The passport of a citizen of Ukraine of the 1994 model can only be obtained through a court
Received: 25.09.2025
The request was submitted in order to obtain an official clarification on the following questions:
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On the basis of which legislative and regulatory acts does a citizen of Ukraine have the right to obtain a passport of a citizen of Ukraine in the form of a booklet (1994 model).
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Is there a regulatory prohibition on the issuance of a passport in the form of a booklet, and if so — which specific acts establish this prohibition.
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Does a citizen of Ukraine have a legal right to choose between an ID card and a booklet-format passport.
In its response, the State Migration Service of Ukraine confirmed the following:
The issuance, exchange, delivery, withdrawal, invalidation, destruction, and return of the passport of a citizen of Ukraine is carried out exclusively in accordance with procedures established by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.
Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 302 of March 25, 2015, approved the procedure for issuing and exchanging passports of Ukrainian citizens.
Since November 1, 2016, only electronic ID cards with contactless electronic chips have been issued. However, this same resolution also provides the possibility of issuing a 1994-model passport (booklet format) in only one exceptional case — if there is a court decision concerning a specific citizen, which has entered into legal force and obliges the State Migration Service to issue this particular type of document.
The Migration Service refers to Order No. 456 of the Ministry of Internal Affairs dated June 6, 2019, which approved the Temporary Procedure for issuing 1994-model passports. This procedure clearly states that the only legal basis for issuing a booklet-format passport is a court decision that has entered into force.
Therefore, as of today:
– It is not possible to obtain a booklet-format passport simply upon personal request.
– There is no legal option to choose between an ID card and a booklet-format passport.
– A booklet-format passport can only be issued on the basis of a court ruling obliging the Migration Service to do so.
– A citizen who has such a court decision must submit it to the territorial office of the SMS, which is then obligated to issue the 1994-model passport.
This means that in practice, the right to receive a paper-format passport can only be exercised through legal proceedings. While there is no formal legislative ban on the existence of booklet-format passports, their issuance is effectively blocked and restricted to court-mandated exceptions only.
