The Territorial Recruitment Center fined six months after the deadline for the Military Medical Commission — the court sided with the reservist

The Kelmentsi District Court of Chernivtsi region canceled the decision of the Territorial Recruitment Center and Social Protection to impose a fine of 17 thousand hryvnias on a reservist who was held administratively liable for failing to undergo a repeated medical examination after the cancellation of the "limited fitness" status. The court concluded that the territorial recruitment center missed the legally established deadline for imposing an administrative penalty and also failed to properly prove the legality of the decision made.

Circumstances of the case

The acting head of the TRC in December 2025 issued a decision to hold the reservist administratively liable under Part 3 of Article 210-1 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses (CUAO) and imposed a fine of 17 thousand UAH.

The decision stated that the man had been recognized as limitedly fit for military service before the change in legislation and did not fulfill the legal obligation by June 5, 2025, to undergo a repeated medical examination to determine fitness for military service. According to the TRC, he did not contact either the territorial recruitment center or use the electronic cabinet to obtain a referral to the military medical commission, thereby violating the legislation on mobilization preparation and mobilization.

Disagreeing with the liability, the man appealed to the court demanding the cancellation of the decision.

What the court established

The court noted that according to the law, it is the authority's responsibility to prove the legality of its decision. To hold a person liable under Article 210-1 CUAO, all circumstances indicating the presence of an offense must be established and confirmed.

At the same time, the court pointed out that the case materials lack decisions of the military medical commission, decisions of the TRC, or orders or directives from the head of the TRC regarding the plaintiff's medical examination. The defendant also did not provide such documents to the court. According to the court, these circumstances are important for assessing the legality of holding the person administratively liable.

Meanwhile, the court separately established that the plaintiff, previously recognized as limitedly fit for military service, did not independently contact the TRC or use the electronic cabinet by June 5, 2025, to obtain a referral for undergoing the Military Medical Commission.

The court recognized that the deadlines for imposing the fine were missed

The key to resolving the dispute was the analysis of the deadlines for administrative liability.

The court noted that the obligation to undergo a repeated medical examination was limited to a specific date — June 5, 2025. Therefore, the offense related to failure to fulfill this obligation is not ongoing. The court determined June 5, 2025, as the date of detection of this violation.

According to Part 7 of Article 38 of the CUAO, an administrative penalty for offenses provided for in Articles 210 and 210-1 of the CUAO, committed during a special period, may be imposed within three months from the date of detection, but no later than one year from the date of commission.

However, the TRC issued the fine decision only on December 3, 2025. The court concluded that by this time the three-month period had already expired, and therefore the administrative penalty was imposed outside the deadlines established by law.

The court also noted procedural violations

In addition to missing the deadlines, the court pointed out shortcomings during the consideration of the administrative offense case.

In particular, the defendant did not provide evidence that the requirements of the CUAO regarding clarification of all circumstances relevant to the decision and ensuring the procedural rights of the person held administratively liable were fully observed during the case consideration.

The court noted that the case materials No. 717/2886/25 do not contain proper evidence that the person was given the opportunity to fully exercise their rights, including the right to defense and legal assistance. It was also not proven that the decision was made taking into account all circumstances subject to verification during the case consideration.

Court decision

The Kelmentsi District Court of Chernivtsi region fully satisfied the claim. The court canceled the decision of the TRC to impose a fine under Part 3 of Article 210-1 of the CUAO and closed the administrative offense case.

Thus, the court concluded that the decision to hold the reservist administratively liable was made in violation of the law, in particular after the deadline for imposing the administrative penalty had expired, and the defendant did not prove the legality of its decision with proper evidence.

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