Lawyers from the Estonian Human Rights Centre (EHRC) are representing Taras, a Ukrainian citizen and father of three young children, in a strategic court case. Taras has lived and worked in Estonia since 2021 with a temporary residence permit. The Police and Border Guard Board (PBGB) decided not to review his application for a new residence permit, citing the absence of a military ID or a certificate of exemption from military service. With the help of EHRC’s legal team, Taras appealed the decision.
In May 2023, Taras submitted an application to the PBGB for permanent residence in Estonia. By November 2024, PBGB decided to issue him a temporary residence permit valid for one year. The decision came with a warning: the permit would not be extended unless Taras submitted a certificate issued by a competent Ukrainian authority proving that he is exempt from military service for health reasons.
When Taras, with the support of EHRC’s legal team, challenged the decision, the PBGB first revoked its initial decision in December 2024, only to later – in February 2025 – refuse to review the application altogether, unexpectedly arguing that a decision on the residence permit could not be made without a certificate from Ukrainian authorities proving his exemption from military service.
Under Ukrainian law, Taras is exempt from military service—initially because he was a university student and later because he has three underage children. Even in wartime, Ukraine does not require parents of three underage children to serve in the military.
“The PBGB’s decision appears to be a clear act of pressure – more precisely, harassment – seemingly punishing the applicant for daring to stand up for his rights instead of accepting an unlawfully shortened one-year residence permit,” said Uljana Ponomarjova, a refugee law expert at EHRC. “Firstly, just three months earlier, the PBGB managed to issue a decision based on the same evidence. Secondly, officials could have determined the legal basis for Taras’s exemption from Ukrainian military service themselves by examining the Ukrainian legislation and the documents and information he had already submitted.”
EHRC’s lawyers have also pointed out this legal basis and its practical application in communications with the PBGB.
This case is yet another example where the PBGB’s interpretation and conduct stand in stark contrast to the official position of the Ministry of the Interior, and where the behaviour of civil servants is not in line with the principles of the rule of law and good administrative practice.
With the help of EHRC’s legal team, Taras has now appealed the decision to Tallinn Administrative Court, which has proposed reaching a settlement by 1 April 2025. This would first require the PBGB to acknowledge its unlawful conduct. If no settlement is reached, the case will go to trial in August 2025.
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