The focus of uResidency is on creative economy professionals, including IT specialists from Asia and Europe, who work on developing programs, computer games, educational projects, digital technologies, etc. Thanks to uResidency, foreigners can open their own businesses here without having to travel to Ukraine, a European country, conduct business completely online and pay taxes to our state budget.
The launch of uResidency was announced at Lviv IT Arena, organized by Lviv IT Cluster, by Mykhailo Fedorov, Vice Prime Minister for Innovation, Education, Science and Technology Development, Minister of Digital Transformation.
Photo by Herman Bogapov, HiTech Expert.
Digital nation
The launch of uResidency is a path to a new digital nation where everyone has the opportunity to succeed in business, regardless of citizenship or place of residence. The project will be popular among independent entrepreneurs or “digital nomads” due to the ability to conduct business online from anywhere in the world.
“Thanks to technology, we can create products that can attract funds to Ukraine and build the brand of an innovative state. One of them is uResidency. This is a revolutionary project that not only offers foreigners a cool service for doing small business in the jurisdiction of Ukraine, but will also support the Ukrainian economy,” says Mykhailo Fedorov.
According to him, similar projects already exist in other countries, but Ukraine offers e-residency with the most favorable conditions for small businesses. In addition, uResidency will be a source of support for the Ukrainian economy both during the war and after the war is won.
Overcoming barriers
Previously, foreigners could not start a business in Ukraine remotely – they simply had to come here, and then a marathon of institutions began. Now, a person is verified once at the Ukrainian consulate in their home country, and then registers their business and opens a bank account in a few clicks.
uResidency is an ambitious project, which is why we enlisted the support of partners to create it. Through joint efforts, Ukraine continues its digitalization journey together with European partners, implementing modern digital solutions that make our digital state stronger.
“We are proud to support uResidency, another shining example of Ukrainian digital excellence. Ukraine continues to push the boundaries of what is possible in the digital sphere, despite the severe challenges posed by Russia’s war of aggression. Through our EU4DigitalUA and DT4UA projects, we are honored to empower the Ministry of Digital Transformation in its efforts to strengthen Ukraine’s economy in these most challenging times,” said Katarina Mathernova, Ambassador of the European Union to Ukraine.
Only a few countries in the world offer e-residency programs to foreigners: Estonia, Lithuania, Azerbaijan, and the state of Colorado in the United States. And only in Ukraine does an e-resident not have to pay for registration, make monthly contributions, or any other hidden fees.
How to become an E-resident in Ukraine
Citizens of India, Pakistan, Thailand, and Slovenia can already become e-residents of Ukraine. The list of countries will be expanded over time.
Now it is very easy for a foreigner to start a business in Ukraine. In a few clicks in the uResidency app or on the portal, they can open a sole proprietorship or a bank account in Ukraine using Diia.Signature.
There is a reduced tax rate of 5% for e-residents. Taxes and tax reporting are fully automated. On a quarterly basis, the bank will file a tax return and pay taxes instead of the e-resident, without the need to hire an accountant and a lawyer and pay them money.
The first e-residents are already noting the benefits of the program, including simple business registration, support at all stages of obtaining e-residency status, a favorable tax rate, and no hidden fees.
“The uResidency service will help entrepreneurs from all over the world to set up a business in the Ukrainian jurisdiction quickly and conveniently. To do this, they do not need to come to us, because the services are available online – from applying for participation in the program to opening an account in a Ukrainian bank and withdrawing funds. Thanks to uResidency, thousands of foreigners will be able to register a business under special tax conditions in a few clicks right on their smartphones,” said Oleksandr Borniakov, Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine.
Attractiveness for business
With uResidency, Ukraine will become more attractive for foreign small businesses. Foreign entrepreneurs will be able to register and run their own business on favorable terms, using convenient tools, and Ukraine will be able to attract additional investments, fill the state budget, and stimulate the banking sector by scaling digital products to foreign markets. All of this will strengthen Ukraine’s brand as a digital state.
The Academy of E-Governance supported the idea of creating uResidency in Ukraine and went with us through a 5-year journey from an idea to a large ambitious program that already has its first participants.
“The E-Governance Academy team has been supporting Ukraine’s digital transformation since 2012. In cooperation with the Ministry of Digital Transformation, we have created a secure digital ecosystem for the country and developed more than 50 widely used digital services. In addition, our team played an important role in establishing u-Residency in Ukraine by sharing Estonian best practices. The achievements of our partnership are an example of the combined digital strength of Ukraine, the European Union and Estonia,” said Hannes Astok, Executive Director of the Academy of Electronic Governance.
The uResidency project is implemented with the support of the European Union within the framework of the EU4DigitalUA and DT4UA projects implemented by the Estonian e-Governance Academy. Communication support for the project is provided by the International and Ibero-American Foundation for Administrative and Public Policy (FIIAPP) within the EU4DigitalUA project.
