On 12 March 2026, Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted the Law “On Ukraine’s Accession to the Convention on International Access to Justice”. This UN convention, concluded on 25 October 1980, has 28 member states, the majority of which are members of the European Union. The convention aims for removing obstacles for private individuals in defending their rights abroad by ensuring equal access to legal aid and simplified procedural requirements.
Accordingly, the decision to accede is not only a further step in international cooperation and the fulfilment of Ukraine’s obligations on the path to accession to the European Union, but also provides Ukrainian citizens with the opportunity to receive free legal aid within the territories of the Convention’s member states on the same terms as citizens of those countries. This is particularly relevant as a number of Ukrainians living abroad, particularly because of Russia’s armed aggression against Ukraine, will finally receive guarantees of protection for their rights in civil, family or commercial disputes.
Scope of application and the principle of non-discrimination
As noted, the main aim of the Convention is to ensure that nationals of a Contracting Party and permanent residents are entitled to legal aid in other Contracting States on the same terms as nationals of that State. This covers both legal costs and legal advice. At the same time, Article 1 of the Convention provides such guarantees only in “civil and commercial matters”, and extends its scope to administrative, social and fiscal ones where these are dealt with by courts having jurisdiction in such matters. According to the Explanatory documentation the interpretation of these types of disputes in the context of the Convention is broad.
Thus, the Convention creates a universal umbrella of protection for individuals in most legal disputes, with the exception of purely criminal proceedings.
Interaction with criminal law: “the right of safe conduct”
Although, as stated above, the Convention does not extend its provisions to criminal matters, it contains a provision that is of decisive importance for criminal proceedings. Article 20 regulates the issue of the so-called “safe conduct” for witnesses and experts. Under this article, a person (a national or permanent resident of a Contracting State) who is summoned to appear in court in another State as a witness or expert may not be prosecuted, detained or subjected to any other restriction on their personal liberty within the territory of that State for acts or convictions that occurred prior to their arrival. This “immunity” takes effect seven days before the date set for the person’s hearing and ceases to apply when, within seven calendar days, their presence is no longer required. This guarantees the person the opportunity to leave the territory voluntarily and return the home State.
Thus, Article 20 provides for three key guarantees: protection from prosecution for criminal offences committed when the person is summoned as a witness or expert to court, a time limit with a ‘safety margin’ and the scope of protection, which extends to all types of offences, from traffic violations to serious crimes.
It is crucial to note that this provision has been the subject of much debate, as it may restrict the powers of pre-trial investigation authorities as well as contradict the principle of universal jurisdiction. In view of this, it would be advisable to include a reservation on this matter (for example, Costa Rica and Morocco have excluded the application of Article 20 of the Convention).
Physical detention and civil arrest (Article 19)
Another provision where the Convention touches upon issues of deprivation of liberty is Article 19, which concerns physical detention. It provides that arrest or detention as a means of enforcing a court decision or as a precautionary measure in civil or commercial matters may not be applied to foreigners (citizens or residents of Contracting States) in cases where they are not applied to their own nationals.
This provision expressly states that it does not apply to any criminal matters. It relates exclusively to obsolete or specific practices of “civil imprisonment” (for example, for debts), which are becoming increasingly rare in modern legal systems.
With regard to the mechanism for implementing and ensuring the effective operation of the Convention, Articles 3–13 provide that each State shall designate a Central Authority to receive requests for legal assistance and transmitting authorities to forward them. Requests shall be submitted using special standard forms in the official language of the requested State, or in English or French if translation into the local language is not possible. The requested State must process the request promptly. No legalisation or similar formalities are required for documents transmitted under the Convention.
In Ukraine, the Central Authority responsible for receiving requests for free legal assistance is the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine. Importantly, there is a reservation regarding Article 7, imposing that Ukraine accepts applications and supporting documents if they are written in Ukrainian or accompanied by a translation into Ukrainian, and reserves the right not to accept documents written or translated into English or French.
Conclusion
Ukraine’s accession to the Convention on International Access to Justice means that the state undertakes to ensure a high level of legal protection for foreigners, receiving in return similar guarantees for its own citizens in dozens of other countries. Although the Convention provides citizens with such guarantees in civil and commercial matters, it also contains criminal-like provisions. At the same time, we consider these provisions, particularly those concerning ‘civil imprisonment’ and full immunity of witnesses or experts from prosecution, to be rather controversial and outdated; we therefore believe that the Convention will be applied primarily as an instrument in civil disputes.
Anastasiia Didenko, Counsel, Head of Anti-Corruption & Compliance, exclusively for CEE Legal Matters.
