In early 2026, the Ukrainian government unveiled a new wave of veterans’ support programmes, alongside plans to expand existing ones. We look at what has already been done—and what still remains to be delivered for Ukraine’s defenders.
Nation of veterans
At the start of the fifth year of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, the tone of public debate has shifted markedly. Throughout 2025, there were repeated attempts to broker a peace deal—largely driven by US mediation. Now, the mood is changing. More voices are openly acknowledging that the war could drag on for years, with MP Oleksandr Merezhko even saying Ukraine is prepared to keep fighting for another decade.
However long the war lasts, one reality is already clear: Ukraine has become a country of veterans. According to the Unified State Register of War Veterans, more than 1.3 million people held combatant status as of October 2025. The Ministry of Veterans Affairs estimates that after the war ends and demobilisation begins, the number of people falling under veterans policy—including veterans, their families and the families of the fallen—could reach 5 to 6 million. And over time, that figure is only expected to rise.
2026 Initiatives
Ukraine’s veterans policy rests on three pillars: rehabilitation—covering medical and psychological care—employment support, including programmes for veteran-run businesses, and the redesign of public and private spaces to improve accessibility, particularly for those with disabilities. Alongside this, the government is trying to cut through the bureaucracy that often stands in the way of accessing support.
The spending trajectory tells its own story. Funding for veterans policy reached UAH 12.6 billion in 2025 and is set to rise to around UAH 18.9 billion in 2026—an increase of roughly 50%. Even so, it remains a relatively small slice of the budget. By comparison, education spending is projected to hit UAH 265 billion.
At a Cabinet meeting in February 2026, Prime Minister Yuliya Svyrydenko made the government’s pitch clear: helping veterans find their place in civilian life. The goal, she said, is to ensure that those who have devoted their time, energy and health to defending the country have not only access to benefits, but also real career options in both the public and private sectors.
Since the start of the year, the government has rolled out a series of new support programmes to back that effort, according to the government’s official newspaper Uryadovy Courier.
The government’s flagship “Veteran. Work” programme for 2026–2027 is aimed at one of the most pressing issues for returning soldiers: how to actually re-enter civilian life and the labour market. It brings together retraining, vocational rehabilitation and job placement, while also trying to open up longer-term career paths after military service. At the centre of it is the “Veteran’s Career” digital platform, which already lists more than 65,000 vacancies, connects over 3,000 registered veterans and brings together nearly 1,000 employers.
At the same time, Kyiv is expanding housing support. Rent compensation is now available to veterans who have lost or damaged their homes in temporarily occupied territories, as well as to internally displaced veterans without property, and those returning from captivity whose homes remain under Russian control.
Another focus is on support at the local level. In 2026, 15 communities will receive state funding to set up dedicated veterans’ centres—spaces where veterans and their families can access advice, services and help with reintegration into everyday life.
Ukraine’s government is also betting on entrepreneurship. A new “Special Veteran Entrepreneur” status is meant to give veterans easier access to financial support, grants and other tools to start and grow their own businesses. These programmes, along with earlier initiatives, are now brought together on the “Veteran PRO” platform.
In comments to The Ukrainian Week, Kostiantyn Denysov—a veteran of the Russian-Ukrainian war and former head of the Ministry of Veterans Affairs department in the Zaporizhzhia region (2020–2023)—offered a more sceptical take on the government’s latest initiatives.
“Today, there are various state programmes aimed at social adaptation and vocational rehabilitation for veterans after their service—training, retraining and so on—but they fail to take into account the skills veterans actually gained during the war,” he said. “That’s particularly true when it comes to operating drones and unmanned ground vehicles (UGV). The state may cover drone training, but there is still no mention of UGVs. The same applies to experience driving lorries, buses or minibuses. Current programmes do not give veterans the opportunity to develop in these professions, even though there is already a shortage of such drivers on the market—and salaries are high. In reality, it is very unlikely that a veteran will be able to access support for this kind of training.”
Denysov is also critical of the government’s approach to rent compensation. “Such support is only available with an official tenancy agreement, which is still more the exception than the rule,” he said. “That makes the programme unlikely to be effective. A better solution would be to introduce lower tax rates on the income of veterans and their families who are building their own homes using their own funds.”
On plans to fund new veterans’ centres at the local level, Denysov argues the government may be duplicating existing efforts.
“For several years now, the state has been investing in a comprehensive social service aimed at strengthening resilience in local communities,” he said. “The 2026 budget allocates UAH 1 billion for this, delivered through so-called resilience centres.” As of September 2025, 326 such centres were already operating across Ukraine, with plans to expand the network to more than 400 in 2026. “These centres can already provide psychological and social support to veterans,” he added, “without the need to fund entirely new spaces.”
He takes a similarly critical view of support for veteran entrepreneurs. “Right now, this status is little more than a label,” Denysov said, referring to the “Special Veteran Entrepreneur” designation, despite the law adopted on July 31, 2025 (No. 4563-IX). “Veterans still lack meaningful tax or credit incentives. Financial support is largely limited to grants from the Public Employment Service and the Ukrainian Veterans’ Foundation.” In his view, real progress would require a shift towards targeted incentives, particularly in sectors seen as strategic for the economy. He also points out that existing legislation—the 1993 law on the status and social protection of war veterans—already предусматриes income tax benefits for veteran-owned businesses, but these provisions have yet to be incorporated into the Tax Code, leaving them effectively unenforced.
Ukraine’s future, with veterans at its core
Whenever the war ends, bringing veterans back into civilian life will be one of the defining challenges of Ukraine’s post-war future. With many non-conscripted Ukrainians having left the country, veterans and their families will make up an increasingly large share of the population. What matters now is whether they are given a real chance to take part in rebuilding the country’s post-war future—whether by starting businesses or returning to their professions.
If that doesn’t happen, the consequences could be serious. Veterans who see no prospects at home may simply leave, adding to a new wave of emigration. Just as importantly, they shouldn’t have to “fight” the state for support once the war is over. The system needs to be simpler, faster, and stripped of the bureaucracy—and corruption—that still too often stands in the way of access to assistance.
At its core, this is about how the state sees its veterans. Not as passive recipients of aid, but as drivers of economic development—working, paying taxes, and forming a key pillar of Ukraine’s post-war future.
