Negotiations on Ukraine's Accession to EU are Open, Procedure for Licensing Carriers Changed

Negotiations on Ukraine’s Accession to EU are Open

On Tuesday, 25 June, the first Intergovernmental Conference between Ukraine and the EU took place in Luxembourg, marking the start of actual negotiations on Ukraine’s membership in the European Union.

This is stated, in particular, in the post from the Government portal, as well as on the European Council web portal.

“This is a historic day for Ukraine and the EU. The road to reach this point has been challenging and Ukraine’s determination to undertake the necessary reforms has been truly impressive. The accession negotiations we open today will be rigorous and demanding. With determination and commitment, we are confident that Ukraine can bring them to a successful conclusion. The future of Ukraine and its citizens lies within the European Union,” said Hajia Lahbib, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of Belgium.

At the conference, the EU also reaffirmed its strong condemnation of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and expressed its readiness to continue supporting Ukraine and its people in their fight against the aggressor for as long as it takes and as intensively as necessary.

EU Council Adopts 14th Package of Sanctions Against Russia: Energy, Anti-Circumvention, Finance

On 24 June, the EU Council adopted a new, fourteenth package of economic and individual restrictive sanctions against Russia.

The relevant official announcement from the European Council is available here.

It is reported that the restrictive measures are aimed at such key sectors of the Russian economy as energy, finance and trade, and also make it more difficult to circumvent EU sanctions.

Energy

In order to prevent the use of EU capacities for the transit of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) to other countries and thereby reduce the significant revenues of the aggressor state, the EU completely prohibits the provision of services for the transshipment of Russian LNG in the EU.

Prevention of Sanctions Circumvention

Firstly, EU parent companies will be required to make every effort to ensure that their subsidiaries in third countries do not engage in any activities that may lead to the circumvention of sanctions.

Secondly, in order to counteract the re-export of military goods to Russia, EU suppliers selling such goods to third countries are required to implement due diligence mechanisms capable of identifying and assessing the risks of re-exporting goods to Russia, and to prevent these risks by all possible means.

Finance

The Council has decided to ban the use of the Financial Messaging System (FMS), a specialized financial messaging service developed by the Central Bank of Russia, to neutralize the effect of restrictive measures. EU entities operating outside of Russia are prohibited from connecting to the FMS or similar specialized financial messaging services.

In addition, EU companies will be prohibited from conducting transactions with legal entities included in a special list that use the FMS outside Russia.

The Council also introduces a ban on transactions with targeted financial institutions and cryptocurrency providers established outside the EU if these entities facilitate transactions that support Russia’s military-industrial base by exporting, supplying, selling, transferring or transporting dual-use goods and technologies, goods for warfare, firearms and ammunition to Russia.

Transport Visa-Free Regime with EU Extended & Rules for International Freight Transportation Updated

According to the announcement on the Government Portal of 20 June, the Agreement on Liberalization of Freight Transport between Ukraine and the EU has been extended for a year with the possibility of automatic prolongation until the end of 2025.

The updated Agreement provides for a number of changes affecting Ukrainian and foreign carriers.

In particular, as explained by the Ministry of Infrastructure, in order to carry out transportation under the Agreement, carriers must:

  1. Have a transportation license on board in paper form (an extract of a license for international transportation of goods in English with a QR code, which can be obtained in the carrier’s personal account, is also allowed);
  2. Have cargo documents for empty vehicles. When leaving Ukraine with an empty vehicle, the driver must have documents confirming the return with the cargo that the driver will pick up on the way back. This can be a contract or an application signed by the carrier;
  3. Have documents on board to confirm the type of transportation. This includes bills of lading, waybills, cargo customs declarations, etc., both in paper and electronic form;
  4. Have documents for returning an empty truck. When returning to Ukraine without cargo, you must have documents confirming the transportation of cargo in direct traffic;
  5. Have a sticker on the windshield that identifies trucks that carry out transportation in accordance with the Agreement. The image of the sticker is available here.

Procedure for Licensing Carriers Has Been Changed: The Cabinet of Ministers has Adopted the Resolution

This refers to the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers No. 712 dated 18.06.2024, which amended the Licensing Conditions for the Carriage of Passengers, Dangerous Goods and Hazardous Waste by Road, International Transportation of Passengers and Goods by Road.

The purpose of the amendments is to bring the procedure in line with EU standards.

Main points:

  • License applicants and licensees from now on will be able to submit to the licensing authority an application for obtaining, renewing and renewing a license exclusively in electronic form through the Unified Complex of Information Systems in the Field of Land Transport Security;
  • The simplified procedure for obtaining licenses due to the introduction of martial law is canceled;
  • Drivers engaged in international transportation of passengers by bus, international transportation of dangerous goods and hazardous waste by truck, international transportation of goods by truck (except for international transportation of dangerous goods and hazardous waste) must confirm their professional competence with a certificate in accordance with the Procedure for Confirming the Professional Competence of Drivers of Vehicles for the Provision of Passenger and Freight Transportation Services. The provision requiring drivers to undergo mandatory professional training and hold a certificate of professional competence will enter into force one year after the amendments to the procedure are adopted;
  • The licensee is subject to additional obligations, in particular, to have valid insurance contracts for: a) liability for damage caused to the life and health of passengers or baggage (cargo) during the use/carriage of road transport; b) life, health and ability to work of the driver and other employees operating vehicles against accidents; c) civil liability of owners of land vehicles;
  • the period for consideration of license applications is reduced from 5 to 3 business days.

It is also reported that licensees (except for licensees who were issued licenses for the period of martial law in Ukraine) must submit to the State Service of Ukraine for Transport Safety the information and documents specified in subparagraph 2 of paragraph 7 of the License Terms no later than 6 months from the date of entry into force of this resolution.

The licenses issued for the period of martial law in Ukraine shall remain valid after the expiration of the term for which they were issued, provided that the licensees submit the documents and information specified in clause 7 of the License Terms and provided that the licensees comply with the requirements of the License Terms. In case of failure to comply with these requirements or non-compliance of the licensee, the license is subject to revocation within 60 calendar days.

The Resolution will enter into force two months after its publication, i.e. on 20 August 2024.

Draft Law on Booking of Employees in the Field of Motor Vehicles Registered in the Parliament

The relevant draft law No. 11334 is currently submitted for review.

As the authors of the draft law explain, business entities engaged in the transportation of passengers and goods by road, regardless of the legal form of business, provide vital functions and/or services, the violation of which leads to negative consequences for the national security of Ukraine.

Therefore, Article 25 of the Law “On Mobilization Preparation and Mobilization” should be supplemented with a new paragraph stipulating that persons liable for military service who work for business entities of any organizational and legal form operating in the field of road transport are subject to reservation.

Law Changing Approaches to Supervision of Non-Food Businesses Enters into Force

This is Law No. 3701-IX “On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on the Settlement of Certain Issues of Market Surveillance and Liability of Business Entities”, which enter into force on 21 June 2024.

The main point:

  • When conducting inspections, both market supervisory authorities and business entities have the right to record the inspection process by means of audio, photo and video equipment;
  • The supervisory authorities will be able to request primary documents only if it is established that the products are dangerous, risky or do not meet the established requirements;
  • The amounts of fines applicable to business entities have been updated. Thus, fines are provided for: a) persons who put into circulation products that do not meet the requirements – from UAH 34,000.00 to UAH 51,000.00; b) distributors (except for legal entities and individual entrepreneurs who have chosen the simplified taxation system) for failure to comply with the storage conditions of products that have become dangerous and/or do not meet the established requirements – UAH 34,000.00, c) a distributor – a legal entity or individual entrepreneur who has chosen the simplified taxation system – for failure to comply with the storage conditions of products that have become dangerous and/or do not meet the established requirements – UAH 17,000.00.

In addition, when determining the amount of a fine for a violation, all the circumstances of the violation are taken into account, including the nature, preconditions and causes of the violation, the fact of repeated commission of the same violation for which the person was fined in the last year, the number of relevant violations committed by the person in the last three years, the degree of guilt of the person, the presence or absence of negative consequences of the violation, their scale and the possibility of their elimination.

In addition, if the supervisory authority finds a relevant violation, the guilty business entity must withdraw such products from circulation, recall and/or destroy them.

Law on Status of English Language in Ukraine Enters into Force

On 27 June 2024, the Law “On the Use of English in Ukraine” entered into force, except for certain provisions set out in Section II of the Law.

As a reminder, among other things, the Law:

  • establishes the status of English as one of the languages of international communication in Ukraine;
  • defines the positions for which candidates are required to be proficient in English;
  • regulates the specifics of the use of English in the work of government agencies, local governments, emergency units, border crossing, education, transportation and healthcare.

Parliament Preliminarily Supports Creation of Military Police

On 19 June, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted as a basis the draft law No. 6569-d, which provides for the creation of the so-called Military Police.

It is reported that the draft law will ensure the functioning of an effective body capable of performing tasks to maintain law and order and military discipline in the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the State Special Transport Service.

In particular, according to the current version of the draft law, the Military Police will be assigned the following functions:

  • prevention, detection and suppression of criminal and administrative offenses in the Ministry of Defense, the Armed Forces and the State Special Transport Service;
  • proceedings in cases of administrative offenses within the competence of the Military Police;
  • operative and investigative activities in cases and on the grounds specified by law.

National Bank Bans the Use of Credit Funds for Gambling

On 22 June, the Resolution of the NBU Board came into force, by which the regulator introduced a ban on customer payment transactions to accounts of gambling organizers for participation in gambling using funds received on credit terms.
We would like to remind you that this resolution was adopted pursuant to the Cabinet of Ministers’ Resolution on counteracting the negative effects of online gambling.

Parliament Adopts Law on “White Business Club”

On 18 June 2024, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted the Law “On Amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine on Peculiarities of Tax Administration during Martial Law for Taxpayers with a High Level of Voluntary Compliance with Tax Law”, Draft Law No. 11084.
For more details on the law, please read our previous post by the link.

At the same time, we would like to remind you that the law provides for the creation of a separate List of taxpayers with a high level of voluntary compliance with tax legislation, who will enjoy a number of advantages in tax administration during martial law. The Tax Service will be able to include legal entities and individual entrepreneurs, residents of Diia.City, who meet a number of requirements and criteria based on the taxation system (in particular, requirements for the level of tax payment, requirements for the level of payroll, etc.), into such a list.

In addition, the adopted law contains a recommendation to the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to amend the Procedure for Reservation of Persons Liable for Military Service to provide for automatic reservation of up to 25% of their employees liable for military service by taxpayers included in the List of Taxpayers with a high level of voluntary compliance with tax legislation.