Slovakia
Do you have a temporary protection status in Slovakia? On this page you can find information about your right to continued stay and access to services in Slovakia, short and extended stay in Ukraine and how it affects your temporary protection status and assistance. If you consider returning to Ukraine permanently, you can also find information about administrative procedures that you need to complete in Slovakia before your departure.
The Council of the European Union has decided to extend the application of temporary protection for refugees from Ukraine in the EU until March 2026.
Consular services in Slovakia
If you are in need of consular services such as issuance of passport, certificate for return to Ukraine or other, please contact the Embassy of Ukraine in Slovakia.
slovakia.mfa.gov.ua
Radvanská 35, 811 01, Bratislava, Slovenská republika
Short and extended stay in Ukraine
If I decide to temporarily return to Ukraine from Slovakia, do I need to notify any Slovak authority or follow any administrative procedures in Slovakia?
If you plan to stay in Ukraine for more than 30 consecutive days and you receive payments of aid in material need, you need to notify your Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family, as you will lose the right to receive the monthly allowance.
When you return, you can apply for the same type of assistance again. In case the private owner of your accommodation facility (flat, house) receives a state accommodation allowance, it is also recommended to visit the office of the local municipality where you live and report the last day of your stay in this accommodation before your departure to Ukraine.
If I decide to permanently return to Ukraine from Slovakia, who do I need to notify, and what are the administrative procedures I must follow before leaving?
a. You need to cancel your temporary protection status at a Department of Foreign Police in Slovakia. You can also cancel your temporary protection online. If you want to cancel your temporary protection online, you can get the application for the cancellation of temporary protection in person (at a Department of Foreign Police in Slovakia) or you can download the application in the link below. You need to fill in your personal data, sign it, scan it, and send it to this email address: [email protected]
Find the link to the application form here.
b. If you receive payments of aid in material need or allowance for someone in your family who has a disability, you need to visit your Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family to cancel the payments or inform them about your departure and cancel the payments in written form via mail.
c. In case the private owner of your accommodation facility (flat, house) receives a state accommodation allowance, it is also recommended to visit the office of the local municipality where you live and report the last day of your stay in this accommodation.
Border crossing
If I return to Ukraine and later decide to move back to Slovakia or another EU country, will I be able to cross the border again? (Especially if it is to or through a different EU country than the one that originally hosted me).
If you are a Ukrainian citizen with a biometric passport and you have unused days for staying in the Schengen area countries (meaning if you have stayed in such countries for less than 90 days out of the last 180 days), you will be able to enter any country freely. If you do not have such days, the border guards have the right not to let you through.
That is why, if you are not sure whether you stay up to three months after returning to Ukraine, it is better not to cancel your temporary protection status in Slovakia in order to be able to return to the Schengen area through the Ukrainian-Slovak border. As for entering the European Union through other countries, this will be the decision of the border guards of other countries you wish to travel to.
If I return to Ukraine and later decide to move back to Slovakia, will I be able to cross the border even if I lack international passport?
This issue will be decided at the discretion of the border guards. If such a need is caused by a shift in the front line and active hostilities in the region of your residence, there is a high probability that you will be allowed to cross the border. However, in any case, it is recommended that you apply for a passport in Ukraine if possible, as it will be cheaper than in Slovakia and you will not have any problems with crossing the border.
Health
How can I transfer my health records from Slovakia to Ukraine if I am returning? Can I request all documents from my Slovak doctor, and what should I do if I am already back in Ukraine?
You can ask your doctor in Slovakia to print out documents showing the scope of treatment you received in Slovakia. If you are already in Ukraine, you can try to write an email to the hospital and/or the doctor. After verifying your identity, they can send the medical documents by email, but your doctor needs to agree with this procedure. The decision is upon their discretion. That is why we recommend you visit your Slovak doctor before your departure to Ukraine.
Education
My child was attending school in Slovakia. What steps should I take to ensure this education is recognized in Ukraine?
If your child was attending school in Slovakia, it is recommended to ask the school for an official document acknowledging your child studies and educational achievements, which will facilitate the recognition in Ukraine of your child’s education in Slovakia. More information on what information the document should include can be found on the Ukrainian Ministry of Education and Science’s webpage.
For subjects that were not covered in the Slovak school, your child will be given an opportunity to take an assessment test in Ukrainian schools.
Livelihoods
Should I close my Slovak bank account upon returning to Ukraine, and is it possible to do this online after I have returned?
Yes, it is recommended to close your bank account before you leave for Ukraine, as the bank may charge a monthly service fee and it is usually not possible to close the account online. If you are going to close a bank account in Slovakia while you are in Ukraine, you will need to find a trusted person in Slovakia, make a power of attorney for him/her at a notary in Ukraine, apostille the power of attorney and translate it into Slovak. Then you need to transfer it to Slovakia from Ukraine to the trustee.
How can I receive my last salary if I close my bank account before leaving Slovakia? Can I schedule the account closure for a future date? How will I receive my last social benefit payments or assistance from UNHCR through Western Union if I leave? If I receive my salary in cash, how can I collect it once I have left for Ukraine?
To receive your last salary, you can write a request to your employer to transfer it to a bank account of your trusted friend for further transfer to you, or you can ask to send it by wire transfer through Western Union (International Money Transfer | Western Union SK).
You can also leave a notarized power of attorney to close the bank account to someone you know who can close the account after you withdraw the cash. This process is identical to receiving not only your salary, but also the latest payments from the UNHCR and Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family. You can also ask your trusted friend in Slovakia to receive your salary in cash, provide them with respective power of attorney, and have them send it to you in Ukraine.
How do I handle my tax obligations for the salary I earned in Slovakia after returning to Ukraine?
You can contact one of your employers, for whom you worked officially during your stay in Slovakia, with a request to file a tax return for you by the 15th of February of the year following the reporting year. Or you can file a tax declaration yourself by 31st of March. For assistance in preparation and submission, you can contact an accountant or tax advisor for example here. Their services are paid. You can also do this remotely from Ukraine.
If I have outstanding tax obligations in Slovakia, such as pending tax declarations or tax payments, how can I fulfil these obligations from Ukraine?
It is better to prepare for this situation while you are in Slovakia. You can entrust a friend of yours who stays in Slovakia with the relevant operations, or you can also contact an accountant or tax advisor for example here for help in dealing with this situation. Their services are paid.
