How shall a foreigner file a claim in Ukraine for recovery of maintenance (alimony)?
A foreign plaintiff shall file a claim for recovery of maintenance (change of the amount of maintenance payment) from a defendant residing in Ukraine through an authorized body in the plaintiff’s permanent place of residence (most often, it is a ministry of justice of a corresponding state). The authorized body shall send relevant documents to the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine after checking the statement for compliance with the Convention on the Recovery Abroad of Maintenance or other international treaties concluded with Ukraine.
The statement of claim for the recovery of maintenance in Ukraine shall be made by the plaintiff in writing taking into account the requirements of the Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine and the Convention, and shall contain the following information:
- Full name of the plaintiff, date of birth, citizenship, place of residence, postal code, telephone number, name and address of any legal representative of the plaintiff, photo of the plaintiff, in appropriate cases, the full name and date of birth of a person, whose maintenance shall be recovered.
- Full name of the defendant and, so far as the plaintiff is aware, his/her addresses over the past five years, date of birth, citizenship and occupation and place of employment, postal code, contact details, if available, his/her photo shall be also added;
- Content of the plaintiff’s claims;
- Presentation of the circumstances by which the plaintiff substantiates his/her demands, as well as any other information, for example, on the financial and family circumstances of the plaintiff and defendant;
- List of the attached documents;
- Power of attorney authorizing the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine to represent the plaintiff’s interests in the case of the recovery of maintenance.
A notarized translation of all materials into Ukrainian shall be submitted with the statement.
The content of the plaintiff’s claims is a sum that makes the amount of maintenance payment, which shall be paid by the defendant. The maintenance payments may be made in a fixed amount or as a part of all types of incomes in accordance with the current legislation of Ukraine.
The minimum amounts of child maintenance payment may be collected without recourse – for one child – 1/4 of the payer’s income, for two children – 1/3 of the payer’s income, and for three or more children – 1/2 of the payer’s income, but no more than 10 minimum subsistence levels per child of the appropriate age for each child.
How to perform the foreign court’s decision to recover child maintenance in Ukraine?
In order to recover the maintenance payments awarded by the foreign court’s decision on the territory of Ukraine, an interested person shall file a petition for recognition and enforcement of the foreign court’s decision to recover the maintenance from the defendant (the debtor), who lives in Ukraine. The petition shall meet the requirements of the Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine and the Convention, and set out in writing and contain:
1) full name of the plaintiff, date of birth, citizenship, place of residence (stay) or location, place of employment, as well as the name and address of any legal representative of the plaintiff, in appropriate cases, the full name and date of birth of a person, whose maintenance shall be recovered.
2) full name of the defendant, date of birth, citizenship, and, so far as the plaintiff is aware, his/her addresses over the past five years, and his/her occupation, his/her location or location of his/her property in Ukraine;
3) reasons for filing the petition, as well as any other information, including the financial and marital status of the plaintiff and defendant.
The following documents shall be attached to the petition:
- A copy of the foreign court’s decision certified in the prescribed manner, in respect of which the statement on the enforcement is filed;
- An official document stating that the foreign court’s decision has entered into legal force (if this is not indicated in the decision);
- A document certifying that the party, in respect of which the foreign court’s decision was made and which did not participate in the proceeding, was duly notified of the time and place of the hearing of the case;
- A document defining in which part or from what time the foreign court’s decision shall be implemented (if it has already been implemented before);
- A document certifying the authority of the plaintiff’s representative (if the statement is filed by the representative);
- A photo of the plaintiff and, if possible, a photo of the defendant;
- Power of attorney authorizing the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine to represent the plaintiff’s interests in the case of the recovery of maintenance.
The petition and the documents attached to it shall be provided together with the certified translation into Ukrainian.
Based on the foreign court’s decision and the decision of the Ukrainian court on granting permission to enforce the foreign court’s decision, a writ of execution, which shall be submitted to the bodies of the state enforcement service, is issued upon the request of the plaintiff or his/her authorized representative.
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Lawyers of the law firm Zilver may help you with family cases in Ukraine. Our Address is: https://g.page/zilver-law-firm-kyiv/review, email: info@zilver.com.ua, phone: +380501409560.