DESS updates the list of clergy exemptions for religious organizations

State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS). Illustration: DESS / dess.gov.ua

On October 8, 2025, the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience (DESS) published an updated list of religious organizations recognized as critical for the functioning of the economy and ensuring the life of the population during a special period.

The list includes 9,216 legal entities – religious organizations that passed the verification process in accordance with the criteria approved by DESS Order No. N-21/11 of February 5, 2025, and registered by the Ministry of Justice. The list features structures of various confessions, including the OCU, as well as Catholic, Protestant, and Eastern religious associations.

Observers note that, once again, the updated list omits organizations belonging to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which traditionally unites a significant portion of the country’s Orthodox faithful. Representatives of the UOC have repeatedly stated that such exclusions reflect a discriminatory approach in the formation of these lists.

Earlier, the UOJ reported Metropolitan Anthony’s statement that the mobilization of UOC clergy constitutes a deliberate desecration of the priesthood.

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