There is no single register or standard model for beneficiary ID cards in Ukraine, says Deputy Minister of Development Serhiy Derkach

Bill No. 5651-2 “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Regarding Travel Discounts and Certain Other Benefits” is currently undergoing its second reading in parliament and is expected to be adopted in the near future. This was announced by Deputy Minister of Development Serhiy Derkach.

"Preferential transportation currently exists only on paper, but in reality it is not implemented. There are many problems with this: first, beneficiaries do not receive their benefits normally because when they board transportation, they may be denied service. In other words, they do not know whether they will be able to exercise their legal right to preferential transportation or not. Secondly, beneficiaries have to constantly show their documents on public transport, which is uncomfortable and sometimes even humiliating," explained Serhiy Derkach.

He added that currently, Ukraine does not have a single register or a single model of discount card, so there are situations where drivers refuse to transport passengers even when they present their discount card, because it is invalid or expired.

As for transport operators, according to the Deputy Minister of Development, they are losing millions of hryvnias in compensation for transporting beneficiaries and are effectively unable to develop their business model and upgrade their transport. “This is a big problem for everyone,” concluded the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure.