Ühiskaart is an electronic contactless public transport card, which can be used all over Estonia on urban and long-distance lines.

With a travelcard, you can identify your right to travel on public transport, use the travel discount, load tickets on it and buy tickets with the money on the card. You can buy your card at points of sale and in Omniva's online shop. It costs €2. If you lose your card, you will need to purchase and personalize it again. You can personalize it for free here.

The personalisation of the single card gives you the possibility to benefit from travel rewards, most of which are automatically transferred to the card.

Find out more about the card on the ticket information website. 

Travel Planning

Train: https://elron.ee/

Public Transport: https://web.peatus.ee/

Public Transport in Tallinn and Harjumaa: https://transport.tallinn.ee/

Public Transport in Tartu: https://tartu.pilet.ee/timetables

Intercity Bus Travel in Estonia, LuxExpress: https://luxexpress.eu/

Intercity Bus Travel in Estonia: https://www.tpilet.ee/

Congress of Ukrainians in Estonia (EUK) 

The EUK is aimed at preserving Ukrainian culture and the national identity of the Ukrainian community in Estonia. The EUK has established close contacts with Ukraine – with state structures as well as local authorities, universities, social organisations, and Ukrainian organisations around the world. 

Contact: ukr.est.congress@gmail.com, tel (+372) 523 2275, Facebook page

Ukrainian Cultural Centre  

Contact: www.ukk.ee, tel (+372) 5650 2572, email: labora.tallinn@gmail.com  

Ukraina Оrganisatsioonide Assotsiatsioon Eestis (UOAE) 

The UOAE has 13 member organisations. The organisation has three Sunday schools in Tallinn, Valga and Tapa. 

Contact: info@ukraine.ee, ukrainaoae@gmail.com, tel (+372) 55659763.

International Women’s Network in Estonia 

Organization of Ukrainian Culture Days at Põhjala factory, Tallinn, Estonia

Read more about the organisation on their Facebook page.

Ukrainian Day Center in Tallinn and Pärnu

A safe and child-friendly meeting place is provided for those who have arrived in Estonia, where children can play with their peers daily, and adults can participate in regular community gatherings. In addition, psychological assistance is available through individual and group therapy. You can find a more detailed description of activities here: https://usf.ee/

Ukrainian Women's Union in Estonia

NGO Ukrainian Compatriots Association in Estonia

NGO Ukrainian House in Tartus 

Narva Ukraina Kaaslaskond (Narva Ukrainian Community)

The Ukrainian compatriot community "Vodograi" in Sillamäe 

Many municipalities support the participation of children and young people living in their area in recreational activities by (partly) compensating parents for the cost of their child's recreational, exercise or similar activities with a sports, recreational or other subsidy. Find out more about this on the website of your local authority. 

If you have some expenses, such as tuition fees, and you are 18 or younger, one of the parents can deduct it from their income for the previous year when filling in the income tax return. You can find out more about this on the website of the Tax and Customs Board.

You can find a list of activities and events available in Tallinn here.

Keep an eye on your local authority's website or Facebook page for more information on activities. In smaller towns, keep up to date with what's on at the community centre and library. 

Information about exciting activities in your area can be found from the community coordinators of the Estonian Refugee Council.

Youth activities in Tallinn: Sofja Popova sofja.popova@pagulasabi.ee 

Theatre

You can find a brief overview of the theatres in Estonia on the website of the Estonian Theatre Agency, where you can also find the programme of Estonian theatres.

Museum

You can find a list of museums in Estonia on the Museum Map webpage.

Tourism

In order to find a list of hiking trails and other nature tourism opportunities managed by RMK, as well as nature-related events across Estonia, visit the Together with Nature webpage.

Estonia's official tourism information webpage Visit Estonia gives an overview of a wide range of events and opportunities around Estonia. 

Library services

Libraries offer the following services:

• borrowing books for home use;
• using books on site in the reading room;
• searching for information on the Internet and using computers;
• use of e-schools.

Libraries organise a range of digital courses, offer the chance to play board games, practise a language or take part in exciting events. 

Find a library near you and find out what's on offer! 

Order a book to your home

You can search for books in libraries all over Estonia and order them to your home via the MIRKO portal.

Tallinn Central Library opportunities for Ukrainian refugees

All Ukrainian war refugees who present an identity document when registering as a reader will receive: 

• a free loyalty card; 
• use of computers and WiFi; 
• use study computers for distance learning, teleworking, communicating with family and friends;
• print, scan and make copies free of charge of documents needed to communicate with the government, to look for work and study opportunities, up to a total of 20 pages per week (from the 21st page onwards, the service is subject to a fee);
• read the news, newspapers and magazines (in Estonian, Russian, English and other languages);
• borrow books in different languages; use e-libraries such as OverDrive, which also has Ukrainian-language literature;
• use group rooms to meet friends and study together;
• answers to your requests for information, advice on services provided by the Estonian state;
• take part in training courses and language cafés, including online. Find a free language café here;
• use the sewing room and the innovation lab;
• borrow board games, instruments, tools, sports equipment and seeds for planting;
• meet foreigners living in Estonia at the Foreign Language Literature Department (Liivalaia 40) through monthly cultural exchange events;
• participate in library events, including online.

Tallinn Central Library offers exciting activities for young people. The circles take place in the main library as well as in branch libraries across Tallinn. Find out more here. 

Special services are available for elderly library users, read more about this here.

For more information contact: vko@tln.lib.ee, tel (+372) 683 0961

Consumer Disputes Committee

The Consumer Disputes Committee (CDC) is an independent and impartial body for the settlement of consumer disputes, which has the competence to settle consumer disputes arising from a contract between a consumer and a trader, where all consumers who have a complaint against a trader registered in Estonia can take part in the dispute.

In the first instance, the consumer must complain to the trader if he has a complaint about a product or service he has bought. The trader is obliged to reply within 15 days. Only if the trader fails to reply or the customer and the service provider cannot reach an agreement can you refer the consumer dispute to the Consumer Disputes Committee.

More information can be found on the website of the Consumer and Technical Surveillance Authority. 

Estonian LGBT Association

Psychological and experiential counselling in Estonian, Russian and English. You can talk about topics such as sexual and gender identity, coming to terms with yourself, coming out of the closet, relationships with loved ones and school or work. Read more here. 

Estonian Human Rights Centre

The Estonian Human Rights Centre (EHRC) is an independent non-governmental human rights organisation established in 2009. The Estonian Human Rights Centre (EHRC) is an independent, non-governmental organisation that aims to create an Estonia that respects the human rights of every human being. The Centre's vision for the year 2025 is that Estonia is an open society where human rights are important and guaranteed by the state, and where everyone knows that their rights and the rights of others deserve protection. Read more here.

The Gender Equality and Equal Treatment Comissioner 

The Comissioner is an independent and impartial official who advises and assists anyone who feels they have been discriminated against. 

If you suspect that you have been discriminated against on the basis of gender, age, nationality, skin colour, religion, beliefs, disability, sexual orientation, parenting, family responsibilities, or trade union membership, you share your concerns with the Commissioner. Please contact the office in writing or arrange an appointment.

Together we will find a solution! The Commissioner monitors compliance with the requirements of the Gender Equality Act and the Equal Treatment Act, as well as supervises both the public and private sector. If you are seeking redress for discrimination, the Commissioner will assist you with legal action or referral to the labour dispute committee. The Commissioner does not impose any penalties or determine any compensations himself. 

Read more about it here.

Chancellor of Justice

Protection of fundamental rights

The Chancellor of Justice protects people from the arbitrariness of public authorities and officials and checks that institutions performing public tasks do not violate the rights and freedoms of people arising from the constitution in their activities.

Rights of children and young people

The Chancellor of Justice performs the tasks of the children's ombudsman. The children's ombudsman protects children's rights in relations with people and institutions performing public duties.

Rights of disabled people

The Chancellor of Justice stands up for all disabled people being able to exercise their basic rights and freedoms on an equal basis with others.

Read more about the activities of the Chancellor of Justice here.

It's a good idea to see a debt counsellor before your debts get out of hand, but they can certainly help if you are in financial difficulties. It is a counselling service, no material assistance is provided.

Debt counselling consists of debt management advice: from mapping your debts to developing and implementing an action plan, but also preventive action, i.e. financial counselling (including income and expenditure analysis, family budgeting, teaching you how to manage and avoid debt).

To get access to a debt counsellor, contact the social department of the municipality where you live. You can read more on the website of the Estonian Debt Counsellors' Association. The organisation of the service in Tallinn is described here.

Speech and language therapist 

The provision of speech and language therapists for children in Estonia is the responsibility of local authorities, and many children's speech and language therapists work in schools, kindergartens and educational support centres. 

In addition, there are speech therapists specialising in working with children in speech clinics and hospitals. However, waiting times for children to see a speech therapist can be long, so it is important that parents also have access to initial information to assess the age-appropriateness of their child's speech and to the necessary speech training resources. Read more about speech therapy here. 

The Health Insurance Fund reimburses children's visits to a speech therapist at the Health Insurance Fund's contractual partners.  

If your child's educational institution does not have a speech and language therapist, or if your child's concerns have already been addressed, but you need further advice, an impartial assessment or a decision on how to adapt your child's educational pathway, contact Rajaleidja.

Identification of disabilities 

The severity and type of disability is established to determine the level of need of people with special needs. To do this, an application must be submitted to the Social Insurance Board. You can read more about disability assessment and how to apply here. You can also submit your application via the Social Insurance Board's self-service.

Children with special needs

The City of Tallinn offers a wide range of services for children with special needs, such as assistance, respite for his or her carer and more. Find out more here. 

For information about services and support, contact the social welfare department of the place where you live.

Social rehabilitation

Social rehabilitation is for all people with disabilities and people with partial work capacity (who are not working, studying or registered as unemployed) or with a disability. Through this service, the person and his/her family learn how to cope with the special needs of their daily life.

Social rehabilitation is a complex service, i.e. a person has several problems that cannot be solved by single services (e.g. psychologist, support worker, rehabilitation) but require the intervention of several specialists (rehabilitation team). Read more here and here. 

You can find the services provided by the City of Tallinn for people with special needs here.

Work rehabilitation

Work-related rehabilitation is for people who have a number of barriers due to a disability or illness and who therefore need the help of a rehabilitation team of specialists to get or keep working. Read more here.

Getting Married 

If both parties intending to marry have their marital status registered in the population register and have lived in Estonia for at least 6 months immediately before submitting the marriage application, they can submit the application to the local municipality in the county center either electronically through the e-population register or in person with a joint application. 

Additionally, it is necessary to submit documents and pay the state fee. More detailed information about the documents can be found here. 

If a foreigner wishes to marry in Estonia, they must prove that they have a legal basis for staying in Estonia as specified by the Aliens Act. The foreign national must also provide a certificate of legal capacity to marry, which confirms that there are no legal obstacles to marrying according to the law of their country of residence. This certificate must be issued by the competent authority of the foreign national's country of residence or citizenship and must confirm that the individual has no obstacles to marriage under the laws of their residence or citizenship country. 

The certificate must be valid on the day of marriage. If the foreigner is unable to present the certificate for valid reasons, they may apply to the county court for permission to marry without the certificate in the jurisdiction where they wish to marry.

Divorce 

A marriage can be dissolved by mutual agreement of the spouses at the local municipality in the county center, at the Tallinn Family Affairs Office, or with a notary if both spouses' residence is registered in Estonia. If at least one spouse does not live in Estonia according to the population register, the marriage is dissolved by a notary. If the spouses dispute the divorce or related circumstances, the marriage will be dissolved in court. 

Documents submitted to the civil registry authority must be in Estonian, Russian, or English. If documents are translated, the translation must be done by a sworn translator. Any foreign documents relevant to the divorce must be legalized or confirmed with an apostille, unless otherwise stipulated by an international agreement. 

A marriage is dissolved in court if the spouses dispute the divorce or related circumstances, or if the civil registry authority is not competent to dissolve the marriage. One of the spouses may submit a corresponding lawsuit to the court and justify the grounds for divorce (the marriage relationship has irreversibly ended). The lawsuit form can be found here.

Registration of Birth 

In Estonia, a child's birth is registered if the child is born in Estonia, at least one parent lives in Estonia, or both parents are Estonian citizens. 

The application for birth registration can be submitted to any local municipality (in Tallinn, to the Family Affairs Office). The application must be submitted by the child's legal representative, i.e., a parent or guardian, within one month after the child's birth, in person at the civil registry authority. The civil registry authority will register the birth within seven working days of receiving the registration application. 

If the father knows in advance that he will not be able to submit the birth registration or acknowledgment of paternity application within that time, he can submit the corresponding declaration of intent before the child's birth. In this case, he must also consent to the name given to the child. More information about the required documents can be found here.

Naming the Child 

The child is given a first name and surname by mutual agreement of the parents. Up to three separate first names or two hyphenated names can be given as a first name. The first name must align with good customs and correspond to the person's gender. It should not contain numbers or non-verbal symbols, nor can it form a well-known name when combined with the surname. 

An exception may be made if the child or the child's parents have a personal connection to a non-Estonian naming tradition due to their citizenship, family relationships, ethnicity, or other circumstances, and the requested name aligns with that tradition. For the surname, the common surname of both parents or the surname of a single parent can be given. If the parents have different surnames, the child will receive one parent's surname. Twins will have the same surname. A child cannot be given a surname composed of both parents' names.

Residents must submit an income declaration for income received in the previous calendar year. 

The most convenient way to submit the income declaration is through the e-services platform e-MTA. 

An individual is considered a resident if their permanent residence is in Estonia or if they stay in Estonia for at least 183 days over 12 consecutive calendar months. An Estonian diplomat stationed abroad is also considered a resident. An individual is regarded as a resident from the day they arrive in Estonia. 

A resident must notify the Tax and Customs Board of any change in residency status and complete the residency determination form R. 

Further details on tax laws can be found in Riigi Teataja. 

Additional information regarding income declaration can be found here.

Inheritance Acceptance

By accepting an inheritance, the heir assumes the deceased's rights and obligations, including liabilities to the Tax and Customs Board. 

To identify the heirs, an application to initiate inheritance proceedings must be submitted to a notary. This application can be submitted by a rightful heir, the deceased's creditor, or any interested party.

An individual who is entitled to inherit but wishes to decline the inheritance must also submit a declaration to the notary. The deadline for refusing an inheritance is limited to 3 months from the date the heir became aware (or should have become aware) of the deceased's death and their inheritance rights. If the entitled person fails to submit a refusal within this period, they are considered to have accepted the inheritance and have officially become an heir.

Inherited Tax Obligations

Inherited tax obligations include tax debt, interest debt, claims for damages, and civil claims to the Estonian Tax and Customs Board.

For more detailed information on inheritance proceedings, please see here.

Cross-border inheritance matters

If someone from your family or a close relative passes away and you are the heir, you can usually handle your inheritance matters (legally referred to as inheritance) by following specific legal procedures:

• resolve inheritance matters in the court of the EU Member State where the deceased last resided; 
• through a notary in any EU Member State.

The authority handling inheritance matters usually applies the law of the country where the deceased last lived, unless the deceased chose the law of their country of citizenship to govern their estate.

For more detailed information, please read here. 

Real estate portals and home rentals

Real estate portals in Estonia: 

KV.ee

Kinnisvara24

City24

Rendin

If you are interested in renting, please post your interest in the Facebook group. “Ukraina sõbrad Eestis” ja “Üürikorterid ilma maaklerita”, “Üürikorterid OTSE OMANIKULT”, “ÜÜRIKORTERID OTSE OMANIKULT”, “Üürikorterid Tallinnas/Harjumaal”. Note, that there are also other Facebook groups for real estate listings.

Make sure you sign a rental contract to rent a place to live. This will ensure that the rights and obligations of both parties are clear, and will protect you in the event of an unfortunate situation. If you are paying money in advance or paying the rent in cash, make sure you have a written confirmation that the money has been paid.

Compensation for Housing Costs

For individuals from Ukraine who have received temporary or international protection, a one-time rent subsidy of up to €1,200 per household is available. This amount can cover expenses such as rent, brokerage fees, and deposits.

Individuals must first pay their rent out of pocket before applying for compensation from the local government, providing proof of payment. It's advisable to make payments through an electronic banking app for visibility. To protect against fraud and issues, utility bills and rent should be paid via electronic transfer.

Rent compensation can be applied for only once, and you must be registered at your residence in the population register to qualify. 

For more detailed information about housing rent compensation, please visit the Social Insurance Board's official website.

In Tallinn, the Tallinn Migration Centre assists with applying for rent support and provides additional information about public sector services and adaptation assistance. They offer social aid consultations and initial support if needed. 

The centre is located at Endla 8 and is open Monday from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Tuesday and Thursday from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and Friday from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. It is closed on Wednesdays and weekends. For more details, visit their website. 

If you have less than 200 euros left after paying utilities and rent, contact your local social services department for assistance.

Real Estate Transactions

Before making a real estate transaction, it's advisable to determine whether it involves:

• a land plot, apartment ownership, building rights, or apartment building rights;
• sole ownership (property belongs to one owner or spouses);
• co-ownership (multiple owners are registered in the land registry).

Everyone has the right to view the land registry data on the websites Uus Kinnistusraamat or E-Kinnistusraamat. More information about the land registry can be found on the Ministry of Justice's website. For additional details on buying or selling real estate, visit the relevant sections online.

Notary and Tax Office

Purchasing property often requires notary services. The notary certifies the transfer of ownership and prepares necessary documents for signature before finalizing the transaction. Notary fees can vary based on the transaction's size and the services provided.

Additionally, buyers must consider tax office requirements and costs, including land tax and potentially property tax. The tax office may also demand additional payments if there are discrepancies related to the transaction.