Ukraine is actively implementing the state programme ‘Schoolchild’s Package’, which provides for a one-time payment of 5,000 hryvnias for each first-grader. The aid is intended to cover expenses related to preparing children for school, from purchasing stationery to clothing and footwear.
Since the programme’s launch on 18 August, Ukrainian families have submitted over 97,000 applications, representing almost 54% of the number of first-graders registered in the Ministry of Education’s system. Of these, more than 92,000 applications have been successfully verified. Most often, parents apply for assistance online through the Diya app, and a smaller number apply directly to the Pension Fund’s service centres.
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Some of the applications were rejected. The main reasons include families residing abroad or in temporarily occupied territories, children being expelled from school, or discrepancies in state registry data. In such cases, the application can be resubmitted after the information has been clarified.
The ‘Schoolchild Package’ can be received by one of the parents or the legal representative of a child who started school for the first time in 2025. The assistance is calculated for each first-grader in the family and is transferred to the Diya Card or Pension Fund card. The funds can be used within 180 days exclusively in non-cash form in stores that work with the corresponding MCC codes.
The programme will run until 15 November 2025, so families still have plenty of time to submit their applications. Even if a child is enrolled in school after the start of the school year, the payment will still be made.
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