Veteran business: how to get start-up capital, support, and who can use it
"Life After Scars" is a large-scale social project by 1+1 Media designed to help veterans on their way back to civilian life and to systematize the unique experience of Ukrainian employers in interacting with this target audience.
As part of the project, we tell the stories of veterans returning to civilian life, the difficulties they face along the way, and the success they achieve. In particular in the field of business.
So, how does a veteran start their own business? Where can they find start-up capital? What opportunities exist for veteran business development in Ukraine today?
Yulia Kirillova, Deputy Minister of Veterans Affairs and a veteran, shared details of state support for veteran businesses within the Life After Scars project.
You can watch the episode of "Life After Scars" about veteran business here.
Start-up capital for veteran businesses
Today, the Ministry of Veterans Affairs offers veterans various opportunities to start or develop their businesses. Firstly, the Ministry provides access to start-up capital through the Ukrainian Veterans Fund. This budgetary institution offers grant support under two main programs.
The first program is microfinance. It provides compensation for the purchase of business equipment in the amount of up to UAH 20,000. The second program is the macro-financial initiative Worthy, under which veterans can receive from UAH 500,000 to UAH 1.5 million to develop or start their own business.
By the way, the institution is currently accepting applications for participation in the program "Worth Doing Your Own 2.0", which provides grants of UAH 600,000 to UAH 1.6 million.
Who can receive a grant?
The Ministry of Veterans Affairs has a plan for competitive programmes. For example, in 2025, the Ministry received UAH 300 million to finance veteran businesses. These funds will be enough to support more than 160 veteran businesses in total. Competitive programs under the initiative are held periodically throughout the year. That is, those who wish to apply multiple times a year have the opportunity to submit their application package, which will be reviewed by the competition committee.
You can download the application package from the Ministry's CRM system. The previous competition programs are available on the Ukrainian Veterans Fund's website.
"There is a full description of the entire competition, the procedure, and the conditions of its holding. Grant application forms and samples are available for completing the project budget. And then all these documents, together with the constituent documents, are uploaded to the CRM system," says Yulia Kirillova.
It is worth noting that relatives of veterans are also eligible to apply for the program.
The list of documents required to complete the application package is available on the Ukrainian Veterans Fund's website.
Demand for support for veteran-owned businesses
According to the Ministry of Veterans Affairs, the demand for support for veteran businesses is growing. In 2023, 450 applications were received for participation in competitive programs. In 2024, the number was approximately 480. Each year, about 165 businesses receive a positive response to their applications.
"We see that women and men veterans are determined to become economically independent. When we monitored the success of these businesses, we saw that these entrepreneurs created more than 800 new jobs. They employed mostly fellow veterans, family members of veterans, or family members of those who had died. This is extremely important," says Yulia Kirillova.
It should be added that the statistics do not include seasonal workers.
Mentoring
The Ministry of Veterans Affairs has developed special mentoring programs to facilitate the growth of businesses for female and male veterans.
"During their service, female and male veterans become less competitive in the market because they are often at the frontline and have no one to run their businesses. That is why we create mentoring programs for them. We conduct various webinar trainings for them to strengthen them in the areas where they need it most," explains Yulia Kirillova.
The most popular business sectors
The agricultural sector is the top sector among both female and male veterans. Manufacturing and services are also popular.
The demand for publishing is also growing. That is, veterans not only write their literature but also publish it.
Prospects in Ukraine
As of the beginning of 2025, there were 1.4 million veterans registered with the government. Among them, almost 18,000 were registered as individual entrepreneurs. However, this does not include Defenders who are founders or co-founders of legal entities. The Ministry is not yet able to keep a register of such entrepreneurs.
"Judging by the way veterans apply to us for competitive programs and the way they request information on doing business, we see that this is growing in popularity. Veterans see both an opportunity for themselves and support from the state and local governments. There are also regional support programs for female and male veterans. Today, the Ministry of Veterans Affairs holds regional dialogues with authorities and businesses, where we communicate and provide assistance to them. Employing veterans is a significant priority for us today. An economically independent veteran is the key to a strong and successful country," concludes Yulia Kirillova.
The project "Life After Scars" can be viewed every Thursday at 10:30 on 1+1 Ukraine. It is also available on the Kyivstar TV platform. After the airing, the episodes will be available on the 1+1 YouTube channel.
The project partners are: The Ministry of Veterans Affairs of Ukraine, Kyivstar TV, robota.ua, the Ukrainian Veterans Fund, the Heart of Azovstal NGO, INTERTOP, the Barrier-free NGO, and the Business Without Barriers community, which is united around the initiative of First Lady Olena Zelenska.
