order to reach this most vulnerable and discriminated population, the authorities should adjust their existing policies and amend the legal framework. The ongoing reform of the public administration is a perfect opportunity for such adjustments. Both court procedures and awareness-raising and information campaigns targeting the Roma community would play a key role in more effectively approaching the resolution of these problems. Access to the court in cases related to birth registration Free legal aid for Roma without access to personal documents In 2011 Ukraine adopted the Law on Free Legal Aid94 which established a network of centres for secondary legal aid (i.e. legal counselling and legal representation before a court) where citizens, foreign nationals, stateless persons, refugees and persons in need of subsidiary protection may apply for secondary legal aid. Individuals whose monthly income falls below the prescribed level for social security are entitled to secondary legal aid provided by a Legal Aid Centre (hereinafter: LAC). Additionally, persons living with disabilities and persons from the temporarily occupied territories are entitled to this service without being required to prove their monthly income. For Roma without personal documents it is not always easy to access free legal aid. In some cases they cannot obtain a personal tax number95 and cannot prove they have insufficient income, while in other cases they cannot prove their identity to the LAC. Roma without personal documents usually seek legal and other assistance through local Roma mediators, Roma leaders and activists, or in some cases through NGOs providing legal aid. Nevertheless, this assistance is not always sustainable and local NGOs struggle to meet all the needs of the Roma communities they serve. Project support is always provided to local NGOs for a limited period of time, usually on a yearly basis, and some donors have not been able to continue their support for the provision of free legal aid to Roma without personal documents. This means some of them lost their representation halfway through their legal proceedings. For example, the NGO 10th of April stated that after their project for the provision of free legal aid for access to personal documents ended there were at least ten Roma left whose cases were still open.96 Similarly, for a number of years the NGO Roma Human Rights Centre in Odesa provided legal and technical assistance for Roma without personal documents in Odesa, from informing them about the importance of personal documents to making field visits, providing transportation to administrative service centres, providing legal assistance and reimbursing their administrative fees. This activity is now not being funded, and in some cases activists from the Roma Human Rights Centre are contributing their own money to provide Roma with assistance in obtaining their personal 94 Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Law of Ukraine on Free Legal Aid, Law No. 3460-VI, 2 June 2011, <http://zakon2.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/3460-17/print1475564456082547>. 95 A tax number is obtained after an application is submitted to the tax authorities where applicants must provide data about their internal passport. 96 Interview on 28 April 2017. 36