The Ukrainian government has made changes to the list of exceptions for foreigners who are not denied entry in the country, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said on Facebook.
The new rules scrap the provision allowing foreigners who are in transit on the territory of Ukraine to enter the country.
Exceptions from the entry ban are made for people who are spouses, parents, children, or grandparents of a citizen of Ukraine.
Children are given legal status before they become full of age.
If people are sent to Ukraine to study, they only have to go to higher education establishments.
According to earlier reports, the Ukrainian government closed the borders to foreign citizens until September 28.
The restriction did not affect people who have residence permits, are members of international and humanitarian missions, who enter the country in transit, who drive cargo road vehicles, are instructors of NATO states, culture figures, people who have invitations from culture establishments, and also some other categories of people.
Ukraine International Airlines (UIA, Kyiv) canceled flights on eight destinations, reduced their frequency on seven more destinations.
According to the airline’s website, as a result of such measures, UIA is forced to revise the flight schedule and significantly reduce them. Starting from September 14, the following flights will be completely canceled: Kyiv-Zaporizhia, Kyiv-Madrid, Kyiv-Barcelona, Kyiv-Geneva, Kyiv-Delhi, Kyiv-Berlin, Kyiv-Chisinau, and also Kyiv-Athens (except for two flights). Flights on the route Kyiv-Kherson will be canceled from September 20.
In addition, the airline reduced the frequency of flights on the following routes: Kyiv-Odesa, Kyiv-Paris, Kyiv-Dusseldorf, Kyiv-Brussels, Kyiv-Dubai, Kyiv-Istanbul, and Kyiv-Tel Aviv.
“We now have to make a decision on the airline’s plans for the coming days, without having enough time or enough information. Of course, we will wait for the publication of the Cabinet of Ministers resolution and make a decision to cancel flights, based on the content of the document. We are considering several options, including radical,” CEO of the airline Yevhen Dykhne said.
According to the airline, in the total current UIA passenger traffic, the percentage of foreigners transported is about 60%.
Foreigners and stateless persons who have exceeded their terms of stay in Ukraine during the quarantine period will not be held liable for this violation, Yuriy Lysiuk, the head of the border control for the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, has said on July 4.
“If a foreigner or stateless person has exceeded the period of stay in Ukraine before the introduction of quarantine measures aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19 on the territory of Ukraine, then such persons will be held liable for violating the terms of their stay when crossing the state border,” Lysiuk was quoted by the service as saying.
It is noted that, according to the current legislation, foreigners and stateless persons who could not leave Ukraine or were unable to contact the territorial bodies of the State Migration Service of Ukraine with an application to extend their stay in Ukraine or to exchange a residence permit in connection with the introduction of the quarantine, administrative liability does not apply if such violations occurred during or as a result of the quarantine.
These rules apply exclusively to foreigners and stateless persons who were legally in Ukraine at the beginning of quarantine.
Foreigners entering Ukraine should have an insurance policy covering COVID-19 treatment, Ukraine’s Minister of Health Maksym Stepanov has said.”We are talking about a usual voluntary medical insurance policy. It is very important for us that the person who comes to Ukraine, who is not a citizen of Ukraine and not a refugee, must have a policy that covers exactly the COVID-19 treatment,” he said at a briefing in Kyiv.
The minister explained that according to the law, the state covers treatment only to citizens of Ukraine or refugees who are in the territory of Ukraine
Foreigners will need to have insurance for entry to Ukraine as soon as international flights are resumed, Health Minister of Ukraine Maksym Stepanov has said during a press briefing in Kyiv.
A possibility of testing the passengers for coronavirus (COVID-19) is also being considered.
“Speaking about border crossing and the resumption of international flights scheduled for June 15, we jointly with the Infrastructure Ministry suggest introducing the ‘red’ and ‘green’ zones. The ‘red’ zone will include the countries where the epidemiological situation is worse than in Ukraine, the ‘green’ one is [the countries] with a better situation. The ‘green’ zone foresees observation and self-isolation. In addition, we are considering a possibility of testing, but only by medical workers. At the same time, those who arrive in Ukraine must be insured. We are working on all of these issues,” Stepanov said.
Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal believes that the possibility of selling land to foreigners or foreign companies should be decided exclusively at an all-Ukrainian referendum.
“The possibility of selling land to foreigners or foreign companies should be decided exclusively and solely at an all-Ukrainian referendum,” Shmyhal said on air of The Right to Power program on the 1+1 television channel on Thursday evening.
At the same time, the prime minister emphasized that Ukrainians should have the right and opportunity to dispose of their land. “As for the issue of the possibility of selling state land, this is a matter of discussion in parliament,” the prime minister said.
