent residence permit for 10 years. It is issued by the territorial body of the SMS, which accepts the relevant documents for the permit. This is done after presenting the foreigner’s passport or identity document of a stateless person. The last free page is stamped with the receipt of the permit.

Immigrants who have obtained a permanent residence permit must register at the place of permanent residence. If the place of residence has changed, registration procedure must be repeated according to the procedure established for Ukrainian citizens. 

If you do not have a place of registration - our company can help you with this issue and provide a registration address.

Legal services for obtaining a residence permit in Ukraine through investments

The procedure of obtaining a residence permit on the basis of investment involves many pitfalls. What is the result? Rejection of the residence permit.

Our practical experience allows us to offer the following assistance to the Client:

• Analysis of the possibility of legal stay of a foreigner in Ukraine (we will analyze all possible grounds for obtaining a permanent residence permit and choose the optimal algorithm);

• Establishment of a company, to further transfer money to the account of its authorized share capital (we register a company with a foreign founder);

• Assistance in obtaining a certificate from the bank on the receipt of funds;

• Preparation of a set of documents for filing for an immigration permit (we take the documents to the Client, obtain the missing papers and legalize foreign documents);

• Legal support of the Client when submitting documents to the SMS;

• Obtaining the decision on granting the immigration permit;

• Preparation of the second set of papers to submit for a residence permit;

• Receipt of a ready-made residence permit;

• We help to make the legal basis for the foreigner’s stay in Ukraine (for example, we obtain a residence permit through employment, which takes less time and gives the right to stay legally in the country for about a year, we obtain a health certificate to extend the stay, or a business invitation letter from the legal entity).

Involving a lawyer in the process of obtaining a residence permit through investments will protect you from the following risks and errors:

1. Incorrect transfer of funds for the purpose of investing in the country’s economy;

2. Expired period of legal stay to apply for an immigration permit;

3. Incomplete package of documents submitted to the migration authorities;

4. Incorrect legalization of foreign documents;

5. Expired period of immigration permit, which makes it impossible to apply for a residence permit;

6. Untimely registration in Ukraine, which results in a fine for a foreigner.

Is it realistic to get a permanent residence permit in Ukraine through investments?

It is quite realistic to get a residence permit in Ukraine on the basis of foreign investment in the economy of Ukraine. But a person, who intends to get a residence permit in Ukraine, should understand that this process requires considerable time (from 6 months to a year) and funds (from 100 thousand USD).

Another important requirement is to comply with the clear procedures defined by the current Ukrainian legislation. Therefore, if a person wants to get a residence permit in Ukraine and stay in Ukraine while preparing documents for obtaining the permit, it is advisable to get a residence permit first.

Moreover, by meeting the requirements for obtaining a temporary residence permit, you can make the first steps towards obtaining a permanent residence permit in the future (to register a company in Ukraine with an authorized share capital of over 100 thousand dollars and get employed in the company, which will be the basis for obtaining a residence permit for more than one year).

Would you like to get a residence permit in Ukraine through foreign investments? Don’t know where to start? Please feel free to contact us with any questions.

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Everything about the procedure for obtaining a Permanent Residence Permit here.