The Ministry of Finance of Ukraine, by Order No. 468 of August 30, 2023, approved the Procedure for registration and de-registration of financial agents that are accountable financial institutions for the purposes of the multilateral agreement of competent authorities on the automatic exchange of information on financial accounts and the general standard of reporting and due verification of information about financial accounts.
This document implements the norm of para. 393.3.3 of the Tax Code regarding the procedure for registration and de-registration of financial agents that are accountable financial institutions for the purposes of the CRS Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement and the Common Reporting Standard.
Order No. 468 was also supplemented with technical amendments in accordance with Order No. 505 of the Ministry of Finance of September 20, 2023.
All financial agents that are AFI will be subject to registration in the State Tax Service. At the same time, the registration of AFI in the State Tax Service is carried out regardless of whether AFI has Accountable Accounts in the reporting period.
Information about AFIs, received for their accounting in accordance with this Procedure, is included in the list of Accountable Financial Institutions (hereinafter – List of AFIs). Registration of AFIs, their inclusion in the List of AFIs, changes to the information about AFIs in the List of AFIs, and removal of AFIs from the register with their exclusion from the List of AFIs is carried out by the State Tax Service in electronic form using electronic means of communication.
The Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, by Order No. 3427/5 of September 26, 2023, ‘On approval of the Road map for capacity-building activities to support the implementation of the Code of Ukraine on Bankruptcy Procedures’, approved the road map in the field of bankruptcy.
The road map is a document prepared by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, which sets out the agreed position of key stakeholders in the field of bankruptcy/insolvency regarding the goals and key tasks of activities for the development of effective mechanisms for the settlement of obligations through the application of bankruptcy procedures for the next three years.
The road map aimed at the establishment and implementation of state policy in the field of bankruptcy/insolvency in accordance with the best international comparative practices and principles of the European Union, the strengthening of trade and economic relations and the further European integration of Ukraine.
The document defines six sections with the definition of goals and objectives that must be achieved and fulfilled.
Given the dynamic nature of the bankruptcy and recovery sector, driven by continuous changes in the economy and financial system, this road map may be revised accordingly as the needs or priorities of key stakeholders change.
The Social Insurance Fund of Ukraine by Resolution No. 60 of September 14, 2023 increased the minimum amount of unemployment benefits, namely:
- UAH 1,500 — for persons specified in paragraph 2 of part 2 of article 6 and paragraph 1 of part 3 of article 23 of Law of Ukraine ‘On mandatory state social insurance in case of unemployment’ No. 1533-III of March 2, 2000;
- UAH 2,500 — for persons specified in paragraph 1 of part 1 and paragraph 2 of part 3 of article 22, paragraph 9 of item 3-3 of chapter VIII ‘Final provisions’ of Law No. 1533-III, paragraph 8 of part 4 of article 7 of Law of Ukraine ‘On ensuring the rights and freedoms of internally displaced persons’ No. 1706-VII of October 20,2014.
In addition, the resolutions of the board of the Social Insurance Fund in case of unemployment are recognized as having lost their validity:
- ‘On the minimum amount of unemployment benefits’ No. 211 of January 31, 2020;
- ‘On the minimum amount of unemployment benefits for the period of quarantine’ No. 217 of April 8, 2020.
The National Commission on Securities and Stock Market informed that from next year, the maintenance of the State Register of Financial Institutions will be assigned exclusively to the competence of the National Bank of Ukraine.
Thus, on January 1, 2024, the Law of Ukraine ‘On Financial Services and Financial Companies’ enters into force, and from that date the Law of Ukraine ‘On Financial Services and State Regulation of Financial Services Markets’ becomes invalid.
The legislation defined a new list of financial services and gave a new definition to the term ‘financial institution’. Thus, financial institutions are providers of financial services on the basis of a corresponding license issued by the NBU or NCSSM in accordance with the distribution of powers established by Law and draft decision of the Commission No. 1102 of September 29, 2023.
In particular, the project envisages:
- the register of financial service providers is kept by the NCSSM within the limits of keeping registers defined by the Laws of Ukraine ‘On state regulation of capital markets and organized commodity markets’ and ‘On capital markets and organized commodity markets’;
- the State Register of Financial Institutions is no longer maintained by the Commission;
- the norms of the Procedure, which relate to the issuance by the NCSSM of the Certificate of inclusion/exclusion of NPFs (non-state pension funds) in the State Register of Financial Institutions, are removed;
- the norms of the Procedure, which relate to the provision of extracts from the State Register of Financial Institutions to the National Register of Financial Institutions at the request of capital market participants, are removed;
- the procedure for provision of administrative services by the Commission for inclusion/exclusion of NPF in/from the register of NPF is prescribed, taking into account the norms of the Law of Ukraine ‘On administrative procedure’.
From January 1, 2024, Certificates of inclusion of NPF in the State Register of Financial Institutions issued by the State Commission for Regulation of Financial Services Markets of Ukraine/ the National Commission for State Regulation in the Field of Financial Services Markets/ the National Commission on Securities and Stock Market will be considered annulled
The developed draft of the Commission's decision ‘On approval of changes to the procedure for keeping registers of participants in capital markets and organized commodity markets’ makes changes to the Procedure for Keeping Registers of Participants in Capital Markets and Organized Commodity Markets, approved by Commission Decision No. 700 of August 26, 2021.
The Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, by letter No. 4707-05/51667-09 dated September 26, 2023, reminded that the calculation of the average salary for employees is carried out in accordance with the norms of the Procedure for calculating the average salary, approved by Resolution of the CMU No. 100 of February 8, 1995 (hereinafter – the Procedure).
Paragraph 1, item 2 of the Procedure establishes that the calculation of the average salary for payment of vacation time, provision of material (monetary) assistance or payment of compensation for unused vacations is made on the basis of payments for the last 12 calendar months of work preceding the month of vacation, provision of material (monetary) assistance or payment of compensation for unused vacations.
According to para. 2, item 2 of the Procedure for calculating the average salary for the payment of compensation for unused vacations to which the employee acquired the right until December 31, 2023, is carried out in accordance with the payments accrued in 2023.
That is, the average salary for the payment of compensation for unused vacations specified above is calculated on the basis of payments for the actual hours of work in 2023 preceding the month of payment of compensation for unused vacations, starting from January 1, 2023.
If the employee did not receive a salary during the calculation period, calculations are made from the tariff rate, position (monthly) salary established for the employee in the employment contract (para. 3, item 4 of the Procedure).
According to para. 5.4 of the Procedure, if the calculation of the average salary is calculated on the basis of the official salary or minimum wage, then it is calculated by multiplying the official salary or minimum salary by the number of months of the calculation period.
The National Bank of Ukraine’s Regulation on the implementation by the National Bank of Ukraine of supervision over compliance by the objects of supervision with the legislation of Ukraine on the protection of the rights of consumers of financial services and limited payment services, requirements for interaction with consumers in the settlement of overdue debts, approved by Resolution NBU No. 198 (as amended by the resolution of the Board of the National Bank of Ukraine dated September 28, updated the unified procedure for supervision of compliance by providers of all financial services (banks and non-bank financial institutions), providers of limited payment services and collection companies with the requirements of the legislation of Ukraine on the protection of consumer rights, including on the payment market.
The update is due to the need of:
1) implementation of the functions of the National Bank of Ukraine in terms of protecting the rights of consumers of financial payment and limited payment services in accordance with Law of Ukraine No. 2888-IX of January 12, 2023 ‘On Amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine and other legislative acts of Ukraine regarding payment services’;
2) integration into the system of measures to supervise compliance by providers of financial/payment services with the legislation of Ukraine on the protection of the rights of consumers of financial services, compliance with requirements for interaction with consumers and other persons in the settlement of overdue debts (requirements for ethical behavior).
