Ukraine introduces a new refund system for train tickets
Kyiv • UNN
Starting May 2, the refund amount will depend on the time remaining until departure. Military personnel using the Armiya+ app will receive a full refund if requested before the train's departure.
Starting May 2, "Ukrzaliznytsia" is introducing new rules for returning tickets for domestic flights. From now on, the refund amount will depend on the time remaining until the train's departure: the later the return, the less money the passenger will receive. This was reported by the carrier's press service, according to UNN.
The relevant order of the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine has passed public consultations and is entering into force. Tickets will be refunded according to a progressive scale starting May 2. This applies exclusively to travel documents for connections within Ukraine,
What this means for the passenger
The percentage of the ticket price subject to refund in case of trip cancellation will change. The closer to the departure date, the larger the portion of the cost that will be withheld.
At the same time, no restrictions are planned for servicemen of the Defense Forces of Ukraine who purchase tickets via Army+: 100% of the cost will be refunded if the ticket is returned before the scheduled departure of the train. Returns of tickets purchased in Army+ are carried out online within the application.
For all other categories of passengers, under the new rules, the refund percentage for flights with a 20-day sales horizon will be as follows:
• 15–20 days before the flight — 100% of the amount is refunded;
• 10–14 days — 95–90% of the amount;
• 9–5 days — 75%;
• 4–1 days — 50%;
• less than 24 hours, but no later than 1 hour after departure — only the cost of the reserved seat (a small part of the train ticket price that certifies the passenger's right to occupy a specific numbered seat in the carriage, i.e., excluding the cost of the actual transportation).
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The new model of differentiated return conditions is based not on a fixed "calendar" period for the sale of travel documents (20 or 14 days), but on the actual period during which the ticket was available for open sale. For this purpose, the model uses a double scale that takes into account exactly when sales were opened for a specific train and how many days remain until departure at the time of the ticket return.
If sales open less than 14 days before departure, as is the case with some flights to frontline cities, the system operates according to an adapted logic. The passenger receives a full refund within the actually available opening period of sales, and financial restrictions are applied only as the train departure date approaches,
For example, if sales are opened with a 10-day horizon:
• returning a ticket 10 days before departure provides a 95% refund of the cost;
• 5–9 days before departure — 75% of the cost;
• 1–4 days — 50% of the cost;
• 24 hours before, but no later than 1 hour after the train's departure, only the ticket cost is refunded, while the reserved seat cost is not refunded.
The main goal of this approach is to encourage more prompt ticket returns immediately after a change of plans, which, in turn, will increase the predictability of passenger traffic for the railway and allow for more efficient management of rolling stock. Vacant seats will return to open sale earlier and become available to other passengers.
Also, the new return rules will become another tool in the fight against scalpers, for whom returning tickets at the last moment will become an unprofitable practice. This will also allow for an increase in railway revenues amid rising costs for restoring rolling stock and infrastructure as a result of regular shelling,