Pension recalculation, tax hikes, demobilisation: what changes await Ukrainians from 1 April
1 April 2024 13:17
A number of important changes will take place in Ukraine from 1 April 2024: pension amounts will change, the minimum wage will rise again, and humanitarian aid will be imported only through a digital platform. Komersant ukrainskyi 
has collected the main changes in April.
Demobilisation of conscripts
In April, the demobilisation of conscripts who were drafted into the Armed Forces before the start of a full-scale war in Ukraine begins.
The demobilisation is carried out in accordance with Presidential Decree 149/2024.
Zelenskyy decided to discharge conscripts in April-May 2024 . The law in this regard states that this applies to those servicemen whose service ended during martial law and was extended beyond the established terms.
Minimum wage
From 1 April, the minimum wage will be increased. It is currently UAH 7100. It will be UAH 8000
According to the forecast of the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine, the minimum wage in our country will continue to increase:
- from 1 January 2025, it will be UAH 8,370 per month;
- from 1 January 2026 – UAH 8,956.
It is also worth noting that the increase in the minimum wage in April this year will automatically lead to an increase in sick pay and maternity benefits.
Along with the minimum wage, fines for unscrupulous employers will also increase. In case of violation of labour laws, such as work without an employment contract, delayed or incomplete payment of wages, etc., a fine of UAH 16,000 to UAH 128,000 will be imposed.
Pension payments
The minimum pension in Ukraine, which is tied to the minimum wage, will also increase for some categories of pensioners.
For example, for 65-year-old non-working pensioners with 30/35 years of service (for women and men, respectively), the minimum pension will be UAH 3,200 (40% of the minimum wage).
From 1 April, pensioners who are working will receive an automatic recalculation of their pensions based on their updated length of service.
Taxes
Along with the minimum wage, the unified social contribution (USC) will increase, which depends on the minimum wage. From 1 April, the minimum unified social contribution will increase from UAH 1,562 to UAH 1,760. At the same time, the maximum unified social tax base, equal to 15 minimum wages, will increase from UAH 106,500 to UAH 120,000.
Also, starting from 1 April, the amount of taxes paid by individual entrepreneurs will change. The single tax rate depends on the group and the subsistence minimum for able-bodied persons (SMP):
- Group I – UAH 302.80 (up to 10% of the minimum subsistence level);
- Group II – UAH 1,420 (up to 20% of the minimum wage);
- Group III does not depend on the minimum wage (5% of income or 3% of income plus VAT).
In order to meet the parameters of a particular taxpayer group, individual entrepreneurs must not exceed the income limits that depend on the minimum wage. From 1 April, these are:
- Group I – UAH 1,336,000 (167 minimum wages);
- Group II – UAH 6,672,000 (834 minimum wages);
- Group III – UAH 9,336,000 (1,167 minimum wages).
Payments to IDPs
As of 1 March 2024, the rules for IDP payments have changed. The Cabinet of Ministers has extended the application deadline to 30 April 2024 and expanded the list of recipients.
In addition to the already defined categories, the Ministry proposes to provide the following citizens with the opportunity to receive assistance
- children placed in foster care; foster carers;
- children temporarily placed in a family of relatives, friends, foster family, family-type children’s home (if the average monthly total income per recipient in such a family does not exceed UAH 9444)
- persons over the age of 55;
- persons with disabilities of group III, if the average monthly total income per recipient in such a family does not exceed UAH 9444;
- persons caring for a child under the age of 3 or a child in need of care under the age of 6;
- persons with severe illnesses who have not been diagnosed with a disability;
- persons whose family includes children under the age of 18 and/or under the age of 23 who are enrolled in full-time or dual forms of education in vocational (vocational-technical), professional higher and higher education institutions.
Rules for importing humanitarian aid
Starting from 1 April, humanitarian aid can be imported into Ukraine only after registration in the online system.
The only tool for accounting for humanitarian aid will be the Automated Registration System.
Since the launch of the digital system https://good.gov.ua/ , more than 8,000 recipients have joined the official Register of Humanitarian Aid Recipients. All these organisations can legally import humanitarian aid. Over the course of the digital mechanism’s operation, the system has generated more than 18,000 records of shipments and 12,500 declarations.
How to bring humanitarian aid to Ukraine from 1 April:
- Go to https://good.gov.ua/ .
- If you are not listed in the Register of Humanitarian Aid Recipients, register using the QES and confirm your organisation’s details. It takes a few minutes. Watch the video for more details.
- Fill in the cargo data and declaration in the system. Instructions are available here.
- Get a unique humanitarian aid code.
- Create a Declaration in the system.
- Name this code during customs clearance at the border.
- Distribute the cargo.
- If there are discrepancies between the declaration and the goods actually received, fill in the inventory in the system. For information on how to fill out an inventory, see the video .
- Submit an automatic report on the intended use of humanitarian aid in the digital system. The data from the declaration or inventory will be pulled into the report automatically.
- If mistakes were made in the submission of the inventory or report, the user may submit a clarifying report or inventory by the end of the month in which the inventory or report was submitted.
Utility tariffs: how they will change from 1 April
Starting from 1 April, Ukrainians will not feel the rise in utility prices. The government has frozen some tariffs until the end of the heating season.
Since the summer of 2023, the country has had a single electricity tariff of UAH 2.64 per kWh, regardless of consumption. Therefore, this price will remain in place in April.
The price of gas for household consumers using Naftogaz services will not increase in the near future either.
In April, tariffs for cold water for household consumers are scheduled to increase.
Earlier, suppliers promised not to change prices for households until the end of the heating season. The heating has already been switched off, but even before that, some local supply companies announced tariff increases.
In particular, in Kyiv, the cost of cold water will rise from UAH 30.38 to UAH 40.77 per cubic metre.
Tariffs will be changed in different ways depending on the region. A significant increase is expected, in particular, in Vinnytsia and Dnipro.
