---
title: "Agreement Details: How Education and the Lives of National Minorities in Ukraine Will Change Following Agreements with Hungary"
description: "Ukraine and Hungary have reached major agreements. Kyiv has agreed to amend the education law and expand the rights of national minorities: from bilingual signs to exams in the native language. 🇺🇦🤝🇭🇺"
date: 2026-06-04T13:08:00.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/ukraine-and-hungary-agree-on-minority-rights-and-education-changes
tags: []
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Agreement Details: How Education and the Lives of National Minorities in Ukraine Will Change Following Agreements with Hungary

![Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in traditional attire against a flag backdrop, discussing the agreement with Ukraine on education and minority rights](https://xab.info/media/2026/06/04/ukraina-i-vengriya-dogovorilis-o-pravah-natsmenishinstv-i-izmeneniyah-v-obrazovanii/ukraina-i-vengriya-dogovorilis-o-pravah-natsmenishinstv-i-izmeneniyah-v-obrazovanii-1.webp)

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán officially confirmed that an agreement has been reached between Budapest and Kyiv. The parties have agreed on a package of amendments to Ukrainian legislation concerning the education sector and the expansion of rights for national minorities. The document containing the details of these concessions has become available to journalists.

### Education Reform and Language Rights

A key element of the agreement is the reform of secondary education. According to the text of the document, students in classes with instruction in the languages of national minorities will have the right to use their native language not only in the educational process but also in daily communication with teachers and peers.

A new status for educational institutions is being introduced: schools that have classes or groups with instruction in a minority language will be able to officially obtain the status of a "minority school." This entails a number of changes in visual design and management:

- Signs and publicly available information in such schools will be duplicated in the language of the respective minority.

- The principal or their deputy must be proficient in this language.

- Upon request from parents, educational documents may be issued in the minority language.

Significant changes will also affect the system of External Independent Evaluation (ZNO). For graduates who studied in a minority language, exam tasks will be translated into the corresponding language. The only exceptions are exams in the Ukrainian language and the history of Ukraine.

Furthermore, Ukraine has expressed readiness to expand the list of subjects taught in the state language in minority classes. This decision will be made with the support of at least two-thirds of the parents of students in a specific class.

### Socio-Political and Cultural Rights

A separate section of the agreement is dedicated to expanding the rights of national minorities in the public and cultural spheres. Local authorities in areas of compact residence of such communities will have the right to require their employees to know the minority language or to organize language courses for them.

Representatives of national minorities will be able to use their language when communicating with local administration in any form: oral, written, and electronic. It is also proposed to make consultations with representatives of minorities mandatory regarding draft laws affecting their legal status.

In the sphere of culture and public life, the following measures are provided:

- Public events for national minorities may be conducted in their native language.

- In settlements with compact minority residence, official names in two languages may appear on the buildings of government bodies and municipal institutions.

- Agitational materials and explanations of voting procedures will be duplicated in minority languages. In local elections, this rule may also apply to the texts of voting ballots.

- Duplication of street, square, and park names in the languages of national minorities is provided for.

The document also regulates the use of symbolism. Symbolism of national minorities may be used during official events, provided that it does not visually dominate over the state symbolism of Ukraine and does not contradict current legislation.

### Context of the Agreements

Education issues have remained the main subject of disagreement between Ukraine and Hungary over the past few years. The parties have agreed on the main approaches and formulations for 11 points of the education block. Notably, after the change of power in Hungary, the government of Viktor Orbán began to adjust its approach to relations with Kyiv. One of the first steps was the lifting of the blockage in the European Union regarding the work of the European Peace Facility, which is used to compensate for the costs of military aid to Ukraine.