Draft bill #12147 of October 23, 2024
Status: sent for review to the Committee on National Security, Defense, and Intelligence
Cosponsors: a group of 14 MPs from the factions European Solidarity, Holos, and Servant of the People and independents with Dmytro Mykysha as the first signatory
Who is affected: service member under 25 years old
Summary: mobilized service members under 25 who have been deemed unfit for military service in peacetime and partially fit during wartime will have the right to be dismissed into reserve provided they do not wish to continue service.
What is right: the bill resolves a legal collision and establishes a clear procedure for dismissal into reserve for service members who have not reached 25.
Background information: in March 2024, the Parliament abolished the status of “partial fitness” for military service. Due to confusion in terminology and gaps in the legislation, men under 25 years who were “partially fit” due to health status during wartime immediately received the status of individuals subject to military service without any mechanisms for deferment.
As a result, territorial recruitment centers under the new mobilization rules began to recruit young people under 25 who had not completed regular military service, had not received military education, and had not undergone basic military training in higher education establishments (it will be launched on September 1, 2025). That is why the Verkhovna Rada wants to address this legal collision.
On October 9, 2024, the Parliament adopted a bill exempting Ukrainians under 25 from mobilization. However, no provision was included about the right to demobilization for men under 25 who had the status of “partially fit” before the changes in mobilization rules and were already mobilized.