Ukraine Payroll Employment Guide

Ukraine requires written employment contracts in Ukrainian (or bilingual with Ukrainian prevailing) that set out job role and performance criteria, salary in UAH (including overtime and bonuses), working time and breaks, workplace and relocation terms, contract type (indefinite or objectively justified fixed-term), probation conditions, and all statutory entitlements such as annual leave, sick pay, and maternity/paternity rights. Contracts must be signed by both parties, retained in personnel files, and available for labour inspection; multiple part-time contracts are allowed if documented separately. Employees must be properly classified as workers (indefinite, fixed-term, probationary) or genuinely independent contractors with real business autonomy, as sham “contractor” arrangements are frequently reclassified, triggering back pay, arrears of Unified Social Contribution (USC), tax liabilities, and potential reinstatement. Employers must register with the State Tax Service and social funds, calculate monthly payroll with PIT at 18%, military tax at 1.5%, and employer USC at roughly 22% of gross salary, and file electronic returns and remittances by statutory deadlines. Employees are entitled to at least 24 calendar days’ paid annual leave (accruing after six months), social-insurance-backed sick pay, 126 days’ fully paid maternity leave, unpaid parental leave to age three, and coverage under USC-funded pension, sickness, injury, and unemployment schemes, plus fully paid public holidays. Statutory social insurance and leave rights cannot be waived or replaced by private schemes. Since 2022, wartime emergency measures (on suspensions, notices, and certain procedures) must be monitored and applied.