Legal Aid Bulletin for March 2025 [EN/UK]

The Protection Cluster’s Legal Aid Working Group has identified key legal issues and updates for March 2025, based on analyzing member-provided1 and open-source information.

Housing, Land and Property Rights Issues

1. Impossibility of submitting applications for compensation for dormitory rooms. The eRecovery procedure for damaged and destroyed housing provides for the possibility of compensation only to individuals who have ownership rights to housing (private houses, apartments, or other residential premises) registered in the State Register of Property Rights (SRPR). However, the right to compensation under the provisions of Law of Ukraine No. 2923-ІХ of 23.02.2023 also applies to dormitory rooms and other types of residential property. This problem is especially relevant in Mykolaiv and Kherson oblasts, where dormitories were located directly on the front line in 2022 or remain in the shelling zone. Currently, the Diia portal does not allow applicants to submit compensation claims for dormitory rooms, even when ownership rights are properly registered. As a result, individuals who are legally entitled to receive compensation for destroyed or damaged property cannot exercise this right through the eRecovery mechanism. To resolve this issue, it is necessary to amend the software functionality of the Diia portal so that ownership of dormitory rooms is recognized as a valid basis for participation in the compensation program.

2. Impossibility of receiving compensation for repairs carried out using one’s own funds. As of 01.01.2024, citizens who have independently carried out repairs to damaged housing using their own funds or who have purchased construction materials for such repairs may submit documents for reimbursement of the associated costs. This is provided for in Law No. 3410-IX of 05.10.2023, as well as in CMU’s Resolution No. 381 of 21.04.2023. However, in practice, this procedure is not functioning due to absence of regulatory procedures on self-repairs, and citizens are unable to receive compensation for independently carried out repairs. This presents a significant problem, especially for those who promptly repaired their homes and are now left without any mechanism for reimbursement of the costs incurred.

3. Inability to restore ownership documents issued before 2013. Compensation under the eRecovery mechanism can only be obtained by individuals who have registered ownership rights to property in the SRPR launched on 01.01.2013. Ownership documents issued before that date are not included in the register and must be re-registered by a state registrar. To do so, citizens must obtain documents from the Bureau of Technical Inventory (BTI), where paper archives are stored. However, due to the war, many BTI archives are either inaccessible, damaged or destroyed, and citizens are unable to retrieve the documents necessary for re-registration. In addition, it has been observed that state registrars tend not to submit BTI requests but shift the responsibility to the applicant to do.

4. Requirement to pay for technical inspection reports as a condition for issuing damage certificates. In Vovchansk and Chuhuiv hromadas of Kharkiv oblast and in several hromadas of Sumy oblast, commissions responsible for assessing damage to housing do not include certified technical experts who can evaluate the condition of buildings. Instead, they refer applicants to independent technical experts authorized to conduct such assessments and register their reports in the Unified State Electronic System in the Field of Construction. However, in many cases, local authorities lack financial resources to pay for these technical inspection reports and therefore require applicants to cover the cost themselves. The average cost of an inspection in Sumy oblast ranges from 4,000 to 6,000 UAH, and in Kharkiv oblast it can reach 20,000 UAH. This creates a financial barrier for many applicants. Additionally, in Vovchansk and Chuhuiv, commissions reportedly accept inspection reports only from a single expert affiliated with the Vovchansk BTI and refuse to consider reports from other certified experts, even if they are properly authorized, further restricting access to compensation.