Court decision

A foreign judgment in Ukraine turns on one distinction almost everyone misses. A judgment that requires enforcement — recovering a debt or child support — needs leave to enforce from a Ukrainian court. A judgment with nothing to enforce — a divorce, a declaratory finding — is recognised under Article 471 of the Civil Procedure Code where a treaty provides for it or on the basis of reciprocity. Most of the cases people actually bring in fall into the second category.

The practical consequence: the countries where most of the Ukrainian diaspora now lives — Poland, Czechia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Hungary, Romania — have legal assistance treaties with Ukraine, so recognition proceedings are often unnecessary. Institutions differ, though: some civil registry offices accept a legalised judgment with its translation directly, others insist on a Ukrainian court ruling. So the first question goes to the institution, not to a court.

What the document must carry whichever route applies: an apostille (unless a treaty exempts the country) and proof that the judgment is final — the Rechtskraftvermerk in Germany, the klauzula prawomocności in Poland, a decree absolute rather than an interim decree nisi in the UK. The judgment is translated in full, seals, service endorsements and apostille included. Send a scan and we will tell you what is missing and quote within 15 minutes.