Ukraine’s Reserve+ app adds login via Diia: how it works

What changed

Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence is rolling out a new way to sign in to its Reserve+ app: through Diia, the state services app. Once the feature is available, users will be able to choose between logging in with Diia.Signature or, as before, with BankID. The ministry and the Diia team announced the change on September 25.

There is one important caveat: the new login option is reaching users gradually. Even after updating Reserve+ to the latest version, the “Sign in with Diia” button may not appear straight away. In that case nothing else needs to be done, and users can simply keep using BankID.

How to sign in with Diia

When the feature becomes available, the steps are:

1. On the Reserve+ login screen, choose “Sign in with Diia”. The app will redirect you to Diia.
2. Confirm the login with Diia.Signature.
3. Return to Reserve+ and carry on using the app.

What you need

This method requires an active Diia.Signature. According to the ministry, if you do not have one yet, you can create it in the Diia app in about a minute, provided you have an ID card or a biometric passport. It only has to be set up once and can then be used repeatedly.

If the Diia option has not appeared yet, or Diia.Signature does not work for you, the ministry advises logging in with BankID. “Don’t see this option in your profile yet, or experiencing delays? Don’t worry, you can always sign in via BankID,” the Diia team says.

What else was updated

Alongside the new login, several other features were improved:

• sign-in is more stable, with errors and delays that could occur during login fixed;
• security has been tightened, so overly simple PIN codes such as 1111 or 1234 can no longer be set;
• the interface for contacting support has been redesigned to make it easier to use.

Why it matters

Reserve+ is the defence ministry’s app where men liable for military service update their military registration document and manage deferments. According to the ministry, 11 types of deferment from conscription can be applied for online in the app, and most deferments are extended automatically if the grounds remain valid and can be confirmed in state registers. The app sends a notification when that happens, and the new expiry date appears in the extended register data.

An automatically extended deferment, the ministry explains, remains valid until the end of the current mobilisation period, whose end date is set by presidential decree. When automatic extension fails, the most common reason is outdated or incomplete data in state registers, such as a name, date of birth, tax number or disability records. In that case the person has to bring documents to an administrative service centre (TsNAP).

A stable, convenient login is therefore not a minor detail: it is the gateway to a person’s registration document and deferment status. A second sign-in option also offers a fallback if one of them runs into problems.

As Ukrinform points out, another military app, Army+, was earlier connected directly to the BankID system.

What next

The ministry recommends updating Reserve+ to the latest version. If the “Sign in with Diia” button is not there yet, keep using BankID; the new option will appear later.