“Was it lawful for my family to be denied the continuation of living allowance payments for IDPs?” 22-year-old student Viktoriya asked. Our lawyer, Iryna Koriak, investigated the situation and helped the family receive the funds they were entitled to.
Read Viktoriya’s story below.
Viktoriya is a 22-year-old student (she turned 23 by the time of this publication). Due to Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, she left her home in Kharkiv and moved to Myrhorod in Poltavska Oblast together with her husband, registering as an internally displaced person (IDP). According to the law*, her family was entitled to receive an IDP living allowance.
In March, she applied to the local Social Protection Department (hereafter, the Department) to extend the payment for six months, but the institution denied her request. Viktoriya sought legal advice from us to determine whether this decision was lawful.
*The procedure for providing living allowance to internally displaced persons, approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine on March 20, 2022, No. 332 “Certain Issues of Living Allowance Payments to Internally Displaced Persons.”
Our lawyer in Poltavska Oblast, Iryna Koriak, examined the situation and helped Viktoriya receive financial assistance.
“We applied for an extension of the assistance to our family several times. At the end of April, we were informed that my husband was not eligible for the payments and that we needed to amend the application,” Viktoriya explained. “After consulting with Iryna, we discovered that we were indeed entitled to receive IDP payments for the entire family. We are very grateful for the professional approach and assistance.”
It turned out that the Department had incorrectly interpreted the Procedure regulating the allocation of such payments.
Viktoriya’s family consists of two people: Viktoriya, a student under 23 years old who is studying full-time, and her husband, who is employed. Their income does not exceed UAH 9,444 per person.
The family applied for assistance citing subparagraph 4 of paragraph 13.2 of the Procedure:
“…the family includes children under 18 years of age and/or persons under 23 years of age who are enrolled in full-time or dual enrollment educational programs at vocational (vocational-technical), pre-higher, and higher education institutions.”
However, the Department’s staff believed that this category of assistance recipients included only families consisting of a mother or father and a student daughter or son, and therefore, they did not approve the allowance.
After the refusal, Viktoriya submitted another application—this time on her own behalf—but was again rejected. The next step could have been to file a lawsuit to appeal the institution’s decision, a costly and lengthy process.
Instead, our lawyer, Iryna, helped resolve the issue out of court. She prepared an appropriate explanation and met with the Oblast Department regarding the practice of applying the Procedure.
Iryna Koriak, lawyer, “I noted that in subparagraph 4 of the first paragraph of 13.2 of the Procedure, the term ‘persons under 23 years of age’ includes not only adult children under 23 years old within the parents’ family. This subparagraph also grants the right to receive a living allowance to students under 23 years old within their own family, without specifying whether it refers to their own family or their parents’ family.
Therefore, as long as the financial criteria and the criteria outlined in subparagraphs 7, 7.1 are met, such a family is entitled to receive assistance for the second six-month period.”
Initially, the Oblast Department was skeptical, but eventually, they agreed with Iryna. The Department also acknowledged that the refusal was unlawful. On June 14, the institution revoked its decision. Viktoriya’s family was granted an extension of the payment for another six months, starting in March 2024.
“It’s important to note that Viktoriya turned 23 in July. After this, the Department transferred her case to a different category in their database. So, if she had decided to submit a new application in June, she would only have been granted assistance for two months,” Iryna added. “I believe that there could be many such cases. It is important to talk about them so that people do not lose hope and so that social protection departments receive well-founded explanations on issues that puzzle them.”
“We are sincerely grateful to Iryna for her support and confidence in resolving this issue. We received the payments on June 29, which was an important step in our recovery from a difficult situation.
I recommend that other displaced persons in similar situations contact legal services or charitable organizations as soon as possible. Make sure you have all the necessary documents, seek legal support to protect your rights, and obtain the assistance you need,” Viktoriya shared.
From September, IDPs under the age of 23 who are enrolled in full-time or dual enrollment educational programs at a vocational (vocational-technical), vocational pre-higher, or higher education institution are also eligible for an extension of their living allowance.
DO YOU NEED LEGAL CONSULTATION?
If you have relocated within Ukraine and need a legal consultation regarding registration as an IDP or the restoration or allocation of social benefits and services, fill out a short form.
Consultants from the CO CF SSS will reach out to you and provide professional legal assistance.
We provide free legal consultations to affected individuals as part of the Supporting the Capacity of the Social Protection System to Register Internally Displaced Persons project, implemented with funding from the UN Refugee Agency in Ukraine.