European Union supports the launch of uResidency: foreigners will be able to become Ukrainian e-residents 

The European Union, through its EU4DigitalUA and DT4UA projects, has supported the development and launch of the uResidency – Ukrainian e-residency programme. Thanks to uResidency, foreigners can register and run a business in Ukraine while investing in the Ukrainian economy. To do this, entrepreneurs do not need to come to Ukraine, all services are available online.

“Thanks to technology, we can create products that can attract funds to Ukraine and grow the brand of an innovative country. One of these products is uResidency. This is a revolutionary project that not only offers foreigners a great service for doing business in Ukraine, but will also support the Ukrainian economy. There are only a few similar projects in the world. And we are already offering e-residency with the most favourable conditions for business. In addition, uResidency will become a source of support for our economy both during the war and after our victory,” said Mykhailo Fedorov, Vice Prime Minister for Innovations, Development of Education, Science and Technologies — Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.

uResidency will make Ukraine an attractive place to run a foreign small business. Foreign entrepreneurs will be able to register and run their own business on favourable terms using convenient electronic tools. At the same time, Ukraine will attract additional investments, fill the state budget and stimulate the banking sector by expanding digital products to foreign markets. All of this will strengthen Ukraine’s brand as a digital state.

“We are proud to support uResidency – another brilliant example of Ukraine’s digital excellence. Ukraine continues to push the boundaries of what is possible in the digital sphere, despite the severe hardships brought on by Russia’s war of aggression. Through our EU4DigitalUA and DT4UA projects, we are honoured to further empower Mintsyfra in their efforts to bolster Ukraine’s economy during these most challenging times,” said Katarína Mathernová, Ambassador of the European Union to Ukraine.

The program offers foreign entrepreneurs attractive conditions for doing business — a 5% tax rate on profits, the ability to register remotely as a sole proprietor and conduct business from anywhere in the world through a mobile application and web portal. Another advantage is the absence of accounting and reports. E-residents do not need to worry about filling out documents for their business, as the bank will do it for them as a tax agent.

“The e-Governance Academy team has been supporting Ukraine’s digital transformation since 2012. In collaboration with the Ministry of Digital Transformation, we have built a secure digital ecosystem for the country and developed over 50 of its most widely used digital services. Also, our team was instrumental in developing Ukraine’s u-Residency by sharing Estonian best practices. The achievements of our partnership stand as a statement to the united digital power of Ukraine, the European Union, and Estonia,” noted Hannes Astok, Executive Director of the e-Governance Academy.

The uResidency programme is aimed at small business owners in Asia and Europe. Its focus is on IT professionals and specialists providing online services in the creative economy.

“The uResidency will help tech entrepreneurs from all over the world to set up a business in Ukraine quickly and conveniently. They don’t need to come to Ukraine because everything is online: from applying for the programme to withdrawing funds to their own account. Thanks to uResidency, thousands of foreigners will be able to run their own business under special tax conditions with a few taps of a smartphone,” said Oleksandr Bornyakov, Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.

Foreigners do not need to travel to Ukraine to obtain e-residency. They must undergo a one-time offline verification at the Ukrainian consular office in their country of residence, which will also take place online in due time.

Currently, citizens of India, Pakistan, Thailand and Slovenia can become e-residents of Ukraine. The list of countries will be gradually expanded. 

The uResidency is implemented with the support of the European Union within the framework of the EU4DigitalUA and DT4UA projects implemented by the e-Governance Academy of Estonia. Communication support for the uResidency is provided by the International and Ibero-American Foundation for Administrative and Public Policy (FIIAPP) within the EU4DigitalUA project.