How an employer can apply for a residence permit for foreign workers in Ukraine
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Reviews of our Clients
We were contacted by a foreign company that won a tender in Ukraine for the construction of an important state facility. In order to operate in Ukraine the company must:
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obtain a license in Ukraine to carry out construction activity;
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relocate more than 30 qualified workers to Ukraine.
However, it was not enough to move the workers for the period established for legal stay - the project was designed to last about a year, which meant that all the workers had to get Temporary Residence Permits.
The company contacted us with a question of how best to arrange this entire procedure, to solve the problems it was facing.
The solution we offered was to register a Ukrainian company that could obtain a Construction License of the required type, as well as officially employ all workers.
Our company undertook the procedure of company registration and specialists relocation. Using the example of the Client, we will describe how to arrange such projects, and how long it will take to obtain Work Permits and Temporary Residence Permits for a large number of foreign workers in Ukraine.
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Stage 1: Registering a company and obtaining a license or other permits
It was decided to register a company with the main Client, a foreign company, as a 100% owner.
Preparation for registration includes:
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Conducting a General Meeting, the result of which must be recorded in the Minutes;
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Preparation of constituent documents, including the Charter;
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Appointment of a director of a Ukrainian company.
Our company developed the customized Charter, which specified important aspects of the future activities and organizational aspects of the company.
In addition, we provided the services of a Ukrainian director during the company registration. Let’s focus on this issue in more detail.
The fact is that the frequent practice in the registration of business with foreign capital is the appointment of a foreign director in such a company. But this cannot be done during the company registration. In order to hold the position of a director, a foreign person must obtain a Work Permit, which is only possible with an application from an already existing company.
Thus, at the moment of registration only a Ukrainian citizen can become a director of an LLC in Ukraine. Read more here. We provide such services with further replacement of our director by the Client’s candidate. In a situation when our foreign Clients already have a suitable Ukrainian candidate for such a position - we carry out registration with his/her participation.
In order to get a Сonstruction License and other authorization documents, we have organized the following processes:
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Obtaining the Declaration of the State Labour Inspectorate;
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Obtaining a Declaration of the commencement of construction work;
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Obtaining a Construction Work Permit;
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Obtaining a Construction License.
On the sidelines of the preparation for obtaining the license, we immediately initiated the process of obtaining Work Permits for foreign workers and organized their training in Ukraine, which was required by the licensing regulations.
Note: The described case was before the forced suspension of the State Architectural and Construction Inspection of Ukraine, the authority that issues Construction Licenses. At this time the procedure for obtaining such licenses is made difficult by this fact.
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Stage 2: Obtaining Work Permits and Temporary Residence Permits for foreign workers
In order for the Client’s employees to be able to stay in Ukraine for the entire duration of the project, they had to obtain a Temporary Residence Permit.
A Temporary Residence Permit provided that a foreigner has a good reason - grounds. You can find them here. One of these grounds is a Work Permit in Ukraine.
Accordingly, we had to get Work Permits for 30 employees first, and then apply for Temporary Residence Permits.
The procedure is described below:
1) Preparation of a package of documents on behalf of the employer (a company registered in Ukraine). It includes:
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An application specifying the employee's name and the position;
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Draft employment agreement.
2) Preparation of a package of documents from the employee - it includes copies of passport (notarized translation) and a photo.
Note: In addition, a power of attorney must be issued for the representative who will deal with obtaining the Work Permit in Kyiv.
3) Submission of documentsto the Employment Center.
Consideration of documents can take about a week. We prepared all documents simultaneously and submitted them to the Employment Center, which helped to obtain the necessary Permit in the shortest time possible. You can learn the full procedure here.
Once you get your Work Permits, you can proceed to the procedure of obtaining a Temporary Residence Permit for workers. For this you will additionally need to:
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Obtain a visa D (for citizens of the countries with visa entry regime);
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Get a health insurance policy.
Our company takes care of all these procedures.
The package of documents for each employee is submitted to the Migration Service for review, which takes on average about 15 business days.
All this time our lawyers are in touch with the Migration Service and accompany the employees during their visit to the state authorities.
As a result, our Client got a ready-made company and hired staff within a month. It took us a few more weeks to get Temporary Residence Permits and the license.
To facilitate the process of entering the Ukrainian market, we provided our Client with assistance in keeping personnel records for an agreed period. We also ensured that the Employment Centre received the signed employment agreements from the employees in a timely manner that eliminated the risk of the Work Permit revocation.
The most important thing in such projects is a clear understanding of the procedure and the ability to organize the process in such a way as to avoid delays or unnecessary costs. We guarantee it.
In the process of further cooperation with the Client, we have also agreed on the extension of the Temporary Residence Permit for workers, and on assistance in the case of recruitment and transfer of new employees.
Do you need assistance with the proper business setup in Ukraine? Don;t hesitate to contact us!
We will help with difficult issues such as staff relocation, obtaining business permits and much more.
Do you want to understand all the subtle aspects of the procedures?
You can check the cost of obtaining a Work Permit in Ukraine here.
You can check the cost of obtaining Temporary Residence Permits in Ukraine here.
For corporate clients we offer the development of personalized packages.
