RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONWT/ACC/UKR/63
23 July 1999
(99-3114)
Working Party on the
Accession of UkraineOriginal:  English
ACCESSION OF UKRAINE
Memorandum on the Import Regime in Ukraine
The following information concerning the import regime  in Ukraine has been received from
the Governmental Commission on Ukraine's Accession to WTO.
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Both natural persons and legal entities may engage in import activities in Ukraine.
How does importing into Ukraine take place? What formalities are required?There is a difference between commercial and non-commercial imports
1. This report is
concerned with imports for commercial purposes (as a matter of information, the term “import” in
Ukrainian means “commercial import” only).
Imports are subject to three requirements:
- the importer must be registered;
- currency must be purchased to pay for the imported product;
- the product must be cleared through Customs.
In addition, there are “special cases” of imports. These are:
- special customs clearance procedures for certain products;
- prohibition of import of certain products; and
- restrictions on the imports of certain products.
                                                     
1 Ukrainian legislation contains no clear definition of the term “import for commercial purposes” or “import for
non-commercial purposes.” Analysis of Ukrainian legislation shows that Customs determines whether imports arecommercial or non-commercial.WT/ACC/UKR/63
Page 2
1. Registration
Registration By Tax Authorities
In order to engage in a business (“entrepreneurial”) activity a person (whether a natural
person or a legal entity) must be registered by a local (“rayon”) tax administration. The registration
process is different depending on whether the importer is a legal entity or a natural person.
Natural persons
Registration takes place at a local (“rayon”) tax administration (which is a local branch of the
State Tax Administration of Ukraine, the central taxation authority of Ukraine). The applicant must beregistered as a “subject of entrepreneurial activity” (Article 5 of the Law “On Entrepreneurship”). In
order to do so the applicant must submit to the local tax administration (Article 5 of the Law):
- a registration card completed by the applicant according to an established sample;
- a copy of a document certifying that the natural person has obtained an identification
number as a tax payer and payer of all other compulsory charges and fees;
- a document certifying the fact that the registration fee is paid (in most cases this is a
payment order).
If all the necessary documents are submitted, the local tax administration must register the
applicant as a subject of entrepreneurial activity within five days. During this period it must issue the
registration certificate (the document certifying that the natural person was registered by the local tax
administration) to the applicant. The certificate mu st include the identification number of the relevant
subject of entrepreneurial activity (ibid., Article 8, Item 6).
Upon the completion of registration, the subject of entrepreneurial activity must file with the
local tax administration a notice about opening (or closing) a bank account. Such a notice must be
given in the course of three days after the account is opened (or closed). The notice is submitted in
person or sent by mail to the relevant tax administration. In the latter case, it must be accompanied by
a document, certifying the receipt of the notice by the tax office. The State Tax Administration (the
central taxation body of Ukraine) prescribes the form and content of the notice (ibid., Article 8). It
should be noted that the natural person (unlike a legal entity) is not required to open a bank account.
Legal entities
In order to be registered by a local tax administration legal entities must submit the following
documents:
- a founding contract;
- its charter;
- a registration card in accordance with a prescribed sample;
- a document certifying that the registration fee has been paid;- a document certifying that initial capitalization has taken place.
After the registration is completed the legal enti ty has to follow the procedures prescribed for
natural persons (see the previous subsection). The only difference is that a legal entity has to open a
bank account because it can settle its debts only through bank transfers.WT/ACC/UKR/63
Page 3
Registration By Customs Authorities
When a person is registered as a subject of business (“entrepreneurial”) activity, the person
may apply for registration at the local customs authority (registration at the local tax office is a
prerequisite to the registration by the local customs authority). The Order of the State CustomsService “On the Procedure for Registering Subjects of Foreign Economic Activity by the Customs
Authorities” No.237, of 31 May 1996 establishes the procedure for such registration. The procedure is
different depending on whether the applicant is a natural person or a legal entity.
Natural persons
In order to be registered (“accredited”) with the relevant regional customs authority, a natural
person must submit to the customs authority at the place of its registration as a subject of
entrepreneurial activity, the following documents:
- An application form;
- A registration card;- The registration certificate of the subject of entrepreneurial activity, duly certified by
a notary;
- The certificate containing the identification number of the subject of entrepreneurial
activity.
Legal entities
To receive accreditation, a legal entity must present the following documents:
- A document of incorporation duly certified by a notary;
- The certificate of registration as a subject of entrepreneurial activity;
- The certificate of the local (“rayon”) State Statistics office (a local branch of the State
Statistics Committee) that the subject of entrepreneurial activity is included in the
Unified Register of Enterprises and Organizations of Ukraine;
- The document of an authorized bank certifying that a bank account of the importer
has been opened;
- An order of the chief executive of the relevant enterprise appointing an employee
(employees) to work with the customs authority, the names of the employees, their
middle names and surnames, passport data (number, the date of issue and the issuing
authority), sample signatures;
- The registration (“accreditation”) card filled in according to an established sample.
After the registration the applicant, whether a natural person a legal entity, receives an
accreditation card, which certifies that it is registered.
Registration with the regional customs authorities is a necessary prerequisite to any import
activity. The person registered by the relevant customs authority can import almost any product intoUkraine.
2. Purchase of Foreign Currency
According to the “Procedure of Purchase of Foreign Currency at The Interbank Currency
Exchange of Ukraine,” approved by Resolution of the National Bank of Ukraine on
8 September 1998, the following procedure has to be followed in order to purchase foreign currency
(item 1 of the Procedure):WT/ACC/UKR/63
Page 4
In order to purchase foreign currency to pay for products already shipped to Ukraine the
following documents are required:
The contract in a prescribed form (known as “foreign economic contract”);
- the customs declaration;
- the certificate of the local (“rayon”) customs administration which registered the
importer as a subject of entrepreneurial activity, containing the following
information:
- the bank account chosen by the importer as the main bank account of the
relevant importer (Ukrainian legislation requires, for taxation purposes, in
case if anyone has more than one bank account, that one of the bank accountsbe registered as the main bank account). The local (“rayon”) tax
administration must register this choice before entering the relevant
information into the certificate;
- the currency bank account chosen as the main bank account of the relevant
importer. The local (“rayon”) tax administration must also register this choicebefore entering the relevant information into the certificate;
- confirmation that the importer has no fiscal debts;
Where the products were received by the importer before 7 September 1998, or the services
were performed before 7 September 1998, the importer must submit a document which certifies thatthe importer has received the product that the pr oduct is recorded in the financial books of the
importer as an asset and  that the importer owes payment for the particular contract.
The certificate is valid for 15 days.
In order to purchase foreign currency to pay for services already performed the Resolution
requires the importer to present the same documents as listed in paragraph (1). The only difference is
that the Procedure requires the presentation of an acknowledgement of the performance of services
instead of a customs declaration.
The Procedure also provides that currency may not be purchased to pay for goods in advance.
It further provides that foreign currency can be purchased to pay in advance only for some services.
The comprehensive list of such services is established in the Procedure. These services are:
- communication services;
- services necessary for the transportation system to function;
- subscription of periodicals;- reprocessing of raw materials;
- capital construction services;
- insurance services;
- agent services;
- ship-chandelling.
3. Clearance
Imports must be cleared by customs. For a clearance to take place, the following documents
must be submitted to the customs authorities:
- the relevant contract (The Customs Code of Ukraine of 12 December 1991, No.1970-XII
(Article 37, Item 3));WT/ACC/UKR/63
Page 5
- invoices, specifications, bills of lading, etc (The Customs Code of Ukraine of
12 December 1991, No.1970-XII (Article 43));
- a document certifying that all the taxes, customs duties and fees have been paid (usually it is a
payment order);
- an accreditation card (a document made on the sample form, certifying that the registration by
the Customs has taken place) (the Procedure of Registering Subjects of Foreign Economic
Activity with Customs Authorities (Item 2.1), approved the Decree of the State Customs
Service 1996 No.237, of 31 May registered in th e Ministry of Justice «On Approval of the
Procedure of Registering Subjects of Foreign Economic Activity with Customs Authorities»
No.292/137, of 12 June 1996).
4. Special Import Procedures
As was mentioned above, the person registered by a customs authority can import almost any
products into Ukraine with no additional permits required. However, in order to import some
products, the following additional documents are required:
(a) Certificates of compliance (with Ukrainian quality standards).
There are certain goods, which can be imported only if the importer has a certificate of
compliance for these products. These are (Item 9 of the Decree of the President of Ukraine “On
Certain Measures on Deregulation of Entrepreneurial Activity” No.817/98, of 23 July 1998):
- food products;
- other products, if the relevant certification standards are not recognized by the
Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.
(b) Veterinary certificates
(The Law “On Veterinary Medicine” No.566/96, of 5 December 1996, (Item 2, Article22)) .
Such certificates are required for products of animal origin or animal feed.(c) Licenses
Every year the Cabinet of Ministers issues a resolution approving a list of licensed goods. It is
usually entitled the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers “On the List of Exported and Imported
Goods, Subject to Licenses and Quotas in (the year)." In 1998, such a resolution was issued on
5 January 1998 (No.7). The following goods are subject to licensing:
- Chemicals for plant protection;
- Pharmaceutical compounds;
- Cosmetic compounds and items of personal hygiene;
- Veterinary compounds;- Discs, tapes and similar carriers of sound or similar records, with recordings on them;
At present the following import quotas exist in Ukraine:
- raw sunflower oil – 100 000 tons (item 2 of the Decree of the President of Ukraine
No.444, of 8 May, 1998). The quota is valid until the end of 1998;
- raw soya oil – 20 000 tons (item 2 of the same Decree). The quota is valid until the
end of 1998;WT/ACC/UKR/63
Page 6
- palm oil and fractions thereof – 15 000 tons (item 2 of the same Decree). The quota is
valid until the end of 1998;
- sugar cane – 300 000 tons (Item 1 of the Decree of the President of Ukraine
No.334/98). The quota is valid until the end of 1998;
- champagne and cognac raw materials - 18 600 deciliters (Appendix to Resolution of
the Cabinet of Ministers “On Adopting the Volumes of the Import of Champagne and
Cognac Wine Products in 1998 and 1999 years and On Making Amendments and
Additions to Some Resolutions of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine” No.208, of
24 February 1998). The quota is valid until the end of 1999.
Thus, in order to import goods falling within the list a license is required. Such a license is
issued by the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade of Ukraine.
In order to obtain a license it is necessary to pay a fee amounting to 15 minimum incomes
(Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukrain e No.893, of 2 August 1996). At present (September
1998) the fee equals 255 UAH. Also an application form is required to be submitted. It must contain
the following information (ibid., Article 16, Item 14):
- The number of the application;
- The official name of the subject of entrepreneurial activity;
- The name and the code (according to the Commodity Nomenclature of Foreign
Economic Activity) of the product;
- Manufacturer of the product;
- Importer of the product;
- The cipher and name of the country (countries) the product is imported from;
- The quantity or value of the product (in case if  there are import quotas and open
individual license is issued);
- The title of the customs authority;
- The full names and addresses of the vendor and buyer under the relevant contract;
- The type of the contract;
- The currency in which the payments are carried out;
- The measurement unit of the product;
- The price paid for the product;
- The name of the chief officer of the applicant (if it is a legal entity) or of the
applicant;
- The body that is to issue the license (the relevant department of the Ministry of
Foreign Economic Relations and Trade);
- Special conditions of the license (such special condition may be, for example,
permission to import in quantities exceeding quotas, provided that the import duty ispaid for the products imported above the quotas).
Where an application is successful the following three items of information are included in
the application form:
- The number and the type of the license;
- The signature of the person who has issued the license;
- The seal of the relevant authority (the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and
Trade).
The application form, containing the three above requisites, is the document that certifies that
the license  is issued.WT/ACC/UKR/63
Page 7
In some cases, issuing a license is predicated upon issuing a certificate by another government
agency. For example, to import sound records (discs an d tapes), it is necessary first to apply to the
State Copyright Agency of Ukraine, affiliated to  the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. (Addendum
No.6 to The Resolution of the Cabinet of Minister s ”On the List of Imported and Exported Goods,
Subject to Licenses and Quotas in 1998”, No.7, of 5 January 1998)
(d) The contract registration card
(The Decree of the President of Ukraine “On Registration of Certain Kinds of Commercial
Contracts”, No.659, of 7 November 1994 (Items 1, 3))
In order to import licensed products, mentioned in the previous subsection, the relevant
contract must be registered at the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade (Decree of the
President of Ukraine “On Registration of Cert ain Kinds of Commercial Contracts” No.659, of
7 November 1994 (Items 1,  3)).
After the contract is registered the importer receives a registration card which is a document
that must be presented to the relevant Customs Authority to establish that the contract is duly
registered.
(e) Quarantine permit or phytosanitary certificate
(The Law of Ukraine “On the Plant Quarantine No.3348-XI, of 30 June 1993,” (See Articles
5, 11, 12))
One of these documents is required if the imported product is subject to quarantine (The Law
of Ukraine “On Plant Quarantine” No.3348-XI, of 30 June 1993, (Articles 5, 11, 12), the CustomsCode of Ukraine (See Article 18)).
(f) Currency certificate
(The Decree of the President of Ukraine of 18 June 1994, No.319/94, as added and amended
by the Decree of the President of Ukraine “On Urgent Measures On the Return Into Ukraine of
Currency Values that Are Out Of Its Borders Unlawfully”, No.1246/97, of 6 November 1997 (Article1)).
If the importer is a legal entity and owns foreign currency which is being kept abroad, it is
necessary to present to the relevant Customs Authority a document certifying that all foreign currency
has been duly declared, in order to import any product into Ukraine.
If the importer is a legal entity and none of its foreign currency is being kept abroad, it is
necessary to present to the relevant Customs Authority a document which certifies this, in order to
import any product into Ukraine.
5. What Cannot Be Imported Into Ukraine
Import of some goods is prohibited in Ukraine. These are (The Law of Ukraine “On Foreign
Economic Activity”, Article 17):
- Any goods that are known to cause harm to human health or to be dangerous to
humans or animals or negatively affect the environment;
- Any goods that contain propaganda of ideas of war, racism and racial discrimination,
and genocide;WT/ACC/UKR/63
Page 8
- Other goods that contradict the Ukrainian Constitution;
- Goods imported in violation of intellectual property rights;
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine establishes the list of such goods.6. The Import Of What Commodities Is Restricted
There are also certain goods that can be imported only by specially authorized enterprises
(The Law of Ukraine “On Foreign Economic Activity”, Article 20). Among such goods are:
- Explosives;
- Weapons;
- Ammunition;
- Military equipment;
- Nuclear materials;
The list of the products that fall into this category can be found in the following Resolutions
of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine:
- No.563, of 27 July  1995;
- No,1005, of 22 August 1996;- No.302, of 12 March 1996;
- No.384, of 22 April 1997;
- No.1358, of 8 December 1997.
All of the listed Resolutions are still valid.WT/ACC/UKR/63
Page 9
REFERENCE LIST
Laws:
The Law of Ukraine “On Entrepreneurship” (No. 698/12, of 7 February 1991 as amended by The Law
of Ukraine No.762/97, of 23 December 1997);The Law of Ukraine “On Foreign Economic Activity” (16 April 1991, No.959-XII, as amended by the
following Laws of Ukraine:
- Law No.2139-XII, of 19 February 1992,
- Law No.3898-12, of 1 February 1994;
- Law No. 68/95, of 15 February 1995;
- Law No.75/95-VR, of 28 February 1995;- Law No.82/95-VR, of 2 March 1995;
- Law No.90/95-VR, of 14 March 1995;
3. The Law of Ukraine ”On Government Procurement” No.493/95, of 22 December 1995
(WT/ACC/UKR/26/Add.2)
4. Resolution of the Supreme Rada of Ukraine No.2330-125. Decrees of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine:
- No.4-93, of 11 January 1993 (WT/L/20/Add.2);
- No.6-93, of 12 January 1993 (WT/L/20/Add.1);
- No.15-93, of 19 February 1993 (WT/ACC/UKR/2);
- No.25-93, of 17 March 1993;
6. Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine “On the List of Imported and Exported
Goods, Subject to Licenses and Quotas in 1998” No.7, of 5 January 1998 (WT/ACC/UKR/51);
7. Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers “On the Organization of Sales (Tenders) for
Government Procurement of Goods, Works, Services” No.694, of 29 June 1997;
8. The Decree of the Main Customs Committee of Ukraine “On the Approval of the Procedure
of Registration of Subjects of Foreign Economic Activity with the Customs Bodies” No.237, of
31 May 1996, (Registered at the Ministry of Justice No.292/1317 on 12 June 1996);
9. The Law of Ukraine “On the Unified Customs Code of Ukraine” No.2097-XII, of
5 February 1992;
10. The Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of  Ukraine “On the Approval of the Procedure of
Customs Clearance of goods(products), subject to obligatory certification in Ukraine” No.1211, of
4 November 1997 WT/ACC/UKR/59/Add.1);
11. The Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers “On Standardization and Certification”
 No.46-93, of 10 May 1993, as amended by the Law of Ukraine of 11 June 1997;
Reference works:
1. “The Commercial and non-Commercial Circulation in Foreign Relations: the Peculiarities of the
Government Regulation and Customs Clearance” (“ Баланс ” (The “Balance” weekly), No.16, of
20 April  1998.
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