The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has adopted the Law of Ukraine “On Amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On the Status of War Veterans, Guarantees of Their Social Protection” on simplifying the procedure for granting the status of a participant in hostilities, a person with a disability as a result of war, a family member of a fallen (deceased) Defender of Ukraine” (draft law under registry No. 9141 of March 23, 2023).
According to this law, citizens who have the right to the status of a participant in hostilities (in particular, servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine) or their representatives have the right to submit an application in paper or electronic form to the commissions for consideration of materials on recognition as participants in hostilities manifesting their desire to receive the appropriate status.
To this application, you can add the information necessary to grant the status of a participant in hostilities, copies of the relevant documents (if available), certifying them with your signature.
In the absence of such documents, they will be requested, upon application by the serviceman, from the authorized body/person within the framework of interdepartmental interaction of subjects of authority within five calendar days from the date of receipt of the application.
The requested documents must be provided no later than 15 calendar days from the date of receipt of the request (or a justified reason for their absence must be provided).
No later than 10 calendar days after receiving answers to requests, the commission for consideration of materials on granting the status of a participant in hostilities makes a decision on granting the Defender the status of a participant in hostilities.
The Law also provides for a similar procedure for obtaining the status of a person with a disability as a result of the war or the status of a family member of a fallen (deceased) defender of Ukraine.
The President of Ukraine signed laws on the extension of martial law and general mobilization in Ukraine from November 16 for another 90 days (until February 14, 2024).
It concerns the following laws of Ukraine:
- “On Approval of Decree of the President of Ukraine “On Extending the Period of Martial Law in Ukraine” No. 3429-IX of November 8, 2023;
- “On Approval of Decree of the President of Ukraine “On Extension of the General Mobilization Period” No. 3430-IX of November 8, 2023.
They provide for the extension of martial law and general mobilization from November 16 for a period of 90 days till February 14, 2024.
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has adopted in its entirety the Law of Ukraine “On Amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine and Other Laws of Ukraine Regarding the Cancellation of the Moratorium on Tax Audits” (basic draft law No. 10016-д). This law partially returns taxpayer audits.
According to the text of the draft law, the moratorium on planned inspections is lifted completely, but inspections in the so-called special regime will be applied starting from December 1 of the current year until the end of 2024.
The moratorium is also lifted for those entities that fall under certain criteria such as:
- 2 times more receivables than payables;
- level of PIT payment less than 50% by industry and VAT less than 50% by industry;
- annual income is more than UAH 10 million. At the same time, the total amount of expenses is more than 75% of the amount of annual income.
The criterion for inclusion in audits, according to which the level of income tax payment is 50% or more lower than the level of tax payment in the relevant industry, will not apply to taxpayers of a single tax, and taxpayers will be included in enterprises of the relevant industry based on their main type of economic activity.
Changes to the audits schedule will be made every month.
The moratorium on audits of single tax payers of the first and second groups will be canceled from December 1, 2024.
The extension of the moratorium on legal entities located in occupied territories, territories of active and possible hostilities has been maintained.
The final text of the adopted Law has not yet been made public.
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has generally supported the project of the Law of Ukraine “On Amendments to Section VI of the Budget Code of Ukraine on Ensuring the Support of the State's Defense Capability and the Development of the Defense Industry of Ukraine”.
The amendments to the Budget Code propose to redirect personal income tax from the military, which is paid from the state budget, to the needs of wartime, i.e. the development of the domestic defense and industrial complex.
In 2024, resources from the Personal Income Tax from the military (96.3 billion UAH) will be directed to the special fund of the state budget for specific purposes:
- 45% for the production and purchase of special equipment and equipment (unmanned aerial vehicles, sea drones) – State Special Communications Service;
- 45% to the Ministry of Strategic Industries for the implementation of programs for the reform and development of the defense industry, the introduction of new technologies and the production of defense products;
- 10% to managers of the security and defense sector for automatic distribution between military units in proportion to the paid personal income tax.
In order to compensate for the possible loss of income in the next year, it is planned to direct to the local authorities:
- basic subsidy (UAH 21.1 billion);
- additional subsidy (UAH 33.4 billion);
- reverse subsidy (UAH 14.1 billion) will remain at the disposal of local self-government bodies;
- in addition, 4% of personal income tax (UAH 12.3 billion) will be transferred to the regions for a sustainable heating season.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has registered the project of the Law “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Regarding Improvement of Preventive Procedures and Prevention of Bankruptcy” (reg. No. 10228).
The draft law was developed to fulfill the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding concluded on January 16, 2023 between Ukraine as a Borrower and the European Union as a Creditor (regarding the Instrument for providing support to Ukraine for 2023 (macro-financial assistance+) in order to improve the legislation of Ukraine taking into account the main principles of the European Union Directive 2019/1023 on the framework of preventive restructuring, on debt cancellation and disqualification, on measures to improve the efficiency of procedures related to restructuring, insolvency and debt cancellation.
The draft Law provides for:
- making changes to the Code of Ukraine on bankruptcy procedures in terms of improving measures to prevent bankruptcy, in particular, introducing a new preventive restructuring procedure in accordance with the main principles of EU Directive 2019/1023;
- introduction of derivative editorial changes to other legislative acts, in particular, to the Economic Procedure Code of Ukraine, laws of Ukraine “On Capital Markets and Organized Commodity Markets”, “On Executive Proceedings”, “On Financial Restructuring”, “On Insurance” and “On Credit Union”.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has approved the Procedure for providing a comprehensive electronic public service “e-Pidpryiemets” (e-Entrepreneur) (Resolution No. 1156 of November 7, 2023).
It defines the procedure for providing a complex electronic public service -Pidpryiemets”, which ensures the simplification of conditions for starting and/or conducting business activities and consists of the following electronic public services:
- state registration of individual entrepreneurs;
- state registration of changes to the information on the individual entrepreneurs contained in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, Individual Entrepreneurs and Public Organizations;
- submission of a notice of use or refusal to use a single account;
- registration as a single tax payer;
- registration as a VAT payer;
- registration of cash registers and POS, as well as search for a fiscal receipt;
- registration of the declaration of compliance of the material and technical base of the business entity with the requirements of the legislation on fire safety;
- submission of information on labor demand (vacancies);
- state registration of capacities of food market operators;
- issuance of a permit for high-risk work and the start of operation (use) of high-risk machines, mechanisms, and equipment;
- registration of the declaration of compliance of the material and technical base with the requirements of the legislation on labor protection;
- opening a bank account.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, by Resolution No. 1143 of November 3, 2023, amended the Procedure for submitting and registering a declaration of compliance of the material and technical base of the business entity with the requirements of the legislation on fire safety, which was approved by Resolution of the CMU No. 440 of June 5, 2013.
The document will simplify the procedure for submitting a declaration of compliance of the material and technical base of the business entity with the requirements of the legislation on fire safety and does not require additional material and other costs.
The Resolution proposes:
- to take into account the changes that have taken place in the territorial organization of power in Ukraine;
- to establish that the submission of the Declaration by the business entity is carried out through the center for the provision of administrative services or through the means of the Unified State Web Portal of Electronic Services, in particular through the information system of the State Emergency Service integrated with it;
- to grant the right to business entities within a month from the date of submission of the declaration to resubmit the relevant declaration with clarified and reliable data in any of the specified ways;
- to process the declaration through the information system of the State Emergency Service and the means of the Unified State Web Portal of Electronic Services.
Resolution No. 1143 enters into force on the day of its publication, except for subparagraph 2 of item 1 of the changes approved by this resolution, which enters into force on November 27, 2023.
