Ukraine wants to increase fines for cabotage flights of foreign companies to UAH 120,000
The Cabinet of Ministers has supported a bill that will increase the liability of foreign companies that illegally transport passengers and cargo within Ukraine, the Ministry of Community and Territorial Development reported.
This is about so-called cabotage transportation, when foreign transport operates flights through the territory of Ukraine without special permission.
Currently, such a violation is punishable by a fine of UAH 17,000, but the new bill proposes to increase it to UAH 120,000.
Cabotage transportation is prohibited for foreign carriers in most countries, including Ukraine.
For example, Ukrainian companies cannot transport cargo or passengers between cities in Poland or Germany without special permission – and foreign companies also do not have the right to do so in Ukraine.
Appropriate measures are proposed to be introduced in order to protect the internal market for freight and passenger transportation.
In addition, it is about introducing proportionality to the punishment currently applied in EU countries to third-country carriers.
In 2024, about 150 cases of illegal cabotage were recorded in Ukraine, and this number has been increasing for the third year in a row.
The draft law provides for amendments to the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses and the Law "On Road Transport". It will be registered in the Verkhovna Rada in the near future.
- In June 2024, Ukraine and the EU agreed to extend the agreement on the liberalization of freight transport for another year – until June 2025. On April 10, the term of the agreement was automatically extended until December 31, 2025. This allows both Ukrainian and EU carriers to carry out transportation without the need for special permits.
- On May 12, Polish carriers began a protest on the road to the "Yagodyn – Dorohusk" checkpoint. It could last for four months.
