Ukraine’s parliament passes historic tax hike, scrapes plan for 5% military levy
Source: Yaroslav Zleleznyak/Telegram
On October 10, Ukraine’s parliament made a landmark move by passing a new tax reform bill that introduces big changes to the tax system during martial law. The lawmakers though chose to scrape one of the most controversial plans that could see military levy go from 1.5%, to 5%.
Bill No. 11416-d garnered the support of 247 MPs in its second reading. According to MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak, the updated law will take effect retroactively from October 1.
This new law introduces several important adjustments, including:
- Military Levy Unchanged: the tax will remain at 1.5%. However, the law extends this levy to sole proprietors under the simplified tax system, including a 1% levy on income for third-group payers and a fixed 800 hryvnias monthly fee for sole proprietors in groups one, two, and four.
- Bank Profits: Banks will face a 50% profit tax for 2024, marking a significant rise in taxation for the financial sector.
- Non-Bank Financial Institutions: These organizations will see their profit tax rate set at 25%.
- Fuel Retailers will have to deal with a new advance payment scheme for their fule sales.
- Monthly Reporting: The reporting period for taxes and the single social contribution will shift from quarterly to monthly for individual taxpayers.
Iryna Herashchenko, co-chair of the “European Solidarity”said their lawmakers helped block the 5% military levy increase but failed to “delay” the introduction of the record-breaking tax hikes.
Meanwhile, Zheleznyak revealed the effect the military levy can have on wages. He argued that salaries paid out on October 14-15 will still reflect the 1.5% levy, but after the law takes effect, the military levy for October will rise to 5%, impacting future payroll deductions.
The final version of the bill is set for review by the Parliamentary Committee on Tax Policy tomorrow.
In 2025, the deadliest year yet for civilians, Ukraine’s three largest charitable foundations raised a record 105.9 billion hryvnias. It is more than the years 2022–2024 combined. According to the UN, humanitarian aid in Ukraine was delivered by more than 450 organisations, reaching five million people over the course of the year. Civic foundations hold licences to purchase lethal weapons, which is a function states have monopolised for centuries. These record sums were underwritten by international government grants, which means foreign states now channel billions directly through Ukrainian civic funds, bypassing inter-state channels. It is hard to imagine a stronger institutional trust in civil society.
During the GLOBSEC Defence Forum 2026 in Prague, representatives of “Steel Front”, an initiative by Rinat Akhmetov, discussed with NATO delegations, military officials, and representatives of the European defense industry the lessons learned from Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine.
After the start of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, Ukraine witnessed an unprecedented wave of private support for the army. Citizens, big businesses, charitable foundations, and international philanthropists began financing the country’s defense alongside state assistance provided by international partners. Estimates of total private contributions range from tens to hundreds of billions of hryvnias. However, determining the exact amount remains difficult. In many cases, companies combine military aid, humanitarian programs, tax payments, social spending, and employee support in their reporting.
Rinat Akhmetov’s military initiative, “Steel Front”, has delivered a batch of drones worth UAH 214 million to the 1st “Azov” Corps of the National Guard of Ukraine. This shipment is part of the Metinvest Group’s ongoing support for the unit in 2025.
On October 6, the Administrative Cassation Court within the Supreme Court of Ukraine continued hearing case No. 990/80/25, in which the fifth President and leader of the party “European Solidarity”, Petro Poroshenko, seeks to have Presidential Decree No. 81/2025 from February 12, 2025 — enacting sanctions by the decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) — declared illegal and annulled. The plaintiff claims the document was falsified and that the sanctions are a tool of political persecution of the opposition, contrary to international norms. Government representatives deny the allegations and insist their actions were lawful. Journalists of Bukvy were present at the hearing.