{"id":1976,"date":"2026-04-10T03:01:26","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T00:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/svaroglaw.com\/osnov-nyansu\/"},"modified":"2026-09-15T03:03:15","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T00:03:15","slug":"osnov-nyansu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/svaroglaw.com\/en\/blog\/osnov-nyansu\/","title":{"rendered":"Bankruptcy procedures in Ukraine in 2026: conditions, cost, timeframes and which debts are written off"},"content":{"rendered":"

An individual can open insolvency proceedings only on their own application: with overdue obligations of 30 minimum wages or more, that is 259,410 UAH in 2026, or after enforcement proceedings have produced nothing. There is one compulsory payment \u2014 an advance of 25,941 UAH for the insolvency practitioner\u2019s fee, paid into the court\u2019s deposit account. A creditor can start a company\u2019s insolvency with no debt threshold at all.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Code of Ukraine on Bankruptcy Procedures has been in force since 21 October 2019 and abolished two rules that older articles still mention: the threshold of 300 minimum wages for a creditor\u2019s application, and the impossibility of a private individual going bankrupt. Since then a company can be put into a procedure over any undisputed debt, and individuals have their own part of the Code, with restructuring and the writing off of the balance.<\/p>\n

The other half of the truth is that there is no such thing as a free bankruptcy. The applicant advances three months of the insolvency practitioner\u2019s fee, a creditor adds a court fee of 33,280 UAH, and an individual declared bankrupt must tell banks of that status for five years. Below: the conditions for opening proceedings, the real cost, the debts that are never written off, and the consequences worth knowing about before filing.<\/p>\n

When insolvency proceedings can be opened<\/h2>\n

For individuals and sole traders, Article 115 applies: proceedings are opened only on the debtor\u2019s own application, and no creditor can force a private individual into bankruptcy. One of four conditions suffices: overdue obligations of 30 minimum wages or more; ceasing to pay more than 50 % of the monthly instalments on loans for two months; a bailiff\u2019s finding that there are no assets to enforce against; or other circumstances showing an inability to pay in the near future. Penalties, interest and other sanctions do not count towards the monetary claims, so the threshold is measured against the principal.<\/p>\n

With companies the logic is the opposite. Both the debtor and a creditor may apply, and the Code sets no minimum for undisputed claims \u2014 the 300 minimum wage rule belonged to the repealed Law \u201cOn Restoring the Solvency of a Debtor\u201d, and citing it in 2026 is a mistake. A creditor\u2019s application must be accompanied by proof of the court fee and of the advance of the insolvency practitioner\u2019s fee, three minimum wages for three months in office.<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Question<\/th>\nIndividual<\/th>\nCompany<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n
Who may apply<\/td>\nOnly the debtor<\/td>\nThe debtor or any creditor<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Minimum debt<\/td>\nFrom 30 minimum wages (259,410 UAH), or another ground in Art. 115<\/td>\nNo threshold<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Court fee on the application<\/td>\nNo rate is set for the debtor<\/td>\n10 subsistence minimums \u2014 33,280 UAH from a creditor<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Advance to the insolvency practitioner<\/td>\n25,941 UAH into the court\u2019s deposit account<\/td>\n25,941 UAH into the court\u2019s deposit account<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Main procedures<\/td>\nDebt restructuring or debt repayment<\/td>\nAsset administration, rehabilitation, liquidation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
How it ends<\/td>\nWriting off the remaining debts, with exceptions<\/td>\nLiquidation or restored solvency<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table><\/div>\n

\"Conditions<\/p>\n

What the procedure costs<\/h2>\n

The main expense is advancing three months of the insolvency practitioner\u2019s fee: three minimum wages, that is 25,941 UAH at the 2026 rate of 8,647 UAH. The money goes not to the practitioner but into the commercial court\u2019s deposit account, and without proof of that payment the court stays the application. A creditor adds the 33,280 UAH court fee for the application to open proceedings, and every creditor lodging monetary claims after the official announcement pays 2 subsistence minimums, that is 6,656 UAH.<\/p>\n

After that the budget depends on the assets. A property valuation<\/a> or a car valuation, register extracts, notarised copies and publications in the Unified Register are all paid for by the debtor or by the creditor who started the case. Legal fees are separate: handling an individual\u2019s bankruptcy<\/a> and handling a company\u2019s insolvency<\/a> differ in paperwork and in the number of hearings; indicative figures are on the page of legal service prices<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Which debts are written off and which remain<\/h2>\n

The point of an individual\u2019s bankruptcy is that once the assets are sold and the creditors paid, the unpaid balance is written off. The Code makes exceptions, and they matter: it does not release you from maintenance obligations, from compensating harm caused by injury, other damage to health or death, from compensating harm caused by a criminal offence, or from the unified social security contribution.<\/p>\n

Debts the debtor concealed from the court are not written off either. A creditor left off the list in the application never enters the register of claims, and once the case closes they will pursue the debt in the ordinary way. So the list of creditors is compiled from statements from every bank and from requests to the credit bureaux, not from memory. Where loans are joined by high-interest microcredit, it is worth costing the alternative first: debt restructuring<\/a> is sometimes cheaper than a full procedure.<\/p>\n

Opening proceedings, step by step<\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Gather the documents on the debts and the assets: loan agreements, arrears calculations, extracts from the State Register of Real Property Rights, vehicle records, a declaration of assets, a copy of the employment record book.<\/li>\n
  2. Draw up the list of creditors with the sums and the basis of each debt. For an individual it is the foundation of the register of claims; for a company it is the basis for checking that claims are undisputed.<\/li>\n
  3. Prepare a draft debt restructuring plan if the debtor is an individual: the Code requires it to be filed with the application, and the plan may not run longer than five years.<\/li>\n
  4. Transfer the advance for the insolvency practitioner \u2014 25,941 UAH into the commercial court\u2019s deposit account \u2014 and, if you are a creditor, pay the 33,280 UAH court fee.<\/li>\n
  5. File the application with the commercial court where the debtor lives or the company is located. The court checks the documents, opens the proceedings, appoints a practitioner and imposes a moratorium on satisfying creditors\u2019 claims.<\/li>\n
  6. Go through the procedure: for an individual, debt restructuring, and if no plan is possible, debt repayment with the sale of assets; for a company, asset administration, rehabilitation or liquidation.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Consequences people learn about too late<\/h2>\n

    Opening proceedings against a business is a ground for an unscheduled documentary audit by the tax authority under subparagraph 78.1.7 of the Tax Code. That is not a punishment but the tax service\u2019s standard reaction to liquidation procedures beginning; still, anything it finds ends in assessments and penalties that become claims in the same case.<\/p>\n

    Directors and founders are not left out either. The Code allows subsidiary liability for the debtor\u2019s obligations to be imposed on them where the insolvency was their fault, in particular where assets were moved out on the eve of the application. For an individual the consequences are milder but long: for five years after being declared bankrupt they must disclose that status when taking a loan or credit and cannot open insolvency proceedings again, and for three years they are not treated as a person of impeccable business reputation.<\/p>\n

    Typical mistakes<\/h2>\n