Section
People & Life
Everyday life, work and school. The voices of people connected with Ukraine.
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The Air-Raid Siren Lasts 3 to 5 Minutes; in Kyiv, Alerts Now Come in Yellow and Red
The first sound Ukraine uses to signal danger is a 3-to-5-minute warning tone, “Увага всім,” set out in law. In March 2022, an alert app was built in a single day, and from September 2026, Kyiv split its alerts into yellow and red levels. Shelters fall into five legal categories, treated differently in peacetime and wartime.
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Diia’s E-Passport: Useless at the Border, With No Legal Force Abroad
The e-passport in Ukraine's government app, Diia (Дія), has been legally usable in place of a card-format passport since August 23, 2021. It cannot be used to cross a border, however, and has no legal recognition outside Ukraine. This article covers everything from its QR code that expires after 3 minutes, to logging in from abroad, to the features added in wartime, and the more than 24 million users.
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Designated Activities (1 Year) or Complementary Protection? The Status-of-Residence Procedures for Evacuees
Ukrainians who entered Japan on Temporary Visitor status can change to the employable status “Designated Activities (1 year)” (特定活動（１年）), renewable for as long as the situation in Ukraine is recognized as not having improved. In December 2023, a system for recognizing persons eligible for complementary protection began; once recognized, a person is in principle granted “Long-Term Resident” status. This article walks through where to apply, what documents are needed, deadlines, and where to get advice, following the guidance of the Immigration Services Agency.
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Only Four Hello Work Offices Have Ukrainian Interpreters: Looking for a Job in Japan
The national counter for job hunting in Japan is Hello Work, where both consultation and job placement are free. Ukrainian interpreters are available only at the Employment Service Centers for Foreigners in Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka, and only on set days of the week. This article covers how to tell whether your status of residence allows you to work, what to check in your written working conditions, and which languages are available for phone consultations.
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No Social Security Agreement with Ukraine: Enrolling in Japan’s Health Insurance and Pension
Everyone living in Japan, regardless of nationality, joins either employment-based health insurance or National Health Insurance, and everyone aged 20 to 59 also joins a pension plan. Japan has no social security agreement with Ukraine, so periods of pension enrollment in Ukraine cannot be added to Japan's 10-year requirement. This article covers premiums, exemptions when you cannot pay, and the lump-sum withdrawal payment for when you leave Japan.
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In Ukraine, Addresses Run from Street to Oblast, and Postal Codes Have Five Digits
The elements of an address listed in Ukraine's postal regulations are the name, street and building number, city/raion/oblast, postal code, and country. The postal code has five digits. This article explains the order of lines when sending mail from Japan, the fact that Latin-alphabet spelling is not fixed to one form, and the difference between the state-designated Ukrposhta and the private carrier Nova Poshta, using the regulations and a Universal Postal Union sample.
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Attending School in Japan While Studying Only 6 Ukrainian Subjects
A child attending school in Japan has a path to study only 6 subjects at a Ukrainian school — Ukrainian language, literature, history, and others — and have the rest converted from their Japanese school grades. This article explains the four paths Ukraine's Ministry of Education and Science sets out, the way grades are recognized under a 2025 decision, and why the "All-Ukrainian Online School" is a site for teaching materials, not a school.
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In Ukraine, You Choose Your Family Doctor Regardless of Address and File a “Declaration”
A 2017 law in Ukraine created the "Program of Medical Guarantees," under which the state pays in full for eight kinds of medical care, including emergency care and primary care. Payment is handled by the National Health Service of Ukraine (NHSU), and patients choose their family doctor regardless of address and file a "declaration." This article introduces the 14 reasons a declaration ends, drawn from the law and orders of the Ministry of Health.
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The Ukrainian Mental Health Programme Named After “How Are You?”
Ukraine's "All-Ukrainian Mental Health Programme" is named after "Ти як?" ("How are you?"), the phrase you'd use to ask someone close to you how they're doing. This article traces its growth as a state system — from training for family doctors run jointly with WHO, to the coordination centre the Cabinet of Ministers set up in 2023, to the mental health law that came into operation in February 2026 — and introduces the points of contact the official site provides.
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The JLPT Is Held Twice a Year — Only Once, in December, in Ukraine
The Japanese-Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) has five levels, N1 through N5, and is held twice a year in Japan, in July and December. The fee for the December 2026 test in Japan is 7,500 yen, and registration has already closed. In Ukraine, the test is held only in December, in Kyiv and elsewhere; 223 people sat the test in Kyiv in December 2025 (as of September 2026).