The government has updated the regulations governing international bus transportation

The Ministry of Community and Territorial Development of Ukraine has introduced new regulations for international bus transportation, which set deadlines for processing applications submitted through the carrier’s online portal and strengthen oversight of route operations. 

This was announced by Oleksiy Kuleba, Minister of Community and Territorial Development of Ukraine. According to him, these changes are part of a systemic reform and the digitization of procedures, and more than 400 international routes have already been opened and extended through the electronic service.

The new regulations set a clear deadline of up to 30 calendar days for opening, changing, extending, or closing a route, and after coordination with the foreign party, a decision will be made within 10 days. 

Under the updated procedure, carriers will have up to 20 days to correct documents via the online portal, and the permit will be issued within 5 business days. New deadlines have also been established for the route approval process with other countries, which will take up to 6 months with neighboring states and up to 12 months with other partners. The route itself must be launched no later than 90 days after receiving official permission.

To combat inactive routes, the ministry has updated control regulations, under which a carrier is required to operate at least 30% of scheduled flights over a 12-month period. If this requirement is not met, the right to operate the international route will not be extended. Oleksiy Kuleba emphasized that the reform aims to establish transparent rules for businesses, ensure passenger safety, and bring Ukrainian standards closer to those of the European Union.