C visa to Ukraine - documents, cost of service, terms of registration, procedure for receiving the service

Required documents

The following papers will be required for the tour operator:

• letter of guarantee (written on letterhead),
• tour voucher,
• medical insurance,
• a bank guarantee from 20,000 euros (copy),
• a license to carry out activities from the Ministry of Tourism (copy),
• a certificate of registration (copy),
• a completed application form for submission to the embassy.

The tourist visa will be issued within 14 days, with a double fee - up to 5 days. In case of refusal to issue a visa, the price of tickets and the consular fee will not be refunded.

The applicant must provide:

• scanned copy of the first page of the citizen's passport,
• indication of the state of visa receipt,
• visit period (first and last dates),
• place of arrival in the country,
• name of the place of residence and the period of stay in it (hotel, hostel, rented accommodation),
• postal address and phone number that will be required for the delivery of the original documents by courier.

To prepare a service invitation, it is required:

• A petition from the organization sending the invitation,
• Translated passport of the invited person (legally confirmed),
• Letter of guarantee from the inviting party,
• Documents with company stamps (copies),
• Excerpts from the state register of legal entities and sole proprietors,
• Extracts on financial security in a sufficient volume,
• Papers that confirm that a foreigner has a place of residence on the territory of Ukraine,
• An order with the seal of the company on the appointment of persons who deal with the documents of the invitee (copy),
• Passport of the head of the inviting party (copy),
• Passport of the citizen who is responsible for interaction with the invited party (copy),
• Application for payment of HMS services,
• Documents on payment of a fee for issuing an official invitation.

Business invitations are issued to foreign citizens for up to 20 days when submitting an urgent application – no more than 10 working days.

Granting a short-term visa by invitation approved in OVIR to foreigners

Tourist visa

Such visa is issued when an invitation is provided based on the program of a local tour operator. It confirms the purpose of the person's visit. According to the legislation, the issuance of a travel visa is possible for up to 90 days. It can be single, double, or multiple (also called multi).

Travel to the country on a tourist visa assumes the full responsibility of the tour operator, respectively, a bank guarantee. At the same time, the funds are used:

• to compensate for losses incurred by a citizen of another country during his stay on the territory of Ukraine,
• to reimburse the costs of organizing the return of a citizen to the place of residence.

The package of documents issued by a foreign travel company is not a valid basis for issuing a Ukrainian visa and customs clearance. It should be issued by a Ukrainian tour operator. Travel agents have the right to act as intermediaries of the tour operator, and in this case, a simplified procedure is used. At the same time, there is no need to prescribe a route, provide a license, as well as obtain a bank guarantee.

Other organizations that provide accompanying services do not act as a sufficient basis for a tourist visa and customs control of Ukraine. An additional basis will be the booking of air tickets, hostels, or hotels provided together with the main package of documents.

Registration of a tourist visa of Ukraine for foreign citizens is prescribed by regulatory legal acts of the Cabinet of Ministers, the Verkhovna Rada, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the SBU, and other government agencies.

Issuance of a guest visa

To obtain a Ukrainian visa by invitation, sufficient grounds are:

• marriage with a foreigner,
• private visits to relatives and friends of foreigners who already have a Ukrainian residence permit,
• continuation of the communication started in the framework of social networks.

The conditions for issuing a personal invitation are:

1. Registration exclusively in OVIR by registration.
2. Financial support of the inviting party in sufficient quantity.

During the stay of a foreigner on a trip, the inviting party assumes all costs. At the same time, the costs of maintenance, as well as deportation (in case of a precedent) must be paid in full within the prescribed time limits. OVIR has every right to check for the presence of such funds at the inviting person. Students, pensioners, citizens without employment, or persons on maintenance without official earnings do not have the right to act as an inviting person.

3. Thorough verification of collective invitations.

If the inviting party requests invitations to a large number of foreign citizens (from 5 people) for a short period (up to 1 year), then each request can be considered in more detail, and may also be accompanied by a refusal. If the migration inspector decides that invitations are sent to outsiders, the foreigner will be refused permission.

4. Invitations issued to persons from States of migration risk undergo more thorough checks.

Additional control is carried out when inviting persons who have citizenship of countries of migration risk. In this case, the intentions of the inviting party are clarified, which may lead to a refusal to provide an invitation.

Business visa

The Ukrainian Consulate issues business visas (code "01") based on a business invitation under a simplified procedure. To do this, representatives of foreign states must invite the company's letterhead on behalf of the interested organization, after which it is sent to the country of residence of the invited party.

Eurovector issues a residence permit according to the legislation of the state, as well as after careful examination of applications from candidates.

What should I do if my application for a short-term visa is refused?

A full list of documents that foreigners need to submit for each specific reason depending on the purpose of stay and the regulations for issuing a short-term visa ca be found in the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 118 of 1 March 2017 «On Approval of the Rules for issuing visas for entry into Ukraine and transit through its territory». In addition, important legislative acts in this matter include:

Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated 4 December 2013 No. 884 «On Approval of the Procedure for confirmation of sufficient financial security of foreigners and stateless persons for entry to Ukraine, stay on the territory of Ukraine, transit passage through the territory of Ukraine and exit from its borders and determination of the amount of such security». However, as practice shows, even in the presence of all the documents required by law, there may be refusals due to insufficient evidence.

The reasons for refusal may be different, for example: lack of evidence confirming the purpose of the planned stay in Ukraine of a foreigner or stateless person or the absence of a valid health insurance policy of a foreigner or stateless person, provided that it can be issued in the territory of the state in which the relevant visa application is submitted, or even a threat to the protection of health, rights and legitimate interests of citizens of Ukraine and other persons residing in Ukraine.

If you have been refused a short-term visa to Ukraine, you can appeal against the decision of refusal in the following order:

1. To apply to the Law Company EUROVECTOR and order the service «Preliminary consultation on appealing against the decision on refusal to grant a visa type C to Ukraine».

2. During the consultation with the specialists of the Law Company «EUROVECTOR» provide all the documents that have been submitted to obtain a visa, tell all the details regarding the procedure of application and interview with consular officials (if there was such a conversation).

3. Upon completion of the consultation to order the service - Legal support of appealing against the decision of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on refusal to grant the relevant visa to Ukraine.

4. After ordering the service, the lawyers will prepare the appropriate requests and appeals, and in case of repeated refusal will submit the appropriate application and materials to the court. If you fulfil all these recommendations and fully follow the instructions recommended to you by visa law specialists, the issue of appeal will be easy.

Absolutely any person or foreigner can be refused. This is related to counteracting illegal migration. Foreigners from the countries of so-called «migration risk», i.e. from those where the economic situation is too difficult for living or where there are military operations, etc., often use visa to Ukraine to leave the country of their citizenship forever.

How do I appeal against a refusal to grant a short-term visa?

The process of appealing a refusal to grant a short-term visa may vary depending on the situation, circumstances, visa sub-type. To begin with, the appeal process can be started by filing an appeal with the authorised body processing the visa application to appeal against the refusal decision. If an appeal to a diplomatic institution is unsuccessful, then a direct appeal to a judicial authority is effective. As a rule, during the court proceedings, the court will rule in favour of the plaintiff. However, it is worth considering the fact that in order to appeal against the refusal, it is necessary to have sufficient reasoning and evidence.

There are many reasons for refusal to grant a short-term visa. It may be, for example, that the foreigner or stateless person does not have sufficient financial security for the period of planned stay and for return to the state of origin or transit to a third state or the possibility to obtain sufficient financial security legally on the territory of Ukraine. This reason refers to the fact that the person does not have sufficient financial security and there is a risk that the person is not able to financially ensure his/her stay or return. Such a reason is sufficiently motivated on the part of the diplomatic institution to refuse to grant a visa. To effectively appeal against a refusal to grant a transit visa, the following steps should be followed:

1. To arrange a service of preliminary consultation with a visa specialist in the Law Company «EUROVECTOR». Prepare in advance a full package of documents that have been submitted to obtain a visa and submit for analysis to the specialist.

2. Upon completion of the familiarisation consultation, proceed immediately to order the service of legal support for the procedure of appealing against the refusal to grant a short-term visa. The specialist will prepare a detailed action plan, draw up and submit the necessary appeals, requests and, if necessary, materials to the court. The procedure of appealing against the decision to refuse to grant a visa can be facilitated by the presence of a qualified specialist who can not only advise, but also provide assistance at all stages.

The lawyer who will provide you with advice and legal support will take into account any details: the type of visa, the nationality of the person, international factors and so on. Most often, in the appeal process, we obtain a favourable result even at the stage of administrative appeal to the diplomatic institution that considered the issue of granting the visa. Appealing a refusal does not guarantee that the visa application will be reconsidered. If the appeal letter is unsuccessful and the application is not reconsidered, the visa fee (as in the case of a visa refusal) is not refundable.

So, if you have doubts about the compliance of the submitted documents with the requirements of the legislation, it is better to apply for a visa again. This will save a lot of time.
However, please note that in case of re-application it is necessary to eliminate those deficiencies that caused the refusal earlier and to pay the consular fee again. In other cases, in case of refusal to satisfy the complaint in the institution, we appeal to the court in the order of administrative proceedings.

Is it possible to reapply for a visa in case of refusal to grant a visa to Ukraine

Of course, in the event that you are refused a short-term visa, it is possible to reapply.

If we are talking about a short-term visa, a fairly frequent reason for refusal to issue a visa and cancellation of a visa is that the foreigner or stateless person does not have sufficient financial security for the period of planned stay and for returning to the state of origin. That is, the authorised body that considers the issue of granting a visa is not clearly sure about the financial security of the person. Also, applications for visas for citizens of countries where quarantine restrictions are in force, terrorism cases or increased criminogenic situation are considered in sufficient detail. As a rule, representatives from the Ministry of Health or the Ministry of Internal Affairs or the Security Service of Ukraine are involved in the consideration of such applications. Therefore, in case you have been denied a visa to Ukraine and the decision to deny a visa contains this or another point that you do not understand, the following steps should be followed in order to resubmit your visa application taking into account the correction of deficiencies:

1. To apply to the Law Company "EUROVECTOR" and order a preliminary consultation with a lawyer for the purpose of a full legal analysis of the documents and the entire visa application procedure. For the consultation it is worth preparing a full package of documents that you submitted to obtain a visa, as well as the decision on refusal to grant a visa.

2. The company's specialist will analyse in detail the decision to refuse to grant a visa to Ukraine, the documents that were submitted together with the visa application, the visa application, as well as discuss with you about the interview with the visa center (if any). After all this, he will propose a certain plan of action taking into account what has been learnt: either resubmission with correction of deficiencies, or appealing against the refusal to grant a visa, or filing a lawsuit in court.

3. And accordingly, upon completion of the consultation and receipt of the instrument, to order legal support of the procedure - re-submission of documents for a visa, or the procedure of appealing the refusal to grant a visa, or appeal in court, depending on the decision taken by the foreigner in the process of consultation.

There are also common cases when a foreigner submits the list of documents stipulated by law, but during the interview at the embassy/consulate he/she cannot explain the purpose of his/her visit or the purpose stated by this person does not correspond to the one indicated in the documents. In such cases, bad faith is evident and, as a consequence, such foreigners are refused on the basis of paragraph 8.

Can I reapply for a short-term visa without appealing against a visa refusal decision?

If after a detailed analysis of all the documents submitted and after reading the rejection decision all the deficiencies have been eliminated, it is possible to reapply for a short-term visa without appeal. However, before resubmitting the documents, it is worth considering that you may not be able to correct the reason why you received the refusal, or you may not understand the real problem at all. And when resubmitting, you lose not only extra time, but also money. Firstly, it is a round trip to the relevant diplomatic mission to submit a second set of documents. Secondly, repeated payment of the Consular fee. Thirdly, the loss of this time is not replenished, and each person’s time has a certain price. Therefore, even before resubmission, without appealing, it is recommended to contact a visa specialist in Law Company «EUROVECTOR» and work out and analyze all circumstances and factors of refusal.

The procedure for applying for services:

1. To make an appointment for a preliminary legal consultation. For the consultation it is important to prepare all the documents that were submitted for the visa, as well as the refusal notice.

2. Together with a lawyer, discuss a plan of action and formalise the procedure of legal support for obtaining a visa. The lawyer can find and correct deficiencies or prepare the necessary requests and appeals to administrative institutions.

3. In case the refusal was unreasonable, the lawyer will help to file an appropriate claim in court and will defend your interests in court.

Please note that the rules and procedures may vary depending on the particular consulate or embassy and the type of visa. An example is the fact that one consulate accepts visa applications in person and another through a visa centre. In one it is possible to make an appointment for a service on a selected date, while in the other it is necessary to come to the embassy or consulate and apply for any service on a first-come, first-served basis.

How long does it take to appeal against a decision to refuse a short-term visa?

Let`s start with the timeframes for considering an appeal against an appeal. According to the law, they should not exceed 10 days. But, taking into account all the circumstances, factors, then the appeal may be refused. Then you already have the right to try to resubmit documents for a visa. Referring to the law, it can be stated that the period of consideration of documents can reach 30 working days.

It is also worth recalling that some categories of citizens may be subject to interviews and more serious checks. If a citizen or a person permanently residing in a country where there are armed conflicts, terrorist acts, epidemics and other factors that may carry threats to national security, protection of public order, ensuring health protection, protection of rights and legitimate interests of citizens of Ukraine and other persons residing in Ukraine,

In case of refusal to grant a short-term visa, you have the right to obtain a visa at a checkpoint at the state border. There is no point in waiting for the appeal to be considered at the border crossing point. It is better to return to the country of your permanent residence and wait there for a response. Besides, sometimes it is impossible to correct the remarks of the Department of Consular Service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs or a representative office of the Ministry of Foreign

Affairs that refused you a visa. If your rights have been violated by these authorities, filing an appeal may be an option that will resolve the visa issue faster than other appeal options.

In any case, you should contact Eurovector Law Firm and seek legal support. You will be accompanied at all stages of obtaining a visa: from submission of documents to judicial appeal against the decision. And this can not only save your time, energy and nerves, but also increase the chance of obtaining a visa or successfully appealing against the refusal to grant a visa.