Photo: from April 1, VLK decisions will be in electronic form (armyinform.com.ua) Author: Anna Berezina
From April 1, Ukrainians who have not been rebooked by their employers will lose the right to a deferment from mobilization, and decisions of the Military Medical Commission will be issued in electronic format.
Read more about these and other changes in April in the RBC-Ukraine article.
Content:
- Deadline for deferments from mobilization
- New rules of the VVK
- Increase in excise taxes on cigarettes
- Recalculation of pensions
- Increase in deposit rates
- Completion of registration on NMT
Deadline for deferments from mobilization
From April 1, Ukrainians liable for military service who have not been rebooked by their employers will lose the right to a deferment from mobilization.
According to the government's decision, enterprises must confirm their criticality status and re-book their workers in accordance with the updated criteria by March 31. Employers can submit reservation lists online on the Diya portal.
It should be noted that the rebooking period was supposed to expire on February 28, but due to a cyberattack on state registries it was extended by a month.
A confirmed reservation is displayed in the Reserve+ app. If a deferment is granted after the criticality status of the facility is updated, it will be active for the duration of the criticality – up to 12 months.
More information about the new rules for granting a deferment from conscription can be found in a separate article.
New rules of the VVK
Ukraine is implementing a reform of the Military Medical Commissions (VVK). The next stage starts on April 1. The innovations concern the execution of the resolution on passing the VVK – now all commissions are required to issue conclusions in electronic form.
The mechanism looks like this:
- An electronic VLK office has been launched in the Medical Information System of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which replaces paper orders with an online format.
- Referrals to the VVK from the Obereg registry are automatically sent to the VVK office.
- The conclusions of the commissions after examinations of military personnel are immediately reflected in the Reserve+ application.
- Resolutions on military personnel are stored in the MIS of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The next step in the digitalization of the VVK system will be the anonymization of data of military personnel when passing the commission. That is, the doctor will not know who he is examining. The goal of the reform is to reduce corruption risks. This innovation will come into effect in November 2025.
Increase in excise taxes on cigarettes
At the end of March, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law increasing excise taxes on tobacco products. Also, starting next month, the State Tax Service (STS) will introduce a new coefficient for excise taxes.
Thus, the price of cigarettes will continue to rise. According to forecasts, in 2025 the price may increase by 35%.
According to the provisions of the signed law, the specific excise tax rate on filtered and non-filtered cigarettes will be increased by 23.4% – from 47 to 58 euros per 1,000 pieces. The minimum tax liability for excise tax will increase by 23.9% – from 63.45 to 78 euros per 1,000 pieces.
As for the new coefficient for excise duty, from April 1, 2025 until the end of the year it will be 1.1. In accordance with the Tax Code of Ukraine, the share of excise duty tax liabilities in the retail price of cigarettes should be at least 60%. By the end of 2024, it was 55.8%. Therefore, in April it will be increased by means of a new coefficient.
As noted by the State Tax Service, the coefficient will apply to all manufacturers and importers of non-filtered and filtered cigarettes.
After the increase in rates and excise taxes, cigarette prices will increase gradually, since products manufactured before April 1, 2025, will be sold at old prices.
Recalculation of pensions
Next month, the size of pension payments will be recalculated for people of retirement age who continue to work. It is this category of Ukrainians that was not included in the planned indexation that took place in March.
The recalculation will occur automatically without the need for a personal visit to the Pension Fund authorities. We are talking about pensioners who, as of March 1, have added at least 24 months of insurance experience either after the pension was assigned or after its last recalculation.
The amount of the increase is individual for each pensioner and depends on the amount of the unified social contribution deductions from the salary received over the last 24 months.
Despite the fact that the recalculation will take place on April 1, the increased payment will be received in June, including the additional payment for April and May . This is due to the reporting rules for the payment of the unified social contribution (reports for the first quarter are submitted in May).
Increase in deposit rates
From April 1, 2025, PrivatBank increases rates on clients’ deposits:
- for a period of 10 to 12 months – up to 13% of annual income;
- for a period of 6 to 9 months – 10% per annum;
- “short” 4-5 month deposits – 12% per annum;
- “Glory to the Heroes” deposit for military personnel – 14% per annum.
The new conditions will apply to both new deposits and those extended for the corresponding periods.
As the bank explains, the profitability of deposits will be increased in order to secure hryvnia savings for Ukrainians and make them even more attractive.
Completion of registration on NMT
Registration for the main session of NMT-2025 will last until April 3 on the website of the Ukrainian Center for Education Quality Assessment in the “Participant's Personal Account” section. You can log in either independently or through “Diya”.
Then, until April 8, it will be possible to correct the following registration data:
- location;
- choice of the fourth subject;
- the need to undergo testing at an additional session.
The invitation to participate in the main session will be sent to participants from May 4. The session will last from May 14 to June 25.
The following were used in preparation: information from the portals of the Ministry of Defense, the State Tax Service, the Pension Fund, the Ministry of Education and Science, Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 208, and PrivatBank messages in Telegram.
Let us recall that on April 1, the “silent season” begins in Ukraine – the period of reproduction of wild animals, when activities that create increased noise levels are prohibited in the forests.
Earlier, we also wrote about the main changes in the social sphere from April 1 for Ukrainians, namely, what will happen to tariffs, subsidies and pensions.