Services abroad are refusing to issue passports to 18-year-old Ukrainians who are not registered for military service

Passport services abroad are increasingly denying 18-year-old Ukrainian males who are not registered for military service from obtaining passports, including international passports.

This was reported by the “Judicial-Legal Gazette.”

This issue also affects young men who left Ukraine before the Russian invasion, at which time they were not required to register with the Territorial Recruitment Centers (TRC) due to their age.

The situation was discussed during a meeting of the parliamentary committee on youth and sports with Deputy Minister of Defense Kateryna Chernogorenko.

It was proposed that young men aged 17 could register for military service online, and from age 16, their information would be automatically added to the “Obereg” system when obtaining a passport. However, this system is not yet operational.

The committee reported that passport services officially explain the refusals as a “technical inability” to transfer a person’s data into the “Obereg” system. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, documents for passport issuance were processed for only nine individuals who lacked an entry in “Obereg.”

Lawmakers noted that this situation is prompting young men to obtain temporary documents from foreign countries.

Chernogorenko stated that the Ministry of Defense is “awaiting a response from the General Staff on what to do with Ukrainians abroad who are in violation of registration rules.”

Earlier, Dmitry Litvin, an adviser to President Volodymyr Zelensky, stated in response to a comment on X (formerly Twitter) that Ukraine is not preparing to mobilize 18-year-olds.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken recently urged Ukraine to make “difficult but necessary decisions” regarding mobilization, with the White House pressuring Ukraine to draft 18-year-olds.