One in five foreign entrepreneurs in Ukraine is a Russian citizen: data from OpenDataBot
20 May 15:17
There are 21,967 entrepreneurs with foreign citizenship in Ukraine. These figures come from a study by OpenDataBot , which provides details on foreign entrepreneurship in Ukraine, according to "Komersant Ukrainian".
Every year since the start of the full-scale war, an average of 1,896 business cases have been opened in Ukraine by citizens of other countries.
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Top nationalities among foreign entrepreneurs
According to the analysis, the largest group among foreign entrepreneurs in Ukraine consists of citizens of the Russian Federation, who account for one in five foreign sole proprietors (4,593 people).
They are followed by:
- Citizens of Vietnam — 1,994 people
- Citizens of Azerbaijan — 1,635 people
- Citizens of Uzbekistan — 1,469 people
- Citizens of Moldova — 1,118 people
These five countries account for nearly half of all foreign business owners in Ukraine.
One in four foreign sole proprietors is registered in Kyiv, totaling 5,216 people. The Kharkiv region ranks second with 3,506 entrepreneurs, while the Odesa region ranks third with 3,295 sole proprietors. Together, these three regions account for nearly 55% of all foreigners who have started a business in Ukraine.
Popular Sectors
Foreigners in Ukraine most often work in the retail sector, which accounts for 6,346 sole proprietors. Other popular sectors include:
- Warehousing — 2,746 sole proprietors
- Wholesale trade — 1,732 sole proprietors
- HoReCa (hospitality and restaurant industry) — 1,703 sole proprietors
- IT sector — 1,624 sole proprietors
The number of new sole proprietorships in the first quarter of 2026 showed an increase of 11,297 new registrations compared to closed cases.
As a reminder, following 10,000 inspections, the State Tax Service of Ukraine (STS) imposed fines totaling 160 million hryvnias on entrepreneurs . The main violations included failure to use cash registers, concealment of cash proceeds, and lack of inventory records.
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