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Ігор Вишневський That's Life
12 August 2025, 09:00
2025-08-12
"I have to live in a bombed-out house until I get the funds. And when it will be is unknown." dev.ua collected the experience of IT workers in using "eVidnovlennia" and prescribed a step-by-step mechanism for receiving compensation for damaged housing
Millions of Ukrainians live in housing that has been significantly damaged as a result of hostilities or enemy air attacks, and the number of such residential buildings is in the hundreds of thousands. The full-scale war is gradually approaching its fourth anniversary, and although the front line is moving incomparably slower than in the first years of full-scale, the problem of damaged housing is not becoming less acute, rather the opposite. Russia has significantly increased the production of strike drones, with which it «nightmares» not only strategic objects, but also the civilian population, so the housing of citizens is under constant danger.
Millions of Ukrainians live in housing that has been significantly damaged as a result of hostilities or enemy air attacks, and the number of such residential buildings is in the hundreds of thousands. The full-scale war is gradually approaching its fourth anniversary, and although the front line is moving incomparably slower than in the first years of full-scale, the problem of damaged housing is not becoming less acute, rather the opposite. Russia has significantly increased the production of strike drones, with which it «nightmares» not only strategic objects, but also the civilian population, so the housing of citizens is under constant danger.
In the spring of 2023, the «eRecovery» program was launched, thanks to which owners of housing damaged or destroyed by the enemy can receive assistance from the state. The counter question arises — what if they may not receive it? Unfortunately, yes, because, like every program that has its own internal bureaucratic procedures and affects a large number of people, «eRecovery» has its own «blind spots» and «pitfalls». We were told about them by AIT residents who, on their own life path, have encountered the problem of damaged housing and had experience with «eRecovery» — successful or not very successful. In turn, we turned to lawyers to form a general algorithm of actions in the event of damage to housing and identify problematic points that may lead to a refusal to receive compensation.
dev.ua spoke in detail with three representatives of the technosphere from different regions of Ukraine, and also received a number of comments from IT professionals on the topic of «eRecovery» via email and Telegram channel. And not all of them are satisfied with how the program works.
«It’s been over a month since I wrote the application. This document is still not ready»
Taisiya Kucherova, Associate Principal Support Consultant, Tier 3 at 3Shape, has been living in a damaged house in Mykolaiv since the arrival of the enemy «shaheed.» The specialist says she will have to move out for the winter, as the house is unsuitable for the heating season. At the same time, the case with «eVidnovlenie» is moving slowly due to the need to obtain a certificate from law enforcement agencies, which they are in no hurry to provide.
According to the AIT woman, the arrival of the «shaheda» occurred on May 25, literally 20 meters from the house. «It flew into the wall that separates the kindergarten next door and my yard. At night, I wake up and run with my dog to the first floor, which has wider and thicker walls. At the same time, an explosion occurs, everything around is falling apart, windows and plaster from the ceiling are flying. It was like in an action movie, or rather, a horror movie,» Taisiya described her feelings at the time of the incident.
According to her, as of now, the house has minus five windows, as well as large cracks in the walls and ceiling. At the same time, representatives of the city administration, as Taisiya says, came to the place of arrival on the same day in the morning and wrote down all the damage, as well as her address, first and last name, etc. «This was done so that later a commission from the city would come to record this damage for a monetary assessment of the damage, so that „eVidnovlenie“ would compensate for this amount. For this, it was also necessary to call the police yourself so that they would also record the fact of the shelling,» the city official explained.
Taisia’s home after the enemy attack looked like this ↓↓↓
Taisiya Kucherova claims that the most interesting thing began at the next stage, because if she wants to apply for compensation, then among other documents she needs to have a document from the register of pre-trial investigations stating that her house was indeed shelled.
«The police initially said to take this document from them, and when I arrived at the central police station in the other end of the city, they told me that I actually need it from the SBU. I am coming to the SBU, writing an application in order to receive this document. More than a month has passed since I wrote this application. Yesterday (the conversation took place last week — ed.) I was at the SBU, this document is not ready. How long it will take to prepare, no one knows. And without this document, you cannot apply for any compensation!», she complained.
As Taisiya said, she also received a call from one of the volunteer organizations that deals with repairs after arrivals, but they said that she had too much damage and that they only perform small works up to 40,000 UAH.
«So all that remains is to get this piece of paper from the SBU, and then another document from the city administration, and with these two documents, apply for e-Restoration. But there is a big but — when you apply for e-Restoration, you have to wait until the money arrives,» she says.
The need to wait and pay using the «eRecovery» card is a moment that both Taisiya and other victims find inconvenient. Especially in situations where you continue to live in damaged housing.
«While you’re waiting for money, you can’t do any repairs in the house. They put me in a position where I have to live in a bombed-out house until I get the money, and when it will come is unknown. That is, people are put in a position where it’s better to do it yourself and not expect anything. But I don’t have the opportunity to replace five windows and all the ceilings right now, because my house is big,» the city dweller claims.
For the winter, she plans to simply cover the windows with OSB sheets so that the cold doesn’t get in so much. But, in her opinion, it’s psychologically difficult to live in a room that doesn’t have daylight. «If all the windows are closed, it’s a dark kingdom! When it gets dark early, I think it has a strong enough effect on the psyche to live in such conditions,» Taisiya believes.
«It is quite unpleasant that the database with contacts of people who applied for „eRecovery“ ends up in commerce through some hands»
QA specialist Iryna from Irpen not only received funds under the eRecovery program, but also managed to use them. However, she says that in reality they covered less than 50% of the need. After all, the cost of compensation was calculated at the lowest prices, which have already changed significantly since the program was launched due to inflation and the appreciation of the dollar. Despite these factors, she has no special complaints about the program, because, one way or another, it has become a significant help in solving the problem. Iryna attributes the fact that her experience turned out to be successful to the fact that several years have passed since the fighting in Irpen, which allowed her to set up a scheme and solve a number of bureaucratic problems. Otherwise, according to her expectations, everything would have been much more difficult. But before receiving funds under the eRecovery program, it was necessary to solve general problems with the house. And this is usually much more difficult.
One of the residential buildings in Irpen, photo from Facebook Maksym Stelmakh
«After one mine landed on the roof of the house and another on the fifth-floor balcony, our five-story building had serious problems. People had water leaking into their apartments, and somewhere the roof collapsed. It was March 2022. After people returned to the city, we had to raise funds and do basic roof repairs ourselves. It was difficult because many people were abroad, and not everyone was interested in repairing common property. We were unable to raise the necessary amount, and we covered this repair with the amount we had. So it was not done very qualitatively,» the city worker states.
According to her, the house stood in disrepair for six months, but by the winter of 2023, fortunately, they managed to patch the hole and close the roof. At the same time, only in 2024, that is, two years later, were funds allocated for the entire residential complex, and not just for their house, and they managed to repair the facade with repainting and basic restoration. «Of course, it was unrealistic to collect money for such repair work from the apartments,» Iryna is convinced.
As for their apartment, she and her husband delayed the renovation for a very long time because they wanted to make sure that the roof of the house was repaired more or less qualitatively and that water would not leak into them.
«Only in 2024 did we fill out all the necessary documents and submit an application under the „eRenovation“ program to receive funds for apartment repairs. We did this at the Irpin City Council. To do this, it was necessary for the house to have the correct category, because there are different categories of damage. We had to change a bunch of these categories, but somehow they organized it all there. That is, we had to have correctly executed documents for the entire house,» the QA specialist shared her experience.
As for the estimate used for the calculation, according to Iryna, the compensation offered by eVidnovlenie does not correspond to the market value of materials and work.
«They are not even close to reality, I would say. The amounts were apparently approved somewhere at the level of 2022-2023, but now we have 2025, and prices have grown very much. Accordingly, now it is quite difficult to get full compensation for all the described problems. If you do the math, „eVidnovlenie“ compensated for perhaps 50% of our needs, if not taking into account the works. With the works — maybe 30%, maybe less. That is, the difference is quite big,» the IT worker states.
As Iryna says, after filling out the application, they waited three or four months for the funds to arrive, but the system itself, in her opinion, works well.
«That is, there were no special difficulties in filling out the documents and submitting the application. The scheme is transparent, the processes are transparent, and it works quite conveniently. All I had to do was submit a report on the funds spent, which I had not done yet. But all this is submitted through „Diya“. It was much more complicated and nerve-wracking with the documents for the entire house, but everything was done there without our intervention by the management company, the condominium association,» the Irpin resident is convinced.
The only moment that really angered Iryna was that literally a couple of days after applying, they received a call from some company that deals with repairs using e-Repair. «It’s quite unpleasant that the database with the contacts of people who applied for e-Repair ends up in the hands of some people,» she concluded.
«I think it would be easier without this card — just save the checks for the windows»
Another QA specialist, Kristina, told dev.ua that on July 24 of this year, a KAB flew in near the Rohatynskyi residential complex in Kharkiv. According to her, she and other residents of the apartment miraculously remained unharmed, because at that time they were near the windows. Currently, the homeowners have boarded up the windows with OSB sheets and are waiting for the commission to receive compensation from eVidnovlennaya. What Kristina is most dissatisfied with in the principle of the program is that the owners of damaged housing cannot carry out partial repairs on their own, simply keeping receipts for goods and services in order to receive compensation for them later.
«Today (at the time of the conversation with dev.ua — ed.), in fact, I was contacted about „eVidnovlenie“ and a date was set for the commission’s visit on August 18. I submitted the application through „Diya“. To do this, you need to additionally open a card for „eVidnovlenie“ at any bank (you can only use an electronic one),» says the IT worker.
According to Kristina, as a result of the arrival of the plane, the ceiling and walls in the house were cut, the sofa burned down, and the front door was slightly bent by the blast wave, although they can be used. Her work laptop and air conditioner were also slightly damaged, but you can’t expect compensation for the equipment. So she solved these problems by calling the masters.
Recently, while discussing the work of «eVidnovlenie» with other Kharkiv residents, Kristina heard that someone was spending the winter with windows boarded up because the accrual of funds took almost six months, and someone was waiting for money to be credited to the «eVidnovlenie» card for three months.
«I think it would be easier without this card — just keep the receipts for the windows. Because I don’t think there will be compensation for anything else. There is definitely no compensation for appliances and furniture. Just like for cars that burned down,» the IT worker concludes.
Meanwhile, we also received a number of comments from IT workers to our editorial email and TG channel, who shared their personal experiences of restoring housing after hostilities and arrivals, with or without «eReconstruction».
Iryna Lisovska, Head of Recruitment at a venture agency, village of Myla, Buchansky district
After the liberation of Kyiv region, our house had no roof and 5-6 floors burned down. The house stood like that for a year. We ourselves tried to somehow pull it out, cleared the rubble, put up awnings to protect it from rain and snow, which were blown away by storms.
There was everything. Until a year and a half ago, we were added to the United24 restoration program. Although they said they would handle it in a year, they managed to do it in a year and a half. At the same time, they clogged the ventilation systems, when they did a complete cleanup, they did not change the pipes that were melted, and the sewage system, although we had partially restored it, remained like that. However, they did insulation and now our apartments are like thermoses. Boilers/heating are not connected. It seems that they are glad that there is a roof, but with such consequences they were left… The only thing that the head of the trade community helped with was that he allocated awnings for temporary roof coverings. Everything else, people threw money at it, and already on the spot they bought materials and hired workers.
For other «restoration after restoration» — they sent the ASC to submit an application through «Diya». After two months of processing the application and the arrival of the commission for inspection, they approved UAH 38,000 for cosmetic repairs through «eVidnovlenie».
Serhiy Salivon, Senior Automation QA at GlobalLogic, Kharkiv
In March, a «shaheed» arrived at our entrance. The roof and the apartment on the fifth floor were destroyed. I have an apartment on the third floor — all the windows were blown out and the balcony was completely destroyed, the rooms were a little smokey. Everything was flooded down to the basement, the furniture was ruined, all the walls were moldy — I had to remove everything.
As of now, the restoration costs are over UAH 110,000. This includes replacing windows (without the balcony) and partial renovation of the most damaged kitchen.
The house is still not being repaired, they just covered it with a tarpaulin a little, but it still floods when it rains. It is impossible to apply for «eVidnovlenie» until the house is repaired. But it does not compensate for the repairs already made, only what you can come in and assess at the time of submitting the application. So you will have to do everything at your own expense.
There was some help from some charitable foundation, but it was a drop in the ocean.
Kateryna, Business Assistant, Gostomel
If you did the repairs yourself, there will be no compensation. Our windows were broken, the front door was demolished, and the stretch ceiling was torn. Only two windows on the balcony were replaced with funds from the fund, which helped restore the entire house. The rest was repaired at our own expense, because there was no time to wait. We applied for compensation from the state three times — and all three times it was rejected, because there is still no algorithm for returning such compensation. Those who waited three years and did not restore anything themselves — were paid something under the «eReconstruction» program.
Resident of Northern Saltivka, Kharkiv (please publish anonymously)
On March 7, 2022, our lives were divided into «before» and «after.» Due to enemy shelling, our house turned into a ruin. Shells hit right in the entrance. As a result of the shelling, a large-scale fire broke out. My apartment burned down completely.
All that was left of the house was ash. Even the metal — pipes, fittings — melted. There were almost no walls left — only charred debris. And it wasn’t just my apartment. The entire entrance was practically destroyed. Some of the houses nearby are currently being restored — some partially, some almost completely.
But our house was left out of the spotlight. Why? No one explains. According to our assumptions, the reason may be that our house is a condominium, not communal property. But these are just guesses — no one officially confirms this.
Over these more than three years, my family and I have filed dozens of applications: for compensation, for restoration, through the «Diya» application and other channels. But every time the answer is the same: there are no grounds, because a special technical inspection was not conducted. The house was not recognized as either subject to repair or as one that should be demolished. It simply «hangs» — as if in a legal vacuum. Which means that compensation is not provided.
At the same time, despite everything, other projects are actively being implemented in the city: free transportation, purified water dispensers, flowers, flower beds. Everything looks beautiful. But for us, those who were left without a roof over our heads, this is a painful injustice.
There were 5 people registered in the apartment. Among them are two pensioners with disabilities of the 3rd group. These people lost not only their housing, but also hope. And they received only silence from the authorities. We want this story to be heard. And for those who make decisions to see: we are here, we are waiting — and we have the right to justice.
Statistics of «eVidnovlenie»: 97,000 Ukrainians received compensation worth UAH 9.7 billion
Meanwhile, on the eve of the release of the material, the Ministry of Community and Territorial Development of Ukraine published another statistics on the «eRecovery» program as of August 1, 2025. It is reported that more than 97,000 Ukrainians received compensation for damaged housing for a total amount of more than UAH 9.7 billion.
The ministry recalled that this type of compensation includes two categories — payments for minor repairs (category A) and major repairs (category B). The average compensation amounts for them were 72,700 hryvnias and 341,800 hryvnias, respectively.
Infographics from the website of the Ministry of Community and Territorial Development
At the same time, as for the topic of destroyed housing, which we only touch on in this material in passing, according to the ministry, more than 21,000 Ukrainians have received housing certificates to purchase housing to replace the destroyed ones for a total amount of UAH 31.1 billion. According to statistics, about 12,000 citizens have almost already purchased new housing, of which more than 6,000 are internally displaced persons.
For the state, real estate exists only when data about it is in the register.
At the request of dev.ua, senior lawyer of SENSUM Law Firm Oleksiy Kaplunov provided a detailed step-by-step mechanism for receiving compensation under the «eRecovery» program. The first and most important thing the lawyer emphasized is that it is highly desirable to enter information about your real estate into the State Register of Real Rights to Real Estate (SRPRNM), if it is not there.
«Do this in advance, before your home is damaged or destroyed as a result of the Russian aggression. This is a prerequisite for receiving compensation. Legally, real estate exists for the state only when data about it is in the register,» stated Oleksiy Kaplunov.
According to the senior lawyer of SENSUM Law Firm, the absence of such a record is one of the main reasons for the refusal or delay in providing compensation, because it is possible to submit an information message about damaged/destroyed property only if there is a corresponding record. According to Kaplunov, if the property has already been damaged or destroyed, you should act according to a clear algorithm. Here are the main steps that need to be taken.
Step 1. Recording the damage and collecting evidence
After damage/destruction of housing, the first priority is to record the fact of destruction. This process consists of several important stages: interaction with emergency services, independent collection of evidence, and further work with local authorities. As soon as you are convinced of your personal safety, as the lawyer says, you need to call the State Emergency Service and the National Police.
«Calling the SES is mandatory in the event of a fire, collapse, or threat of discovery of unexploded ordnance. Based on the results of the work on site, SES employees draw up a Fire Report or other official document recording the fact of destruction. Be sure to get a copy of this report — this is one of the key pieces of evidence,» he advises.
Oleksiy Kaplunov adds that a police report, in turn, is necessary to record a criminal offense that led to the destruction of property. Based on the report, law enforcement officers open criminal proceedings, and the result of this report is an extract from the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations (URDR).
«This document officially confirms that the destruction occurred precisely as a result of hostilities, which is a necessary condition for receiving compensation,» states a representative of SENSUM Law Firm.
In addition, it is important to record the destruction yourself, especially if emergency services cannot arrive quickly. After all, the collected materials can be used by the commission for remote damage assessment.
Another important element is the appeal to the local authorities. It is necessary to submit an application for inspection of the destroyed housing to the relevant village, settlement, city council or military-civilian administration. Based on this application, the local government creates a special commission. If the security situation allows, the commission goes to the place for inspection and draws up a Housing Inspection Act. This document is also key in the compensation procedure, since it serves as the official basis for entering information about the object into the State Register of Damaged and Destroyed Property (DRPZM).
Step 2. Formation of a package of documents for compensation
After recording the destruction, the next stage is careful documentary preparation, because, as Oleksiy Kaplunov claims, practice shows that the main obstacles to receiving compensation often lie not in the fact of destruction itself, but in the unavailability of documents for property. «The war revealed the problem of the massive lack of registration of property rights in the State Register of Property Rights, which became the main obstacle for many applicants. Having an entry in the State Register of Property Rights is an ideal option that significantly speeds up the process,» he claims.
If there is no record, then the process of receiving compensation, according to the specialist, actually turns into two stages: first you need to «legalize» your property in the eyes of the digital state, and only then prove the fact of its destruction.
In addition, you should make sure to have the following documents: a certificate of no criminal record, title documents, a technical passport for the object, a certificate from the bank about opening an account. Documents confirming the priority right will also be useful (for example, a UBD certificate, a MSEK certificate about disability, etc.).
Step 3. Submitting an Information Notice and a Compensation Application
Submitting an Information Report on Damaged/Destroyed Property is the first and mandatory step that registers the fact of destruction in the DRPZM. The report includes basic information about the owner, the property, and a brief description of the damage.
Filing a claim for compensation is the second step that directly initiates the payment consideration process. It can only be done after the information notice has been filed and registered.
The applicant can submit an information message and an application for compensation either through the «Diya» application or through the ASC (Olexy Kaplunov says that in fact notaries do not accept these messages and applications, although this possibility is provided for by law).
«After submitting these two documents, a commission to consider issues related to the provision of compensation, established at the local government body, begins its work,» he notes.
The commission then checks the submitted documents, analyzes the evidence, inspects the property (if possible) and makes a final decision: on the provision of compensation, its amount or refusal. The legislation establishes a deadline for considering the application — 30 calendar days from the date of its submission. However, for objects located in a combat zone or in deoccupied territories, this period may be extended. In practice, according to a senior lawyer, the terms may be longer due to the large number of applications and security risks.
Step 4. Implementation of compensation
Finally, after receiving a positive decision from the commission, as Oleksiy Kaplunov says, the owner of the destroyed property has three ways to realize compensation.
Financial assistance for repairs (for damaged housing). If the housing was damaged, but not destroyed, the owner receives financial assistance for its restoration. The funds are transferred to a special «eReconstruction» card opened in one of the partner banks. This assistance can be spent exclusively on building materials or repair services in companies that are participants in the program. The amount is calculated by the commission based on an approved checklist that records the nature and extent of the damage.
It is important to note that although the legislation provides for the possibility of compensation for repairs made by the owner independently before submitting the application, in practice the mechanism for such payment does not work. Thus, currently the eRenovation program finances only future repairs, and does not reimburse costs already incurred.
Housing certificate. This is a digital document in the «Diya» application, which confirms the amount guaranteed by the state for the purchase of new housing (apartment or house). The owner can independently choose real estate on the primary or secondary market in any region of Ukraine (except for temporarily occupied territories and zones of active hostilities). To use the certificate, it is necessary to reserve funds through «Diya» and within 30 days conclude a purchase and sale agreement with a notary, who checks the documents and sends a request to the Ukrainian Financial Housing Company for payment.
Cash payment for construction. This option is available to owners of destroyed private houses who plan to build new housing on their land. The funds are transferred to a special account «eVidnovlenie» in two tranches. To receive the payment, it is necessary to submit a notification of the start of construction work and report on the intended use of funds, providing checks and receipts.
You need to be vigilant: almost 15 points regarding «possible refusals»
The founder and head of the law firm SEMPRA LAW, Olga Sydorchuk, advises on most points to perform the same actions, agreeing in absentia with a colleague. At the same time, she reminds that an optional, but especially important stage during the procedure for receiving compensation (applies to those damaged or destroyed real estate objects that are jointly owned by several people) is the registration of the consent of other co-owner (s) to receive compensation by the applicant. «It is important to remember that the absence of a properly executed consent of the co-owner (s) serves as a basis for suspending consideration of the Application for Compensation,» says Olga Sydorchuk.
Instructions for the 2023 sample on the functioning of the «eRecovery» program
An equally important aspect when going through the procedure for receiving compensation is a prompt response to notifications from the Commission for Consideration of Issues on the Provision of Compensation, which are received both at the applicant’s email address and in the personal account of the Unified State Web Portal of Electronic Services or through the mobile application of the portal «Diya». «The requested information may relate to the provision of certain documents regarding the damaged or destroyed real estate object (technical passport, the above-mentioned consent of the co-owner, an extract from the criminal record, etc.),» explains the head of the law firm SEMPRA LAW.
According to the lawyer, when searching for the optimal mechanism through which it is most realistic to receive financial support — «Diya», ASC, or local governments, you need to think first of all not about what to choose, but about how to collect the most complete package of documents.
The head of the law firm SEMPRA LAW also provided advice on what is important to consider in order to avoid being refused, as the relevant procedure contains almost 15 points regarding the reasons for potential refusals.
Of course, among the above list of grounds for refusing to provide compensation, it is worth highlighting cases when the homeowner tries to independently carry out repairs on the property. «Assistance for the purchase of building materials or ordering repair services will not be available, due to the fact that such actions are an independent ground for refusing to provide compensation,» stated Olga Sydorchuk.
According to the head of the SEMPRA LAW company, until compensation is received for repair work, it is allowed to seal broken windows with protective film and/or remove damaged interior doors, since such work is not considered either major repairs or current repairs.
Like her colleague Oleksiy Kaplunov, Olga Sydorchuk reminds that the lack of information about the damaged object in the State Register of Real Property Rights is another of the most common reasons for refusal. «There are cases when the ownership of the damaged object was acquired before 2013, as a result of which the actual owner (s) has a certificate of ownership, but information about such an object is not entered in the State Register of Real Property Rights, which is also determined as an independent ground for refusal to provide compensation,» she states.
Finally, we would like to summarize that the purpose of this material was to publicize the personal experience of IT workers regarding the «eVidnovlenie» program, as well as to provide a detailed guide to receiving compensation. We do not undertake to judge how representative these reviews are in the general statistics. But the fact that they can be used to trace the weaknesses of «eVidnovlenie» also seems to be beyond doubt.
