Visa policy of Ukraine
Visitors to Ukraine must obtain a visa from one of the Ukrainian diplomatic missions or online unless they come from one of the visa exempt countries.
Ukraine–European Union relations
EU sanctions against Russia related to its military intervention in eastern Ukraine have been extended until July, 2016. On 1 January 2016, the DCFTA entered into force.On 22 November 2010 the European Council and Ukraine announced "an action plan for Ukraine toward the establishment of a visa-free regime for short-stay travel". This roadmap outlined major improvements in Ukrainian border control, migration and asylum policies. According to "The Wall Street Journal", for the EU, "the visa-free regimes are a key tool for binding their neighbors closer and for advancing reforms in those countries". Negotiations for an amendment to the 2007 Visa Facilitation agreement, which expanded the subset of individuals eligible for simplified visa procedures to include students, NGO representatives and holders of official passports, were finalised in December 2011, and the Visa Facilitation Agreement was ratified by the Verkhovna Rada on 22 March 2013. On 18 April 2013 the European Parliament followed suit, and the European Council finalised the agreement on 13 May 2013. In December 2011 former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych expected negotiations for full visa-free travel to be completed by the end of 2014. The European Commission stated in November 2013 that Ukraine must strengthen its anti-discrimination laws before the visa-free regime is established. The Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine's parliament) adopted the remaining four bills needed for the transition to the second (implementation) phase of the Visa Liberalisation Action Plan in May 2014 (including bills on improving anti-discrimination laws). When addressing MPs before the vote on these bills Verkhovna Rada Chairman and acting President Oleksandr Turchynov predicted then that "the visa-free regime will be introduced by the end of this year". However, Ukraine should have adopted bills that addresses for six conditions needed for the fulfilment of the Visa Liberalization Action Plan before 15 December 2015. On that day the EU will decide whether the country will get the visa-free regime in 2016. In December 2015, the Commission issued a progress report that found that Ukraine met all the conditions for its citizens be granted visa free travel to the Schengen Area. The European Commission formally proposed Ukraine be granted visa free travel in April 2016. This was later delayed by the EU, postponing the possible date of an agreement to September 2016. The Committee of Permanent Representatives gave its approval in November 2016. Visa-free scheme, that will allow Ukrainians with a biometric passport to visit the Schengen Area for a period of stay of 90 days in any 180-day period, would come into force once it is agreed and formally adopted by the European Parliament and the European Council. In December, the EU agreed that European Commission or an EU state will be able to suspend the visa waiver for Ukrainians for up to nine months in case of emergencies such as if "[Ukraine fails] to cooperate in taking back illegal migrants, there’s a spike in the number of asylum applications, or a security issue arises". The visa-free regime deal was agreed by the EU Parliament and Council on 28 February 2017, approved by the MEPs on 6 April and by the European Council on 11 May. It entered into force on 11 June 2017.