Regarding the problems of reservation and military registration

In the area of reservations for persons liable for military service, the following problems remain the most critical and require urgent resolution:

1. Cancellation of military registration at enterprises. Given the fact that today the register of persons liable for military service “Oberih” receives information on persons liable for military service from all key state registers, keeping military records at an enterprise is actually a duplication of this process. Accordingly, the obligation to maintain military records and reconcile the lists with the territorial centers of recruitment and social support creates a large bureaucratic and administrative burden on both business and the state, and is an additional corruption factor due to possible errors and penalties imposed on the management and the company.

2. Improve the functionality of the Reserve+ application:

a) create a function of communication with representatives of the CCPs and JVs through the Reserve+ application (chatbot);

b) allow changing the address of residence and providing information on education and marital status in the Reserve+ application.

c) to allow remote change of all personal data of persons liable for military service through the Reserve+ application, where it is possible to send photos (scanned copies) of documents confirming the changes for verification. A large number of services in the Diia app and on the Diia portal work by analogy. Such functionality will significantly reduce the number of people who are simultaneously in the TCC, eliminate queues, and increase the efficiency of interaction between a person and the TCC, while eliminating the corruption component.

3. Improve the e-Booking procedure through the Diia portal:

a) launch the function of generating booking extracts on the Diia portal. Since the authorities, in particular the State Border Guard Service, require the provision of booking extracts for persons liable for military service, this option is extremely necessary and urgent for business representatives;

b) to include all booking orders and automatic extensions of bookings in the Diia portal database, as there are many cases when information on bookings that were not provided through the Diia portal is not displayed in the Reserve+ application;

c) use the reservation system on the Diia portal to determine the number of employees liable for military service at critical enterprises as of May 18, 2024. Currently, the Diia portal automatically determines the number of employees liable for military service using algorithms that are not fully understood by businesses. As a result, there is often a discrepancy between the data from the Diia portal and the actual number of employees liable for military service. As a result, in practice, there are problems with understanding the specific number of persons liable for military service to be booked and the inability to correctly and unambiguously establish 50% of the actual number of persons liable for military service in the enterprise and book them.

d) introduce the possibility of canceling deferrals of employees liable for military service through the Diia portal. According to the current reservation procedure, deferment is canceled by a separate decision (i.e., order) of the Ministry of Economy. However, in practice, it is quite difficult to obtain such decisions of the Ministry of Economy. Moreover, once an employee has been registered with the TCC and JV, it is virtually impossible to cancel his or her reservation through the TCC and JV, for example, in the event of his or her dismissal. Accordingly, in such cases, it is impossible to re-register within the general quota for other employees of the enterprise, and the Diia portal displays an incomplete quota for booking.

e) The e-Booking Procedure provides that the formation of the notification is automatically terminated or its submission is blocked by the Diia Portal if the information specified in the notification is: not confirmed by the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, Individual Entrepreneurs and Public Organizations; not provided in full; not consistent with each other. Therefore, this clause should be supplemented with a condition under which, from the moment the authorized person of the Ministry of Economy or a state body enters the necessary, reliable and complete information into the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, Individual Entrepreneurs and Public Organizations through the Diia Portal, the submission of the notification is unblocked and its formation is automatically continued.

f) provide for the possibility of reserving persons liable for military service for a realistic period of 12 months. The problem is that, in practice, the Diia portal allows booking for a period not exceeding the expiration date of the order recognizing the enterprise as critical. In other words, if an employee is hired 1 month before the expiration of the critical enterprise status, Diia allows you to book an employee for only 1 month, which is not in line with the law. In other words, in reality, employees can be booked for 12 months only on the day of obtaining the status of a “critical enterprise”. Therefore, the Diia portal should be adjusted so that the reservation of persons liable for military service is carried out in accordance with the law, without automatic cancellation of the reservation.

4. In accordance with paragraph 63 of the Procedure for the Conscription of Citizens for Military Service during Mobilization and for a Special Period (approved by CMU Resolution No. 560), persons liable for military service who have applied to the CMC for a deferment are not sent for a medical examination to determine their fitness for military service until the relevant commission makes a decision. However, given that, according to the same Procedure, persons subject to reservations do not apply to the relevant commission for a deferment, this provision does not apply to them.

Therefore, clause 63 of the Procedure should be supplemented with a provision according to which persons liable for military service who are undergoing the reservation procedure are not sent for a medical examination to determine their fitness for military service until the end of such procedure.

5. In accordance with paragraph 2 of the Procedure for Reservation of Persons Liable for Military Service (approved by the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 76 dated 27.01.2023, hereinafter – the “Reservation Procedure”), the reservation period for persons liable for military service working at enterprises, institutions and organizations that are critical for the functioning of the economy and ensuring the vital activity of the population during a special period may not exceed 12 months. At the same time, the said Booking Procedure does not regulate the procedure for extending the booking period. This situation leads to an ambiguous interpretation of the provisions of the Booking Procedure and complex bureaucratic procedures, which results in counterproductive time costs for businesses. We consider it necessary to supplement the Procedure for Reservation of Persons Liable for Military Service with a mechanism for automatic extension of reservation of employees of enterprises, institutions and organizations that are critical to the functioning of the economy and the livelihood of the population during a special period, if the enterprise submits a corresponding application one month before the expiration of the status of a critical enterprise.

6. Impossibility of booking individual entrepreneurs. This problem is extremely urgent, and appropriate amendments to the regulations should be made.

7. The new version of the Booking Procedure does not contain the previously effective provision on the possibility of booking 100% of the heads of enterprises and their deputies and members of management bodies (members of the supervisory and executive bodies), regardless of whether the enterprise has received the status of a critical one. We believe it is necessary to return this provision to the Booking Procedure. It is also necessary to provide for the possibility of reserving persons liable for military service who work in positions that are mandatory at enterprises, institutions and organizations in accordance with the requirements of the law, but such enterprises do not have the status of critical. For example, in joint-stock companies, these are officials of management and control bodies – members of supervisory boards (in accordance with the Law of Ukraine “On Joint Stock Companies”). At enterprises that operate in accordance with the license or authorization conditions, these are responsible or key persons – the auditor and chief accountant, etc., whose absence from the company’s staff entails sanctions from the state authorities up to the revocation of the license and qualifies as a risky activity.

8. The provision providing for the possibility of submitting a justification for increasing the number of booked employees was removed from the Booking Procedure. We believe it is necessary to return this possibility and prescribe a procedure to prevent unequal interpretations or application practices.

9. The booking procedure does not provide for sending a booking decision to companies. The Reservation Procedure does not specify the procedure for obtaining a decision of the Ministry of Economy on the reservation of persons liable for military service by entities that submit the relevant lists. Therefore, clause 12 of the Reservation Procedure should be supplemented with a provision stating that in order to grant a deferral to persons liable for military service, the Ministry of Economy sends decisions on the reservation of persons liable for military service to the enterprises, institutions and organizations that submitted the lists.

10. In some cases, MCCs and JVs ignore requests from companies and do not enter data into Oberig. Currently, there is no liability for failure to meet the deadlines for enrollment of persons liable for military service in the special military registration on the part of MCCs and JVs. They often ignore requests from companies and do not enter relevant information into the Unified Electronic Register of Conscripts, Persons Liable for Military Service and Reservists “Oberih”, thus making the booking procedure impossible. Therefore, the Ministry of Defense should ensure that such information is entered and introduce proper control over the entry of information on enrollment in the special military registration and deferral of reservists, as well as determine the procedure for enterprises to notify the MCC and JVs of such inactivity for prompt remediation and entry of the necessary information into the register.

11. There is uncertainty as to which MCC and JV should enter the data on special registration. The Law on Mobilization Preparation and Mobilization imposes the obligation to issue deferment to reservists on the employer at the MCC and JV in whose territory they are located. At the same time, the Reservation Procedure imposes the obligation to enroll persons liable for military service in special military registration on the MCC and JV where the person liable for military service is registered. Thus, after the employer has issued a deferral to a reserved employee at the TCC and JV in whose territory they are located, it becomes necessary to reapply to the TCC and JV where the person liable for military service is registered. We propose to regulate this issue so that entrepreneurs and their employees do not have to apply to different MCCs and JVs for the same persons liable for military service, where they are required to put marks on their reservation extracts. This will significantly reduce the time spent by both companies and employees of the MCCs and JVs and make the process more efficient for all participants.

12. A note on the absence of a person at the address of the person’s residence, reported by this person to the MCC and the JV when clarifying his/her credentials, or a note on the absence of a person at the address of the declared/registered residence in accordance with the procedure established by law, unless this person has not reported another address of residence to the MCC and the JV in accordance with Resolution No. 560, is not a proper confirmation of the notification of a reservist or person liable for military service about a call to the district (city) MCC.

This provision should be removed from the resolution, as it does not apply to the fulfillment of citizens’ obligation to mobilization training and mobilization, as provided for in Article 22 of the Law of Ukraine “On Mobilization and Mobilization Training”. This provision also allows to bring a person liable for military service to justice under Article 210-1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses, so simultaneously with the opening of enforcement proceedings, the person appears in the Unified Register of Debtors. Later, because the person is unaware of such a notification, bank accounts may be blocked and property may be foreclosed within the framework of enforcement proceedings, which creates the basis for massive closure of accounts and the withdrawal of business and salaries “into the shadows”. Such a provision will lead to a large number of lawsuits and appeals against relevant decisions, which will overload the judicial system and contribute to large losses to the state budget for such litigation.

13. It should be regulated that the clarification of personal data of persons liable for military service and reservists and the introduction of relevant changes to military registration documents may be carried out regardless of their place of registration. However, medical examination of persons liable for military service and reservists to determine their fitness for military service and to issue a call-up for military service during mobilization or for a special period should be carried out by the CMCs and JVs where they are registered for military service.

If reservists and persons liable for military service are called up for military service during mobilization or for a special period not at the place of their military registration, such persons are registered for military service at the district (city) CMC and JIC that performs their call-up before being called up for military service. Information about the registration of such persons is entered into the Unified State Register of Conscripts, Persons Liable for Military Service and Reservists “Oberih” before they are sent to the MEC for a medical examination (Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 560 of May 16, 2024).

Such norms lead to situations where a person liable for military service can be called up for military service during mobilization to any MCC and JV, which, in turn, reduces the movement of Ukrainian citizens within the territory of Ukraine and negatively affects economic processes and the economy as a whole. Across the country, these are billions of dollars in losses for budgets of all levels in the face of the urgent need to provide for the Armed Forces.

14. Verification of personal data, military registration document data with the military registration data of the Unified Electronic Register of Conscripts, Persons Liable for Military Service and Reservists “Oberig” may result in administrative detention. In accordance with the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 560 of May 16, 2024, the verification of citizens’ documents includes checking their personal data, military registration document data with the military registration data of the Unified Electronic Register of Conscripts, Persons Liable for Military Service and Reservists “Oberih”. In case of discrepancies between the military registration document and the military registration data of the Oberih Register, the senior of the notification group suggests that the reservist or person liable for military service (except for reservists and persons liable for military service of the Security Service of Ukraine and intelligence agencies) go to the district (city) TCC and JV to clarify their personal data. For this purpose, a summons is issued and served to the citizen.

If a person liable for military service refuses to receive a call, a refusal act is drawn up and submitted to the head of the district (city) MCC and JIC for taking measures to bring the offender to administrative responsibility. In case of refusal to go to the TCC and JV, a police officer who is a member of the notification group conducts administrative detention and brings the citizen to such a center on the basis of Articles 261 and 262 of the CAO.

At the same time, if a citizen liable for military service has fulfilled the obligation to update his or her personal data within 60 days from the date of entry into force of the Presidential Decree on the announcement of mobilization through an administrative service center or through an electronic cabinet or in a TCC and JV, then, in case of discrepancies between the military registration document and the military registration data in the Unified State Register of Conscripts, Persons Liable for Military Service, Reservists “Oberig”, another method of correcting the discrepancy should be applied to such a citizen.