Lining up for arms: which women professionals must register for military service and who will be fined by the Ministry of Defence for violating this rule

On 17 December 2021, the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine issued an order requiring Ukrainian women to register for military service. The document provides a clear list of professions to which this rule applies. In addition, other requirements have been approved, including those for employers. Maria Rokotian, an attorney at Elegit, told Mind what exactly the document provides for and who it will apply to.

Amendments to the legislation on women’s obligation to register for military service have caused a great deal of public outcry and have been actively discussed for several weeks now. However, such registration is not something new, and women who have a profession related to a military speciality have been required to register for military service before.

Back in April 2021, a law amending certain regulations came into force to improve certain issues related to military duty and military registration.

In particular, the Law of Ukraine ‘On Military Duty and Military Service’ was amended to require that the list of specialities and/or professions that require women to be registered for military service be approved by the Ministry of Defence. Previously, such a list was approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

The Parliament justified the amendments by the need to improve the organisational and legal framework for manning the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other formed military formations with highly professional personnel both in peacetime and in a special period (which has been in force in Ukraine since March 2014).

What has the Ministry of Defence settled?

On 17 December 2021, an order of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine came into force, which approved the list of specialities and/or professions related to the relevant military specialities, after which women are required to register for military service.

This order significantly expanded the list of relevant specialities. It now includes 35 specialities, including management, journalism, psychology, music, law, banking, etc.

According to the law, women who are registered with the military can be called up for military service or engaged to perform work to ensure the defence of the state only in wartime. Thus, being on the military register does not mean that women are obliged to be drafted and perform military service. As before, in peacetime, women can perform such service only on a voluntary basis (under a contract).

From now on, women aged 18 to 60 who have a speciality included in the list determined by the Ministry of Defence are required to register for military service by the end of 2022 by reporting to the recruitment centre (former military registration and enlistment office) at their place of registration. In addition to submitting documents, registration requires a medical examination by a panel of doctors.

What does the document require from employers?

Employers, when hiring women for the relevant position, must check the availability of documents on military registration. And for women already working in the relevant positions, the employer must inform them of their obligation to register for military service.

The changes do not apply to women working under civil law contracts and employers who are individual entrepreneurs.

What are the fines for violating the new rules?

Among other innovations, liability for violation of the rules of military registration has been increased.

Thus, violation of the rules of military registration by conscripts, persons liable for military service, and reservists will result in a fine of UAH 530 to UAH 850. Repeated violations within a year, as well as violations committed during a special period, result in a fine of UAH 850 to UAH 1,700.

Violations of the legislation on defence, mobilisation training and mobilisation are subject to a fine of UAH 1,700 to 3,400 for individuals and UAH 3,400 to 5,100 for officials. Repeated violations within a year, as well as violations committed during a special period, will result in a fine of UAH 3,400 to 5,100 for individuals and UAH 5,100 to 8,500 for officials.

It is envisaged that persons liable for military service and officials of employing companies will be held liable only from 1 January 2023.

Despite numerous explanations by the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine on the essence of the changes, many people continue to perceive them extremely negatively.

An electronic petition to cancel Order No. 313 was registered on the website of the Office of the President of Ukraine, which within a few days gained the 25,000 votes required for its consideration. Although the President of Ukraine is not obliged to fulfil the petition’s demands (which, by the way, is beyond his competence), he must respond to them.