Parents of students can be fined up to 11,900 hryvnias for violating language requirements in school chat rooms

Parents of schoolchildren must use the Ukrainian language when communicating with teachers and the administration of educational institutions, as well as in working class chats, if the communication concerns the organization of the educational process. Violation of the requirements of language legislation provides for warnings and fines, which in case of repeated violation can reach 11,900 hryvnias.

This was stated by the Commissioner for the Protection of the State Language Olena Ivanovska.

Ukrainian is also mandatory in working chats

As the language ombudsman explained, parents are participants in the educational process. Therefore, their communication with teachers and the school administration on educational issues belongs to the public sphere of education and must be carried out in the state language.

This requirement also applies to parental and working chats in messengers, if issues related to the educational process are discussed there.

At the same time, private communication of citizens is not regulated by language legislation.

What are the penalties?

Liability for violating the requirements for the use of the state language in education is provided for by Article 188-52 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses.

For the first violation, the following may be imposed:

a warning;

a fine of 3,400 to 5,100 hryvnias.

If the violation is repeated within a year, the fine will be from 8,500 to 11,900 hryvnias.

Can a teacher switch to another language at the request of parents

Olena Ivanovska emphasized that a teacher is not obliged to switch to another language at the request of parents while performing professional duties.

At the same time, language requirements do not cancel the guarantees provided by law for representatives of indigenous peoples and national minorities regarding the study of the relevant languages ​​in educational institutions.

The Commissioner called on teachers to correctly explain these rules to parents and emphasize that the use of the Ukrainian language during the educational process is a requirement of the law, not a personal position of the teacher.