Tax and banking
What bookkeeping does a foreign-owned company in Ukraine need?
Full books from the day of registration to liquidation, even in a quiet month. On the general system the company files payroll and, once registered, VAT reports every month within 20 calendar days, a profit tax return yearly within 60 days if income is under UAH 40 million, and financial statements with that return. A late return costs UAH 340, and UAH 1,020 if repeated within a year.
Key Solutions keeps the books, calculates taxes and payroll, files every report on time and answers tax office requests, in Kyiv and remotely.
The owner chooses who keeps the books: a staff accountant, an accountant registered as a sole proprietor, or an accounting firm under a contract (Law No. 996-XIV, Art. 8(4)). Most owners who live abroad pick the firm. The director still answers for how the books are organised, so the choice decides how much risk you carry.
What the company must keep
- Primary documents for every business transaction: contracts, invoices, acts, bank statements.
- Ledgers and registers built from those documents, plus tax accounting on the same basis.
- An accounting policy the company sets itself, approved by the owner or the body named in the charter.
- Archives. Primary documents, registers and statements are kept for at least five years, and papers behind payments to non-residents for seven (Tax Code, subparas. 44.3.1, 44.3.2).
Accounting never pauses (Law No. 996-XIV, Art. 8(1)). A company with no sales still keeps books and files its returns on time, with zeros where there is nothing to report.
What gets filed and when
| Report | How often | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| VAT return, if registered | monthly | 20 calendar days after the month |
| Payroll report: income tax, military levy, social contribution | monthly | 20 calendar days after the month |
| Profit tax return, income under UAH 40 million | yearly | 60 calendar days after the year |
| Profit tax return, income above UAH 40 million | quarterly | 40 calendar days after the quarter |
| Financial statements | with the profit tax return | same deadline as the return |
| Single tax return, group 3 | quarterly | 40 calendar days after the quarter |
The rates behind these reports, in 2026:
- Profit tax 18% of adjusted accounting profit.
- VAT 20% by default. Registration is compulsory once taxable supplies pass UAH 1,000,000 in the last 12 months.
- Payroll: 18% income tax and 5% military levy withheld from the salary, plus 22% social contribution paid by the company, at least UAH 1,902.34 a month for an employee whose main job is with you.
- Single tax, group 3: 5% of income, or 3% for a VAT payer, plus a 1% military levy. Closed to a company 25% or more owned by legal entities outside the single tax, and a foreign parent company is one of them.
Which regime fits your structure is covered in taxes for a foreign-owned company.
Withholding tax and payments abroad
Every payment to a foreign owner or supplier needs its own tax treatment. The company withholds 15% on dividends, interest and royalties paid to a non-resident, unless a treaty sets a lower rate and a certificate of residence is on file. Consulting, advertising or legal services bought from abroad carry VAT the company charges itself. The full route for profit, including the NBU transfer limits, is in taking dividends out of Ukraine.
A sole proprietor (FOP)
A foreigner registered as a FOP in group 3 pays 5% of income, or 3% with VAT, plus the 1% military levy and a social contribution of at least UAH 1,902.34 a month in 2026. The single tax return is quarterly, and the 2026 income limit is UAH 10,091,049. Income above the limit is taxed at 15%. Setup is in FOP for foreigners.
What a missed deadline costs
| Problem | Fine |
|---|---|
| Return filed late or never filed | UAH 340 per return |
| The same within a year of a previous fine | UAH 1,020 per return |
| Tax underpaid and assessed by the tax office | 10% of the assessed amount |
| The same, done intentionally | 25% of the assessed amount |
The fines come from the Tax Code, paras. 120.1, 123.1–123.2, and late interest is added on top. In an audit you get 10 working days to object to the report and 10 to appeal the decision: see what to do in a tax audit.
How remote bookkeeping works
- Review. The firm checks balances, open settlements, documents and the returns already filed.
- Contract. Scope, the monthly document handover date, who signs reports, and each side's liability.
- Handover. The database, ledgers and documents move from the previous accountant under an act.
- Monthly cycle. Bank and documents posted, taxes and payroll calculated, payment orders prepared.
- Filing. Reports go out electronically through the taxpayer's e-cabinet, and tax office requests get answered.
Your part is a steady flow of documents and a director who signs on time.
Where people get stuck
- Gaps before the switch. A new accountant inherits every open period. If the old books have holes, they get restored first.
- Zero months skipped. A dormant company still owes every return. Fines of UAH 340 per return add up fast across monthly and yearly reports.
- E-cabinet mail to nobody. Tax office letters and audit notices land in the e-cabinet and the email on file. A former accountant's address means deadlines pass unseen.
- Wrong regime from day one. A foreign parent with 25% or more closes the single tax. Check the ownership before you pick the regime.
FAQ
Does a company with no activity file reports?
Yes. Accounting runs without breaks from registration to liquidation, and every return is due on time, even with zeros.
Can the director keep the books personally?
Yes, unless the company must publish its financial statements. In practice an owner abroad hands it to an accounting firm under a contract.
When is VAT registration compulsory?
When taxable supplies over the last 12 calendar months pass UAH 1,000,000 excluding VAT.
What is withheld when the company pays its foreign owner?
15% on dividends to a foreign company unless a treaty sets less, or 5% plus a 5% military levy to a foreign individual from a profit tax payer.
Key Solutions, an audit and tax firm in Kyiv, keeps the books of Ukrainian companies, sole proprietors and representative offices of foreign companies, in Kyiv and remotely. It posts documents and bank statements, calculates taxes, payroll and the social contribution, registers VAT invoices, files the reports within the deadlines and answers tax office requests. If the books have gaps, it proposes restoring them before the takeover.
Key Solutions (keys.ua) is part of the same group as Ukraine For ALL.
Ask about your case
Your question reaches the Ukraine For ALL team in Kyiv. Where it needs a lawyer or an accountant, a firm of our group answers, for this topic Key Solutions (keys.ua).
General information on how the procedure works in Ukraine. Your case may have its own details: describe it in the form and you get an answer for your situation.
Ukraine For ALL is part of one group with the law and tax firms named on this page.
Ukraine For ALL, Kyiv · Kyiv, 77 Velyka Vasylkivska St. · info@ua4all.org