Life
Delfi.ee has created a news and information portal specifically for Ukrainians. Read the news here on the Delfi website.
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.
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.
You can get a free public transport card from your local authority or regional public transport centre.
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.
Ukraina Päevakeskus Tallinnas ja Pärnus
Ukrainian Women's Union in Estonia
NGO Ukrainian Compatriots Association in Estonia
Narva Ukraina Kaaslaskond (Narva Ukrainian Community)
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.
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.