Deputy Minister of Justice of Ukraine Andriy Haychenko, during the United News telethon, clarified the key mechanism for protecting citizens' sole housing from foreclosure due to utility debts. According to him, legislation establishes a specific debt amount before which a debtor's sole housing cannot be seized. Currently, this threshold is 430,000 hryvnias, whereas previously it was set at around 170,000 hryvnias. Haychenko noted that the increase in the threshold is related to wartime realities and the rising cost of utility services.
Why Housing Will Not Be Seized in 99.999% of Cases
Haychenko emphasized that accumulating a utility debt of 430,000 hryvnias is a task achieved by literally a handful of debtors. «So, for them to take away your sole housing, you would have to try very hard to accumulate utility debts. These are literally a handful of utility debtors. That is, for utility debts, in 99.999% of cases, sole housing will not be seized. Here I want to calm people down», the deputy minister stated. Thus, for the vast majority of Ukrainians with housing and communal services debts, the risk of losing their sole housing is practically nonexistent.
Reform of the Court Decision Enforcement System
Separately, Haychenko called the changes to the court decision enforcement system a reform aimed at making the state closer to the people. According to him, the updated procedures should ensure transparency and predictability for citizens facing enforcement proceedings. The reform affects both the work procedure of state enforcement officers and the mechanisms for interacting with debtors, including notifications and timeframes for lifting restrictions.
Where to Turn in Case of Technical Failures
The Deputy Minister of Justice also answered the question of what to do in a situation where a person has paid off the debt, but due to a technical glitch, the information has not updated in the system and restrictions have not been lifted. Haychenko explained that in such a case, one needs to call the state enforcement officer in charge of the specific proceeding. According to the official, their phone number is always indicated in databases and procedural documents: «The phone number of the state enforcement officer is always attached to every proceeding.» In addition, citizens can contact the single contact center of the State Enforcement Service of Ukraine system at 0800356917.
System Stability Even During Blackouts
Haychenko assured that over the past year, no technical failures have occurred in the state enforcement system, even despite blackouts caused by power grid disruptions. This, according to him, demonstrates the reliability of the updated infrastructure and the system's ability to function under wartime conditions. Thus, citizens can be sure that upon timely repayment of the debt, restrictions will be lifted without delay, and sole housing is protected by law for debts not exceeding the established threshold of 430,000 hryvnias.
