The ECHR ruled that decisions of the russian occupation authorities to deprive Ukrainian citizens of property rights to land plots in Crimea have no legal consequences. The Court confirmed that the legal owners retained their property rights. This was reported by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, writes UNN.
On July 16, 2026, the European Court of Human Rights issued a ruling in the case of Bazhenov and Others v. Russia and Ukraine (application No. 20092/18 and 11 others), confirming that the decisions of the occupation authorities to deprive citizens of property rights to land plots in Crimea did not create legal consequences, and their legal owners retained their property rights
The case concerned land plots in Sevastopol that were transferred into private ownership in accordance with Ukrainian legislation. After the start of the temporary occupation of Crimea, the russian occupation administration, through its controlled "courts," began to massively cancel property rights to these land plots and return them to state ownership without any compensation.
The ECHR established that the decisions of the occupation "courts" had no legal basis and therefore could not terminate the applicants' property rights. The Court also emphasized that the application of russian legislation on the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea contradicts the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and decisions made on its basis cannot be considered lawful.
Separately, the ECHR noted that the deprivation of property contradicted international humanitarian law, which prohibits the confiscation of private property in occupied territory. Therefore, the applicants remain the legal owners of their land plots.
The ECHR confirmed that the deprivation of property rights in occupied Crimea is an unlawful practice of the occupying state. Such application of russian legislation does not create any legal consequences, and property rights acquired in accordance with Ukrainian legislation remain valid. This is another important step towards holding the Russian Federation internationally legally accountable and protecting the rights of Ukrainian citizens
The ECHR ruling develops the legal conclusions formulated by the Court in the interstate case "Ukraine v. Russia (regarding Crimea)" and confirms that the unlawful application of russian legislation on the temporarily occupied territory does not create legal consequences, and property rights acquired in accordance with Ukrainian legislation are subject to international protection.