Starting tomorrow, all product sites and interfaces must be in Ukrainian. What does this mean in practice

On July 16, new provisions of the law of Ukraine "on ensuring the functioning of the Ukrainian language as the state language"will come into force. They regulate the use of the Ukrainian language on the internet and in the interfaces of computer programs and products.

DOU explains what this means in practice and in what cases the penalty is threatened.

What is this law

The law of Ukraine" on ensuring the functioning of the Ukrainian language as the state language " was adopted in April 2019. In the same year, it came into force, but it is being implemented gradually. For example, since 2019, the state language has become mandatory in advertising, in medicine and transport, in technical and project documentation, and so on. And from July 16, 2021, only Ukrainian films can be distributed and shown in Ukraine. In 2024, for example, the law will affect the regional press — the Ukrainian version should appear in publications. In addition, quotas on national TV and radio will increase from 75% to 90%, on local TV and radio — from 60% to 80%.

What will change from July 16, 2022

Starting from July 16, the Ukrainian language will become mandatory on company websites and in user interfaces. This is stated in the second and sixth parts of Article 27 of the mentioned law. By the way, it separately stipulates that the requirements of the law do not apply to programming languages. However:

All products that have the computer program installed must be translated into Ukrainian. In other words, a conditional car, multi-cooker, or smartwatch must have a Ukrainian-language interface. The amount of user information in Ukrainian on the electronic screen, control panel with regular buttons can not be less than the amount of information in any other language in this interface.

By user information, the law means all information that is displayed on the device and with which the user interacts and which is represented by text.

Online representative offices of government agencies, local authorities, Media, Enterprises, as well as businesses that sell goods and services in Ukraine and are registered here must be presented in Ukrainian.

According to the Commissioner for the protection of the state language Taras Kremen, the internet representation consists of websites, pages in social networks, YouTube, Viber, Telegram channels, mobile applications, information bots, etc. In other words, any resource that is publicly presented on the internet and is associated with the company or authority mentioned in the law must be Ukrainian.

What exactly on the site should be only in Ukrainian

According to Artyom Krikun-Trush, a lawyer and manager at PwC Legal, when it comes to a Ukrainian-language website in the context of the law under discussion, we should first of all talk about the site interface and the content of the company it represents. The interface is everything that the user interacts with, such as Buttons, menu items, tabs, pop-ups, and so on. However, the content published on this site by third — party users (comments, ads, etc.) does not have to be in Ukrainian, because this is not part of the interface and not the company's content.

Therefore, if, for example, an IT specialist, while in Kiev, is looking for a job as a Front-end developer and goes to a resource with vacancies, the site interface should load in Ukrainian by default. But the content, such as job texts in this case, can also be in a different language. If the owner of this site considers it necessary to have a version of the interface in a different language, they must add the appropriate radio button, and then the conditional IT specialist will be able to use the additional option and see the resource interface in the language they need.

In addition, the law states that along with the version of, for example, a website in Ukrainian, there may be a version in English, German or any other foreign language. However, the Ukrainian-language version cannot be less than the foreign-language versions in terms of the volume and content of information. In addition, it is the Ukrainian-language version of the site that should be loaded by default for users in Ukraine.

Do I need to translate content from users into Ukrainian

The requirements of the law do not apply to content that is published on the site by third-party users, not business owners, says Artem Krikun-Trush. In other words, comments, blogs on company websites, and topics in forums also don't have to be duplicated in Ukrainian.

However, if we are talking about media registered in Ukraine, the situation is different. In this case, any content, including blogs and author's columns, should be primarily in Ukrainian. Because all this is perceived as information provided by the media, and the law controls its language.

Are there any exceptions

Yeah. Foreign companies that sell goods and services in Ukraine and have subsidiaries, branches, representative offices here must have a version of the site in Ukrainian only to the extent sufficient for clear navigation and the purpose of the owner of such an online representative office.

What is the penalty for violators?

The law provides for warnings and fines in case of violation. However, in order for violations to be detected, a corresponding complaint must be sent to the language Ombudsman. Or they can initiate a check on their own initiative.

A fine can be imposed on officials, managers and employees of companies, organizations of any form of ownership, as well as on other individuals who violate the law. The fine ranges from UAH 3,400 to UAH 8,500 if the violation was committed for the first time. For repeated violation, the fine will be from 8500 to 11900 UAH.

But before issuing a fine, representatives of the Commissioner for the protection of the state language must draw up an administrative protocol. And the language Ombudsman will decide whether to issue only a warning or immediately impose a fine.

If a business sells goods (cars, slow cookers, smart watches, etc.) without a Ukrainian-language interface, it will be considered that it is selling goods of improper quality.

In addition, the Commissioner for language policy, according to Artem Krikun-Trush, should provide businesses with explanations on how to comply with the law. Accordingly, the business can send a request to them to explain in detail how to act in a particular situation.