Men with newborn children offered deferment from mobilization - draft law

The Verkhovna Rada has proposed introducing a new basis for deferment from mobilization - having a child under one year of age. The corresponding draft law No. 15541 was registered on August 21.

The document provides for only one key change to Article 23 of the law "On Mobilization Preparation and Mobilization". It is proposed to supplement the list of persons liable for military service who are not subject to conscription during mobilization with the item: "who have a child under 1 year of age".

Thus, if the draft law is adopted, a person liable for military service will be able to use the deferment during the first year of the child's life. It will terminate after the child reaches one year of age.

This means that it is not about guaranteed 12 months from the moment of applying for the deferment. The criterion will be the age of the child - up to one year.

Currently, the birth of a child in itself is not a separate basis for deferment. In the absence of other grounds provided by law, a person liable for military service may be conscripted even after the birth of a child.

The author of the draft law, People's Deputy Oleksiy Honcharenko, in the explanatory note argues the proposal by the need for the father's participation in caring for a newborn child and support for the mother in the postpartum period.

One of the reasons for preparing the document was also a petition registered on the website of the Cabinet of Ministers on July 14, 2026. Its authors proposed granting men a one-year deferment in connection with the birth of a child. At the time of preparation of the draft law, about 2,000 citizens supported the petition.

The explanatory note states that the proposed deferment will not cancel the military duty and will not exempt from military service. It will only temporarily postpone the possibility of conscription during mobilization.

According to the author's assessment, the implementation of the draft law will not require additional expenditures from the state budget. If the document becomes law, the Cabinet of Ministers will have a month to bring regulatory legal acts in line with the new rules.

Currently, the new deferment is not in effect. Draft Law No. 15541 is only registered in the Verkhovna Rada and is to undergo parliamentary consideration.

Based on materials: Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine