Ukraine may allow privatization of emergency housing damaged by war: who will be able to receive compensation

The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine plans to consider a bill that would allow the privatization of apartments and houses recognized as emergency as a result of Russian aggression. This should help citizens who lived in non-privatized housing to register ownership and receive state compensation for damaged or destroyed real estate.

This was stated by the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk during the Annual Housing Conference in Kyiv on November 3.

This is a government bill No. 6012, which provides for amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On Privatization of the State Housing Fund”.

Who will be able to privatize emergency housing

Currently, the legislation establishes a general ban on the privatization of residential premises that are in a state of emergency.

Because of this, citizens who lived in non-privatized apartments that were damaged or destroyed as a result of hostilities may face legal obstacles when processing compensation.

Bill No. 6012 proposes to make an exception for housing that has become dilapidated as a result of Russian military aggression.

To privatize such a facility, it will be necessary to document its condition with an appropriate act or inspection report.

Thus, tenants of state housing will be able to register ownership of real estate, even if it has suffered significant damage due to the war.

How will this affect receiving compensation

One of the main problems remains the lack of properly registered ownership of damaged housing.

Citizens who have lived in state apartments for a long time, but did not have time to privatize them, may not meet the requirements of compensation mechanisms that provide for confirmation of ownership.

The proposed changes should eliminate this legal obstacle.

After registering ownership, citizens will be able to claim state compensation in accordance with the requirements of current housing restoration programs.

At the same time, the adoption of the bill will not mean the automatic assignment of payments. To receive compensation, it will be necessary to fulfill the conditions established by law.

What Ruslan Stefanchuk said

The Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada emphasized the need to create clear and financially secured mechanisms for the implementation of citizens’ right to housing.

According to him, state housing policy should take into account the needs of military personnel, internally displaced persons, teachers, medical workers and other categories of citizens.

According to the Speaker of the Parliament, special attention should be paid to the transition from temporary accommodation of displaced persons to long-term housing solutions.

This is about creating conditions under which people will be able not only to obtain temporary shelter, but also to purchase or rent affordable housing and integrate into local communities.

How much money is provided for housing programs in 2027

During the conference, Ruslan Stefanchuk also reported that the draft state budget for 2027 provides for financing housing policy.

In particular, according to the data he announced, the funds are planned to be directed to the following areas:

45 billion UAH — the preferential mortgage lending program “eHousing”;
24.4 billion UAH — the compensation program for damaged and destroyed housing “eReconstruction”;
5.5 billion UAH — compensation under the HOME program;
2.4 billion UAH — providing housing for military personnel;
700 million UAH — the Energy Efficiency Fund.

The total amount of housing policy financing, according to the speaker of the parliament, will be 84.9 billion UAH.

At the same time, individual budget indicators given in the message require clarification, since their amount exceeds the declared total amount of financing.

When will the new rules come into effect

Currently, draft law No. 6012 has yet to be considered by the Verkhovna Rada.

To implement the proposed mechanism, the document must be approved by the parliament and enter into force.

Until then, general legislative restrictions on the privatization of emergency housing remain in effect.

If the changes are approved, citizens whose unprivatized apartments or houses have become emergency due to Russian aggression will receive an additional legal mechanism for registering ownership and subsequently applying for state compensation.