Our lawyers helped a client to notify licensing authority about change of head of security

In May 2018, a client, who had previously obtained a license for security activities with the help of our company lawyers,  contacted our company. Changes were made in the company’s staff: a specialist in the organization of security measures had been replaced, and the company’s management wondered what documents they had to submit to the licensing authority to notify of the changes and in what time frame.

According to the general rule, which is set forth in the main regulatory document, governing the activities of security companies in terms of licensing, the company is obliged to notify the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine of all changes that are made to the information provided earlier to obtain a license. The deadline for notification of such changes is also indicated - 1 month from the moment they occur.

The client did not know, like most licensees, what punishment was prescribed for violating this rule.

According to the Law of Ukraine “On licensing of certain types of economic activity”, in case the licensing authority becomes aware of the fact that the documents for a new security manager have not been submitted in time, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine draws up an order to eliminate such violations with the obligatory indication of the terms for its implementation. Failure to comply with such an order may lead to consideration of the cancellation of the issued license. Thus, ignoring the obligation to notify the MIA about the changes is not automatically the basis for canceling the license, but it is the first step towards this.

In case of changes in the security management of the enterprise, the same set of documents is to be submitted to the licensing body as for obtaining a security license. This is a set of medical certificates, a criminal record, the passport of a new specialist, an employment contract between the company and him/her, as well as a track record or other document confirming that the specialist meets the requirements. All documents are to be submitted in the form of certified copies, as annexes to the letter in free form.

The main challenge is  the assessment of  this package of documents for compliance with the requirements of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. If the package is incomplete or the security specialist is deemed unfit for the position due to lack of experience or for another reason; if the employment agreement is drawn up without taking into account the specific requirements of the licensing authority, not only with the changes will not be listed in a single register of the licenses issued, but also the issue of violation by such an enterprise of the rules for the implementation of security activities will arise.

In our Client’s case, the documents were accepted without any remarks, as the total number of licenses we obtained and of the applications we put together is hundreds upon hundreds. But even in this case, the period for reflecting the changes in the register exceeds one month.

This work is not too complicated nor does it require special preparation, however, lack of experience and simple mistakes made in preparing documents can lead to cancellation of the license. Before submitting documents, we strongly recommend that you make sure that the new specialist meets all the requirements of the law and has a full package of documents confirming this. Otherwise, the lesser of evils will be to postpone the notification of the licensing authority about the changes that have taken place.

More detailed consultations, as well as practical assistance in going through the procedure of notifying the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine about changes are provided by our lawyers on a paid basis. For more information, contact us in in such manner as you think fit.