Disability does not guarantee travel abroad: in which cases can border guards legally refuse men

The presence of a disability gives men the right to leave Ukraine during martial law, regardless of the established group. However, even with the appropriate status, citizens may be refused entry at the border. The correctness of the documents confirming disability is of crucial importance.

According to the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 57, persons with disabilities have the right to cross the state border during martial law. To do this, it is necessary to present one of the documents provided for by law.

In particular, this may be a disability certificate, a pension certificate indicating the group and cause of disability, a certificate of social assistance or a relevant certificate for receiving benefits.

When the refusal of border guards is illegal

In case No. 380/22865/24, the Eighth Administrative Court of Appeal considered the claim of a man with a disability of group III, who was refused entry through the Rava-Ruska checkpoint.

During the inspection, the citizen provided a foreign passport, pension certificate, MSEK certificate, documents from the military medical commission and a military ID card with a note on exclusion from military registration.

Despite this, the border guards stated that they did not have the necessary documents.

The man appealed to the court, which declared the refusal unlawful. The appellate court agreed with this conclusion.

The judges established that the plaintiff’s pension certificate contained all the necessary information about disability. Therefore, there were no legal grounds for refusing to cross the border.

At the same time, the court emphasized that a note on exclusion from military registration in itself does not replace documents confirming the right to leave in accordance with Resolution No. 57.

Why the court can support the border guards

The courts came to a different conclusion in case No. 420/11550/23.

A man with a disability of group III tried to leave Ukraine through the Reni checkpoint, but was refused.

He insisted on the illegality of the border guards’ actions and demanded compensation of UAH 19,115.90 in material and UAH 15,000 in moral damages.

During the consideration of the case, the court established that the pension certificate provided did not meet the approved requirements for the form and content of the document.

In particular, a violation of the procedure for obtaining the certificate form was revealed.

The Odessa District Administrative Court refused to satisfy the claim, and the Fifth Administrative Court of Appeal left this decision unchanged.

Thus, the courts recognized that the actual presence of a disability does not exempt a citizen from the obligation to properly confirm the relevant status.

What men need to know before leaving

Case law shows that border guards have the right to check whether documents comply with the requirements of the law. At the same time, the decision to refuse to cross the state border must be justified.

If a person has provided all the necessary documents, but received an unjustified refusal, he has the right to appeal it in an administrative court.