The summons can be handed over by employees of the territorial center of procurement and social support or by representatives of local self-government bodies and internal affairs bodies.

The approved form of the summons stipulates that it must be issued to a specific person by the head of the territorial recruitment and social support center (former military commissars).

Is it legal to serve a summons in a public place?

Many citizens are concerned about the question of whether it is legal to serve a summons in a public place.

As Yury Melnyk, a lawyer at the Miller law firm, explains, handing out summonses in public places is legal, but issuing summonses on the street is not. 

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Subpoenas must be issued to a specific person at the collection center.

All those stamped subpoenas, stopping people for document checks, writing the name on the spot and trying to serve the subpoena on that person are actually illegal.

They can be considered forgery and call the police.

Law enforcement officers must record the fact of appeal and illegal actions, take an explanation.

In the future, such a recorded statement and explanation can serve as evidence during an appeal against the service of the summons," says the lawyer.

In the case of serving a summons for some offense, for violating traffic rules, for example, the same principle applies.

According to lawyers, if a summons is issued in your name immediately at the scene of the offense, it is illegal.

Is it possible to refuse a summons?

According to Artem Krykun-Trush, an employee of the "PwC Legal" bar association, you can always refuse to receive a summons and sign for receiving it, but you will have to pay a fine.

If a summons is served in a public place and the

data is entered in a blank form with the signature of the head of the picking center, it must be explained that this is illegal.

In case of refusal to receive a summons, representatives of the picking center can draw up an act of refusal to receive a summons in the presence of witnesses.

You are also not obliged to write or sign anything in this act.

If the act is drawn up, the case will be considered by the head of the procurement center, who can charge a fine from UAH 850 to UAH 1,700 for violating the rules of military accounting (Article 210 of the Code of Administrative Offenses).

The imposition of such a fine can be appealed in a local court.

In court

, the picking center will prove that you violated the accounting rules: it is for this (and not for refusing the summons) that a fine is provided.

There is no penalty for refusal.

At the time of delivery of the summons, the representative of the picking center does not yet know whether you are violating the accounting rules or not.

  • If you have moved to a new place of residence, you must unregister and register for a new one within seven days.

  • If you are an internally displaced person from the occupied territories, you must register for the military at your new place of residence, regardless of whether you unregistered at home: often this is simply impossible due to occupation and hostilities.

  • You need to inform your picking center about life changes and relocations.

If you violate the mentioned accounting rules, you are subject to administrative liability.

And if you are not an IDP, but only passing through a certain settlement, then there is no reason to prosecute you for violating the rules of military registration there," explains Artem Krykun-Trush.

In this case, it will be difficult for the recruiting center to prove a crime — information about whether you have been deregistered is available only at your previous center, and military commissariats do not exchange data.

Criminal liability for evasion of military registration can be applied not for the first violation of registration, but only after a warning by the head of the procurement center, when you did not appear on the summons to clarify the registration data.

According to Article 336 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, a sentence of 3 to 5 years can be imposed for evading conscription for military service during mobilization in the event that you have clarified your credentials, passed a medical examination, you have already been served with a summons for conscription, but you did not come to the picking center at the specified time.

If the summons is filled out with errors

The summons to the military commissariat must include the full name of the conscript, an order to appear at the recruitment center with the signature of the military commissar, a seal, and in the lower part - a place where the person receiving the document must sign.

Some subpoenas may have different wordings, some recruitment centers write "I suggest to appear", and others "order".

The subpoena can be refused if it does not contain all personal data, or if it is filled out with errors.

If errors are found in the summons, you can refuse to sign it.

Then the employee of the military commissariat will be obliged to draw up an act of refusal to receive in the presence of witnesses.

The act is transferred to the picking centers, which must correct the errors.

Read also:

  • Can they serve a summons through relatives, receive a mobilization order at checkpoints

  • Who cannot be compulsorily mobilized, who has the right to postponement: a complete list