Men between the ages of 18 and 22 will no longer be barred from leaving Ukraine under a new regulation that eases a rule introduced in the early days of the Russian invasion to ensure the country had enough soldiers.

The ban on traveling out of the country, which took effect under martial law in February 2022, has applied to men from 18 to 60, including those not yet eligible for the draft, which currently starts at age 25. Under the new rule, which goes into effect on Thursday, men will be allowed to travel outside Ukraine until they reach the age of 23.

Over the last three years, many families sent their teenage sons out of the country before they turned 18, to avoid having them eventually conscripted into what has become a grinding war of attrition with high casualty rates.

Announcing the change on Tuesday, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said the change would allow young men to travel and study abroad without feeling that they had to leave to avoid the draft. “We want Ukrainians to maintain as many ties with Ukraine as possible,” she said.

Here’s what to know about the new regulations.

Why is Ukraine’s draft age so high?

For the first two years of the war, men under 27 were not obliged to fight. Then in 2024, under pressure from Western allies who were worried about a shortage of Ukrainian soldiers, the country lowered the draft age to 25.

Serhiy Leshchenko, an adviser in the Ukrainian president’s office, said last year that American politicians from both parties were pressuring Ukraine to lower the age further. Some U.S. lawmakers have said Ukraine should reduce it to 18.