Documents after the MSEK reform
How to restore an MSEK certificate online in Ukraine
Where to apply if the document is lost, what to request from the Pension Fund, and why you don’t need to go through the assessment again
Important: this article is for information only and is not legal or medical advice. It draws on official explanations from the Ministry of Health of Ukraine and the Pension Fund of Ukraine. The procedure for public services and document requirements may change, so before applying we recommend checking the current information on official government resources.
Losing an MSEK certificate does not mean losing the disability status that was granted. Information about the earlier decision is held in state information systems, so in most cases the necessary details can be restored.
Following the reform of the disability assessment system, the procedure for restoring documents has changed. Since 1 January 2025 the medical and social expert commissions — MSEK — no longer carry out assessments. Their role has been taken over by expert teams assessing a person’s everyday functioning.
Certificates and other documents issued by MSEK up to 31 December 2024 nevertheless remain valid and continue to confirm a person’s entitlement to the payments, benefits, services and other guarantees provided by law.
If such a certificate has been lost, its details can be restored.
Can an MSEK certificate be restored online
Partly — yes.
There is currently no separate electronic service in Diia for «downloading a duplicate MSEK certificate».
A person can, however, apply remotely to the Pension Fund of Ukraine requesting a copy of the extract from the MSEK examination report.
This is the route recommended by the Ministry of Health of Ukraine where an MSEK certificate has been lost.
An application to the Pension Fund can be submitted online:
- through a personal account on the Pension Fund’s e-services portal;
- through the electronic application form on the Pension Fund website;
- by email;
- or in person at a local Pension Fund service centre.
The Pension Fund confirms that applications can be submitted remotely through its web portal.
What you receive instead of the lost MSEK certificate
It is important to understand the difference between a «duplicate certificate» and the document you can actually obtain now.
If the MSEK certificate was issued before 1 January 2025 and has been lost, the person can apply to their local Pension Fund office and request:
a copy of the extract from the medical and social expert commission’s examination report.
The Ministry of Health explicitly names this way of restoring information about previously granted disability status.
The extract contains information about the results of the examination on which the disability status was based.
It makes it possible to confirm the details of the earlier MSEK decision in situations where the original document has been lost.
How to restore an MSEK certificate through the Pension Fund online
The easiest starting point is a personal account on the e-services portal of the Pension Fund of Ukraine.
1Log in to the Pension Fund portal
You need to sign in to your personal account.
Sign-in options may include:
- a qualified electronic signature — KEP;
- Diia.Signature;
- ID.GOV.UA.
2Open the applications section
After signing in, find the section: «Communications with the PFU» → «Applications».
It lets you send an official application to the Pension Fund.
3Write the application
You can word it, for example: «I request a copy of the extract from the medical and social expert commission’s examination report, as my MSEK certificate has been lost.»
It is also advisable to give:
- your full name;
- date of birth;
- your taxpayer number (RNOKPP);
- a contact phone number;
- an email address;
- the approximate date disability status was granted;
- the disability group, if you know it;
- the name or location of the MSEK, if you still have that information.
The more precise the starting details, the easier it is to identify the information required.
4Attach any documents you have
If you still have scans, photographs or copies of documents relating to the disability, you can attach them to the application.
For example:
- an old photo of the MSEK certificate;
- an individual rehabilitation programme;
- a pension certificate;
- a medical extract;
- other documents stating the disability group or the MSEK decision.
Having such documents can make the search easier, but not having them does not in itself mean the details cannot be restored.
5Submit the application
Once the form is filled in, send the request and wait for it to be processed in the established way.
An electronic application does not mean the document will instantly be available to download in your personal account. How the copy is provided depends on how the Pension Fund processes the request.
Can you apply to the Pension Fund without a personal account
Yes.
The Pension Fund provides a separate electronic citizens’ application form.
In it you fill in your personal and contact details, describe the substance of your request and attach a file if needed.
You can also contact the Pension Fund by email.
The PFU gives the official address:
The message should include your contact details and set out the substance of the request.
Can an MSEK certificate be restored through Diia
At present there is no separate service for obtaining a duplicate of an old MSEK certificate directly in the Diia app or portal.
So there is no point looking in Diia for a «Restore MSEK certificate» button.
The current main route where an old certificate has been lost is to apply to the local office of the Pension Fund of Ukraine.
Some disability-related public services are indeed available through Diia. When applying for certain statuses, for example, information from an MSEK certificate or from a new expert team extract may be used.
Can you apply in person
Yes.
If the online route is inconvenient, go to your local office of the Pension Fund of Ukraine.
The Ministry of Health states directly that, where an MSEK certificate has been lost, a person may apply to the local Pension Fund office for a copy of the extract from the MSEK examination report.
It is advisable to bring:
- your passport or ID card;
- your taxpayer number;
- any disability documents you have;
- documents containing details of the earlier MSEK decision.
Can you apply to the social protection authority
Yes.
The Ministry of Health also states that where MSEK documents have been lost a person may apply:
- to the social protection authority;
- or to the local office of the Pension Fund of Ukraine.
MSEK documents issued up to the end of 2024 retain legal force.
Social protection authorities hold information on people with disabilities and previously used data from the Centralised Disability Database.
They can therefore also help confirm details of the group and cause of disability granted earlier.
What if the MSEK certificate was issued in temporarily occupied territory
If documents were lost during evacuation, relocation or hostilities, or remained in temporarily occupied territory, this does not mean the person has to start the whole disability assessment process from scratch.
The Ministry of Health advises contacting the social protection authorities or the Pension Fund to restore information about the disability status granted earlier.
If medical records have been lost as well, see your family doctor or another primary care physician.
The doctor can retrieve the available medical information through the Electronic Health Care System and, where necessary, order further examinations.
Do you have to go through the assessment again if the certificate is lost
Losing the paper certificate is not in itself a reason for disability status to be established again.
If disability status was granted and the decision remains in force, the lost paper document can be restored through state information systems.
This matters particularly for people whose disability status was granted indefinitely.
The Ministry of Health explains that where status was granted indefinitely there is no need to undergo re-assessment merely because of the reform. Documents issued earlier remain in force.
What to do if the MSEK certificate is indefinite
If disability status was granted indefinitely, losing the certificate does not cancel that decision.
Apply to the Pension Fund for a supporting document.
There is no need for a new assessment simply because the paper certificate has been lost.
The earlier decision continues to apply in accordance with the law.
Are old MSEK certificates still valid after 2025
Yes.
This is a fundamental point after the reform.
All MSEK documents, decisions and certificates issued up to 31 December 2024 remain in force.
They can still be used to confirm entitlement to:
- a pension;
- social assistance;
- benefits;
- compensation;
- social services;
- other guarantees provided by law.
There is no need to exchange a valid MSEK certificate for a new document merely because MSEK has been abolished.
What changed on 1 January 2025
Since 1 January 2025 MSEK has been replaced in Ukraine by a system of assessing a person’s everyday functioning.
Decisions are made by expert teams working in healthcare facilities.
People granted disability status after 1 January 2025 therefore no longer receive the familiar MSEK certificate.
Instead they receive an extract from the decision of the expert team assessing everyday functioning.
What the new document looks like
Once the assessment has been carried out, the person is sent an electronic extract from the expert team’s decision.
It contains information on:
- the results of the assessment;
- whether disability status was granted or refused;
- the disability group;
- the period, where one has been set;
- other decisions made by the expert team.
Where disability status is granted, the person also receives the corresponding recommendations, which form part of the individual rehabilitation programme.
Where the new extract is sent
After the assessment the extract is sent:
- to the person’s email address;
- to the treating doctor through the electronic system;
- or by registered post, if no email address was given.
At the patient’s request the treating doctor can print the extract and certify it with the facility’s stamp.
What to do if the new expert team extract is lost
If disability status was granted after the reform and what has been lost is not an MSEK certificate but the electronic extract from the expert team, the procedure is different.
Start by checking the email address given when you were referred for assessment.
The document is sent as a PDF signed with the electronic seal of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine. Such a PDF has the legal force of an electronic document.
If there is no electronic file, contact the doctor who referred you for assessment.
The treating doctor has access to the assessment results in the electronic system and can print the extract at the person’s request.
This is no longer a matter of restoring an MSEK certificate, since after 1 January 2025 decisions are issued in a different form.
An MSEK certificate and a pension certificate are different documents
These two are often confused as well.
The MSEK certificate
Confirmed the decision on the group, cause and period of disability.
The pension certificate
Confirms that a pension has been awarded.
Replacing a pension certificate is therefore not the same as restoring the information from an MSEK decision.
If it is the pension certificate that has been lost, there is a separate procedure for it.
The Pension Fund allows a new pension certificate to be ordered either in person or online through its web portal or mobile app.
What to do if the document is needed for prosthetic provision
When applying for a prosthesis or other assistive rehabilitation devices, not having the old paper MSEK certificate does not mean a person has lost their entitlement to support.
The supporting information needs to be restored through the relevant state authority, and it is worth checking which documents are required for that particular procedure.
Since the reform, disability and rehabilitation documents are gradually moving to electronic format, so different situations may involve:
- a previously issued MSEK certificate;
- an extract from the MSEK examination report;
- an extract from the expert team’s decision;
- recommendations forming part of the individual rehabilitation programme;
- data from state information systems.
If all medical documents have been lost
This happens particularly often after evacuation, hostilities or forced relocation.
Two kinds of documents need to be separated.
Disability documents
To restore information about granted disability status, apply to the Pension Fund or the social protection authority.
Medical records
If what has been lost is:
- discharge summaries;
- test results;
- records of operations;
- medical reports;
- rehabilitation recommendations,
see your family doctor or another primary care physician. The doctor will check the information held in the electronic health care system and, if necessary, order examinations to reconstruct the medical records.
Frequently asked questions
Can an MSEK certificate be downloaded through Diia?
There is currently no separate Diia service for downloading a duplicate of an old MSEK certificate.
To restore the details you need to apply to the Pension Fund of Ukraine or the social protection authority.
Can an MSEK certificate be restored entirely online?
An official application to the Pension Fund can be submitted remotely through a personal account, the electronic form or by email.
This is not, however, an instant automatic duplicate download. The PFU has to process the application and then provide the information or document.
What should I ask the Pension Fund for?
If an old MSEK certificate has been lost, the Ministry of Health advises requesting a copy of the extract from the medical and social expert commission’s examination report.
Does disability status have to be established again?
No, if the only problem is the loss of the document and the disability status granted earlier remains in force.
What if disability status is indefinite?
Apply to the PFU to have the supporting information restored. A new assessment is not required merely because the certificate has been lost.
Is an old-style MSEK certificate still valid?
Yes. MSEK documents issued up to 31 December 2024 remain in force after the reform.
What is issued instead of an MSEK certificate now?
Since 1 January 2025 an extract from the decision of the expert team assessing everyday functioning is issued.
Where can I get the new extract if the file is lost?
Check your email. If the document is not there, contact the doctor who referred you for assessment. The doctor can retrieve the extract in the electronic system and print it at your request.
A short algorithm for restoring an MSEK certificate
If the certificate was issued before 1 January 2025
What to do:
- Apply to your local office of the Pension Fund of Ukraine.
- Request a copy of the extract from the MSEK examination report.
- The application can be submitted remotely through the PFU web portal.
- If needed, you can also approach the social protection authority.
- There is no need to go through the disability assessment again merely because the document was lost.
If disability status was granted after 1 January 2025
What to do:
- You should not have an MSEK certificate at all.
- The document you need is the extract from the expert team’s decision.
- Check the email address you gave when you were referred for assessment.
- If the document has been lost, contact the doctor who referred you.
- The doctor can retrieve the extract through the electronic system and print it at your request.
In short
Losing an MSEK certificate does not cancel disability status granted earlier.
If the document was issued before 2025, it retains legal force. Where it has been lost, the Ministry of Health of Ukraine advises applying to the local Pension Fund office for a copy of the extract from the MSEK examination report.
The application to the PFU can be submitted online, so in many cases the process can be started without visiting a government office.
If disability status was granted after 1 January 2025, there is no MSEK certificate to restore: the document used instead is the electronic extract from the decision of the expert team assessing everyday functioning.