Housing programme for medical staff in frontline areas

The shortage of medical workers in frontline areas remains one of the key challenges of wartime. In addition to security risks and destroyed infrastructure, the lack of accessible housing remains a decisive deterrent. To address this issue, in 2025 the state introduced a special housing programme for medical workers and, at the end of the year, extended it to frontline regions.

Programme framework

The core document is Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Resolution No. 900 of 16 July 2025, which approved the Procedure for the use of state budget funds for providing housing to medical workers in order to fill vacant positions in rural areas. At the end of 2025, the Government adopted Resolution No. 1791 of 31 December 2025, which introduced systemic changes to this programme and officially extended its application to frontline areas.

Which institutions are covered by the programme

The updated Procedure clearly provides that municipal health care institutions may participate in the programme if they meet one of the following criteria:

1. are located in rural settlements (or have structural/separate subdivisions there);
2. are located in urban settlements of Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, Sumy, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, or Kherson oblasts.

Thus, for the first time at the level of secondary legislation, a territorial approach has been formalised, specifically focused on the regions bearing the greatest pressure as a result of hostilities and population displacement.

Who may be eligible for housing

The programme is aimed at filling vacant positions rather than generally improving the housing conditions of all medical workers. It primarily concerns:

1. doctors in shortage specialties;
2. medical workers recruited for employment for the first time or through transfer;
3. specialists willing to work in the difficult conditions of frontline regions.

Important! Resolution No. 1791 provides that the list of priority institutions and positions is to be approved by the Ministry of Health of Ukraine. This means that access to the programme will be targeted and managed.

Housing requirements

The Procedure sets out detailed requirements for housing that may be financed from state funds:

1. the housing must be located in the settlement of the medical worker’s main place of work;
2. or in nearby settlements (no more than 30 km away);
3. as a general rule, oblast centres and the city of Kyiv are excluded, but exceptions have been made for Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kharkiv, and Kherson;
4. housing may not be located in territories of active hostilities or temporary occupation (according to the official list).
5. the cost of 1 sq. m may not exceed the indicative construction cost determined by the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development, taking into account the following adjustment coefficients:

up to 1.75 for the city of Kharkiv;

up to 1.5 for Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kherson, and large cities;

up to 1.25 for cities of oblast significance (with a population of 100,000–300,000);

the base indicative cost for other settlements.

Example calculation for a 35 sq. m one-room apartment

Maximum price per 1 sq. m = indicative regional cost × coefficient

Maximum apartment price = maximum price per 1 sq. m × 35 sq. m

1) Kharkiv (coefficient 1.75)

Indicative cost for Kharkiv Oblast: UAH 26,678/sq. m

Maximum per 1 sq. m: 26,678 × 1.75 = UAH 46,686.50

Maximum for 35 sq. m: 46,686.50 × 35 = UAH 1,634,027.50

2) Zaporizhzhia / Sumy / Kherson (coefficient 1.5)

Zaporizhzhia Oblast: UAH 24,583/sq. m

Maximum per 1 sq. m: UAH 36,874.50

Maximum for 35 sq. m: UAH 1,290,607.50

Sumy Oblast: UAH 23,812/sq. m

Maximum per 1 sq. m: UAH 35,718.00

Maximum for 35 sq. m: UAH 1,250,130.00

Kherson Oblast: UAH 23,094/sq. m

Maximum per 1 sq. m: UAH 34,641.00

Maximum for 35 sq. m: UAH 1,212,435.00

3) Cities with a population of 100,000–300,000 (coefficient 1.25)

Indicative cost for Dnipropetrovsk Oblast: UAH 24,608/sq. m

Maximum per 1 sq. m: 24,608 × 1.25 = UAH 30,760.00

Maximum for 35 sq. m: UAH 1,076,600.00

4) Other settlements (coefficient 1.0)

Indicative cost for Chernihiv Oblast: UAH 25,413/sq. m

Maximum per 1 sq. m: UAH 25,413.00

Maximum for 35 sq. m: UAH 889,455.00

What to take into account

Housing purchased under the programme has the status of service housing, which means:

1. it is provided for use in connection with the performance of employment duties;
2. the right to use it is directly linked to the position held;
3. if employment relations are terminated, the issue of further use of the housing is resolved separately, in accordance with the terms of the contract and housing legislation.

Thus, the programme is not a privatisation mechanism, but rather a tool for the temporary retention of personnel in critically important regions.

At the same time, the success of the programme’s implementation will largely depend on secondary decisions of the Ministry of Health, the transparency of priority list formation, and the actual availability of budget funding. In 2026, it may become one of the key instruments of state policy to support healthcare in wartime.

If you would like to learn more details or receive free legal aid on another issue, find a lawyer at the link.

This information material has been produced as part of a project implemented by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) with funding from the European Union. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the DRC. Neither the European Commission nor the DRC can be held responsible for the content of this material.