In France, new requirements for a number of procedures related to multi-year residence permits, 10-year resident cards, and citizenship have come into force on January 1, 2026: language thresholds have been raised and a mandatory citizenship exam has been introduced.
According to explanations from French government resources, the first multi-year residence card (carte de séjour pluriannuelle) now requires proof of French language proficiency at a level of at least A2, and for the first 10-year residence card – no lower than B1 (in particular, for applicants under 65 years of age in categories covered by the rule).
For procedures for accessing French citizenship, from January 1, 2026, language requirements will be raised to level B2, according to information from the French Ministry of the Interior.
In addition, from January 1, 2026, passing the citizenship exam will become mandatory for naturalization, as well as for the first application for a long-term residence permit or resident card for citizens of non-EU countries. The exam lasts up to 45 minutes, includes 40 multiple-choice questions, and is considered passed with a score of at least 80% (at least 32 correct answers).
Service-Public specifies that the exam is not required when renewing a long-term card or residence card, and does not apply, in particular, to beneficiaries of international protection.
The single counterparty exposure limit (H7, shall be no more than 25%) as of October 1, was violated by Prominvestbank (88.3%) and Industrialbank (44.08%), according to the website of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU).
The limit on bank total long open FX position (L13-1, shall be no more than 10%) was violated by Oschadbank (135.7%), Prominvestbank (106.93%), PrivatBank (80.25%) and Industrialbank (19.56%).
The limit on bank total short open FX position (L13-2, shall be no more than 10%) was violated by Prominvestbank (131.27%).
As reported, the prudential requirement on Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR) was set at 90% by the NBU for banks starting October 1 (earlier it was 80%). In accordance with the schedule, the NBU will increase the NSFR requirement for banks to 100% from April 1, 2022.
According to the data of the National Bank, all operating banks as of October 1 exceed the level of the NSFR standard of 90%.
The NSFR regulation is intended to encourage banks to rely on more stable and long-term funding sources and reduce their dependence on short-term financing.
From September 6, new requirements are introduced for all persons entering the territory of Albania, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine said.
According to the interactive map of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine (tripadvisor.mfa.gov.ua), to enter Albania, one of the documents will be required, such as a passport of full vaccination against coronavirus (COVID-19) infection (the last vaccination must be done no later than 2 weeks before the planned date entry), negative PCR test done no earlier than 72 hours before entry, or negative test for COVID-19 antigen done no later than 48 hours before entry, certificate of previous COVID-19 disease within the last six months.
The single counterparty exposure limit (H7, shall be no more than 25%) as of August 1, was violated by Prominvestbank (96.59%) and Industrialbank (46.75%), according to the website of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU).
According to the regulator, the related party transactions exposure limit (H9, shall not exceed 25%) was violated by First Investment Bank (36.3%).
The limit on bank total long open FX position (L13-1, shall be no more than 10%) was violated by Oschadbank (140.725%), Prominvestbank (128.25%), PrivatBank (85.83%) and Industrialbank (18.65%).
The limit on bank total short open FX position (L13-2, shall be no more than 10%) was violated by Prominvestbank (137.27%).
The newly introduced net stable funding ratio (NSFR, shall be more than 80%) was violated by Prominvestbank (27.43%).
Bank Zemelny Capital violated six standards, namely: minimum regulatory capital H1 (UAH 102.942 million, shall be at least UAH 200 million), short-term liquidity ratio H6 (48.71%, shall be more than 60%), N7 standard (37.27%, shall be no more than 25%), the related party transactions exposure limit H9 (30.11%, shall not exceed 25%), the liquidity coverage ratio LCR for all currencies (15.31%, shall be at least 100%), as well as net stable funding ratio NSFR (69.8%, shall be more than 80%).
The single counterparty exposure limit (H7, should be no more than 25%) as of March 1, was violated by Prominvestbank (82.02%), Sberbank (50.23%) and Industrialbank (49.51%), according to the website of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU).
According to the regulator, the related party transactions exposure limit (H9, should not exceed 25%) was violated by First Investment Bank (52.02%), Unex Bank (28.17%), Megabank (27.56%) and Land Capital Bank (26.75%).
The limit on bank total long open FX position (L13-1, should be no more than 10%) was violated by Oschadbank (129.99%), Prominvestbank (114.57%), PrivatBank (95.74%) and Industrialbank (12.35%).
The limit on bank total short open FX position (L13-2, should be no more than 10%) was violated by Prominvestbank (110.36%).
FIRST INVESTMENT BANK, INDUSTRIALBANK, LAND CAPITAL BANK, MEGABANK, NBU, OSCHADBANK, PRIVATBANK, PROMINVESTBANK, REQUIREMENTS, SBERBANK, UNEX BANK, VIOLATE
The single counterparty exposure limit (H7, should be no more than 25%) as of December 1 was violated by Prominvestbank (84.03%), Industrialbank (82.88%), Sberbank (53.13%) and Misto Bank (39.21%), according to the website of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU).
According to the regulator, the related party transactions exposure limit (H9, should not exceed 25%) was violated by Megabank (37.56%), First Investment Bank (52.6%) and Unex Bank (29.21%).
The limit on bank total long open FX position (L13-1, should be no more than 10%) was violated by Prominvestbank (133.41%), Oschadbank (119.97%), PrivatBank (98.27%) and Industrialbank (13.15%).
The limit on bank total short open FX position (L13-2, should be no more than 10%) was violated by Prominvestbank (167.35%).
Misto Bank, recognized by the NBU as insolvent, violated the short-term liquidity ratio (H6, at least 60%), which amounted to 44.36%.
