How to get a gun permit in 20 minutes: hromadske’s experiment at Kyiv medical facilities

“It is always very pleasant dealing with you”

I searched online for medical facilities that issue such certificates, promising it would take “no more than 30 minutes.” I called. No advance appointment needed, no medical documents or lab tests required. Just two photos and a passport.

The first facility was the medical center “Zvi****i” in the Shevchenkivskyi district. The entire “examination” period — from the moment I entered the center until I walked out with the certificate in hand — took 20 minutes.

At the reception desk, I dictated my personal information, handed over my passport, and paid (700 hryvnias ($16)). The consultant immediately prepared the certificate itself, leaving the fields for doctors’ signatures blank. I was surprised that she could be so sure I would definitely pass the commission and had no contraindications. She gave me a routing sheet. I provided a urine sample for an express drug test.

The first doctor covered three specialties: therapist, ophthalmologist, and otolaryngologist. He asked about chronic illnesses. He showed me two pictures and asked me to name the colors and what was depicted. He did not check my hearing.

The second doctor covered the psychiatrist and, most likely, the narcologist. She also inquired about my illnesses and asked whether I had ever seen a psychiatrist. I spent 90 seconds in her office.

I returned to the reception desk, where a nurse came out and, without handing over any conclusions to me or the desk, informed me that “everything is fine with the tests.” I received a medical certificate of form No. 127/o stating that, based on my health condition, I am allowed to carry and use firearms and special means.

I then headed to the next facility — the medical center “Medsp****y” in Kyiv’s Obolonskyi district. On the homepage of their website, I saw a warning explaining why it is not allowed to obtain medical certificates without seeing doctors and taking tests, and what liability this carries. It was ironic, because it was here that I “passed” a psychiatrist who was not actually present. And from the tests, I only submitted an express drug test.

The examination and paperwork — with the document also prepared immediately — took 18 minutes in total. The same doctor checked both my vision and hearing. Next, I went to a neuropathologist, and then to a family doctor.

I returned to the reception desk, where a ready certificate of form No. 100-2/o — the official document confirming psychiatric examination — was already waiting for me. The specialist brought out the conclusion that there were no drugs in my system. Later, I called to clarify whether the center even has a psychiatrist. They avoided giving a direct answer, saying they issue certificates “based on the tests.”

I also received here a medical certificate of form No. 127/o stating that I have no medical contraindications to obtaining a license for firearms, traumatic, and gas weapons. In total, I paid 1,600 hryvnias ($36) for the two certificates.

Another man came by to pick up some certificate. As he was leaving, he said, “See you next time. It is always very pleasant dealing with you.”

$19 without a doctor's examination

The first step on the path to obtaining a gun license is undergoing a medical examination. It is this step that determines whether a person who wants such a permit has no contraindications — in particular, whether they see and hear well and are mentally healthy.

The main document required is the medical certificate of form No. 127/o. As stated in the order of the Ministry of Health dated October 20, 1999, No. 252, which is still in force, the medical commission must include a therapist, neuropathologist, otolaryngologist, and ophthalmologist.

Mandatory examinations include a general blood and urine test, a blood sugar test, an ECG, examination of visual acuity and visual fields, as well as any additional individual examinations prescribed by the doctors. Of the listed items, only a urine test and a vision check (reading numbers at a distance) were performed in one of the facilities.

Among the documents that must be provided to the medical commission are a certificate confirming completion of a mandatory preventive narcological examination and a certificate regarding registration with a psychiatric facility. Although these documents are required and the certificate cannot be issued without them, neither medical facility asked me for them.

Most psychiatrists in Ukraine who issue such certificates ask almost nothing, and the examination is purely formal, psychiatrist Yevhen Skrypnyk told hromadske. Two other psychiatrists confirmed the same to us but declined to speak publicly. Sometimes, Yevhen Skrypnyk said, such examinations are conducted by nurses instead of doctors to speed up the process.

In practice, a person who has been treated by a psychiatrist in Kyiv can travel to any region of Ukraine and obtain the certificate. They simply need to answer “no” to the question: “Have you ever seen a psychiatrist?” During the examination, we ask about complaints, but if the person says everything is fine, it is realistically impossible to detect a serious mental illness unless there is an obvious exacerbation.Yevhen Skrypnyk, psychiatrist

Moreover, there are websites where such certificates can simply be ordered by mail, and they are issued by real licensed medical centers. I wrote to one of them — without any online consultation with a doctor, they promised to send the certificate within one or two days, cash on delivery.

Psychiatrists do not have a single database to check information about a person requesting a certificate. In addition, the person could have been treated by a private psychiatrist. At best, they can check the records of that particular hospital if the person was a patient there.

“To have a database for every doctor who issues [certificates] — that is unrealistic… What is needed is a thorough psychiatric examination. Perhaps one conversation, then a second conversation with the psychiatrist. And in addition, there should be experimental testing conducted by a clinical psychologist,” Yevhen Skrypnyk added. He also issues certificates confirming psychiatric and narcological examinations.

Because there is no law

The main problem is the absence of a law on weapons in Ukraine, hromadske was told by lawyer Yevhen Fylypets. Legally, there are only the order of the Interior Ministry dated August 21, 1998, No. 622 — the sole normative act regulating the issuance of a gun permit — and the order of the Ministry of Health No. 252, which sets the requirements for the medical certificate.

Unlike the procedure for establishing disability, the issuance of the medical certificate of form No. 127/o does not clearly list the conditions and illnesses that are considered contraindications for a gun license. These normative acts also do not specify a concrete list of medical facilities authorized to issue such certificates or the requirements for those facilities.

From a legal standpoint, clear rules should be established here: which medical facilities can issue such certificates and form medical commissions, and according to what criteria. We do not have that. In our country, you can get such a certificate in half an hour. Thus, the entire permitting procedure, as of today, is regulated solely by several subordinate normative-legal acts. Even the definition of the concept of “weapon” is absent at the legislative level.Yevhen Fylypets, lawyer

The absence of clear rules, in his opinion, directly leads to the situation where almost any medical facility, including private ones, can accept your documents, you pay for the service, and receive a certificate valid for up to three years. At the same time, the normative acts provide no answer to the question of what to do and who is responsible if contraindications appear in a person’s health condition during those three years.

Medical facilities and doctors can be held accountable for issuing certificates without the person actually undergoing an examination. Article 358 of the Criminal Code on document forgery provides for a fine of up to 17,000 hryvnias ($386), arrest for up to six months, or restriction of liberty for up to two years. At the same time, the lawyer said, a serious body of evidence is required here.

The person ordering such a certificate can also face liability if the investigation proves direct intent — that is, that the person knowingly knew about the forgery of the document. Punishment can include a fine (up to 850 hryvnias ($19)), probationary supervision, or restriction of liberty for up to two years. In some cases, “complicity” is charged — essentially, aiding in the commission of a crime by ordering such a certificate.

hromadske sent official inquiries asking whether law enforcement and specialists from the Ministry of Health check medical centers that issue gun-related medical certificates. We are awaiting responses.

In the opinion of lawyer Yevhen Fylypets, serious changes are needed at the legislative level, and the country should finally return to the question of adopting a specialized weapons law to regulate all these problematic issues.

The Interior Ministry is already preparing for this: after the terrorist attack in Kyiv, the ministry initiated expert discussions with the participation of members of parliament, civil society, journalists, and the veteran community to prepare the final version of the bill on civilian weapons.

“This all has to be very thoroughly checked… This is a serious problem, this is a gap… This incident that occurred shows what happens when a weapon ends up in the hands of a person about whom there are doubts whether they are truly capable of understanding their actions — that is, whether they are mentally healthy and do not have all the contraindications to holding a weapon in their hands,” lawyer Yevhen Fylypets concluded.

hromadske is not publishing the full names of the medical centers in this article, but will pass all detailed information and available documents to the National Police.