Men are increasingly seeking official recognition through the courts of their sole responsibility for raising a minor child. At least 1,255 such cases have been found in the court registry search engine since the start of the full-scale. In over three years, the number of such cases has increased 67 times. This year, courts have already considered 400 cases concerning the independent upbringing of a minor child by a father.
The number of court cases establishing the fact of single parenting and care for a minor child by a father has increased 67 times since the start of the full-scale war, according to the Babusya court registry search engine. Let’s compare: only six such cases were recorded from January to May 2022, but by the same period in 2025, their number had increased to 400.
In total, at least 1,255 court cases involving men who decided to officially establish the fact of independent upbringing of a minor child have been found in the court register since the start of the full-scale war.
The number of cases is growing every year. In 2022, there were only 37 such cases. Within a year, their number increased fivefold to 180. The number of appeals from men to the courts to be recognized as single parents reached 625 cases in 2024.
This year, courts in Ukraine have already considered at least 400 similar cases. This is 3.1 times more than in the same period in 2024.
It should be noted that the status of a father raising a child alone allows him to travel abroad, which is currently restricted for men between the ages of 18 and 60.
Asters partner Talina Kravtsova notes that over the past few years, there has been an increase in the number of requests for recognition of men as single fathers. This can be explained by mothers leaving the country, as well as the state of war and mobilization. At the same time, the term “single father” is not defined in legislation and is often equated in court practice with the status of “single mother.” Therefore, if we consider the characteristics of single mother status (which were defined back in 1992 by a resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of Ukraine), a father is recognized as “single” if he:
1) is not married;
2) is raising and supporting a child on his own without the mother’s participation.
If the mother has died, is recognized as missing, or has refused to take the child from the maternity hospital, the father is obliged to take the child and acquires the status of a single father. If the mother is alive but does not participate in the child’s life, the status of a single father can also be acquired, although this will be more difficult.
“There is a myth that it is enough to obtain a court decision dissolving the marriage between the parents or determining the child’s place of residence with the father. In fact, this is not the case. In such situations, it is necessary to confirm/establish in court that the father is raising and supporting the child on his own. At the same time, the status of a “single parent” in Ukraine provides important social benefits and guarantees: additional paid leave, monthly state assistance, increased tax social benefits, deferral of mobilization, advantages in obtaining housing, places in kindergartens, etc.,” comments Talina Kravtsova.
The lawyer notes that due to attempts to abuse this mechanism to obtain deferrals, courts and other state bodies are more careful with such cases during martial law, which could potentially complicate access to the status for those who are actually entitled to it.
https://opendatabot.ua/analytics/solo-fathers
