Protecting the investment

Can you insure an investment in Ukraine against war risk?

Published 29 October 2026 · facts checked against the primary sources on 2026-10-29 · Ukraine For ALL, Kyiv

Protection comes in four layers: insurance you buy, the state's share of the premium, state compensation for destroyed property, and the legal guarantees of the 1996 foreign investment law. Each layer has its own conditions and gaps.

Who insures investments against war risk?

The terms of ECA investment cover and the list of war and political risks it covers are set by the Cabinet of Ministers together with the National Bank (Law No. 1792-VIII, Art. 6).

How does the state help pay the premium?

Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1541 of 28 November 2025 (version of 23 October 2026) runs a programme that repays part of the war-risk premium. The Export Credit Agency pays on behalf of the state.

The covered war risks are direct or indirect impact of missiles, drones of any type, air-defence and missile-defence assets or their debris, and fire, explosion or blast wave caused by them (para. 33(1)). A policy may cover other risks too, and the state then repays only the war-risk part.

Example of the formula. With a war-risk tariff of 2.5% and a war-risk sum insured of UAH 40 million, the compensation is (2.5% − 1%) × 40,000,000 = UAH 600,000. The figures are illustrative; the tariff is set by the insurer.

What if property is destroyed without insurance?

The same resolution runs a second programme for destroyed or damaged business property:

• it covers property located in, or moving through, territories of increased risk (para. 2);
• the damage must have happened on or after 1 January 2026, while the business was already a participant (para. 7);
• the total cap is UAH 30 million per business for the whole life of the programme (para. 8);
• payments are made only within the budget money received for it; without funding, nothing is paid and the participation fee is kept (para. 32).

What does Ukrainian law guarantee the investor?

The Law on the Regime of Foreign Investment No. 93/96-ВР guarantees transfer abroad of profits after tax (Art. 12) and keeps earlier guarantees for 10 years if the law changes (Art. 8). Two wartime laws run beside it:

• Law No. 4765-VI allows forced alienation of private property for state needs under martial law, by decision of the military command agreed with the civil administration, and in combat areas by the military command alone (Art. 4).
• Law No. 2116-IX provides for the seizure of property of the Russian Federation and its residents.

Where an international treaty of Ukraine sets other rules, the treaty applies (Law No. 93/96-ВР, Art. 6). A bilateral investment treaty between Ukraine and your home state can therefore matter more than any single guarantee in Ukrainian law. For projects above EUR 12 million, a special investment contract may choose international arbitration seated abroad (Law No. 1116-IX, Art. 19). The structure of these guarantees is set out in What a Foreign Investor Actually Deals With in Ukraine.

What about multilateral cover?

MIGA reports that, as of June 2026, it had issued USD 573 million of guarantees in Ukraine since February 2022, with a further USD 32 million in preparation, and USD 920 million of new business volume including tenor extensions. Donor countries support this through its SURE Trust Fund. MIGA also lists partnerships with the EBRD and the U.S. Development Finance Corporation (DFC).

Since 11 August 2026 the National Bank allows transfers abroad to DFC under contracts that cover political risks (NBU Resolution No. 90 of 10 August 2026).

Steps to put cover in place

1. Decide what you protect: the equity in a Ukrainian company, a loan to it, or the company's physical assets. Each one has a different insurer.
2. For physical assets, ask the insurer to price war risk separately and apply for the premium programme when you sign. A bundled premium does not qualify.
3. Keep the policy to 365 days or less and renew it each year.
4. Check the treaty position between Ukraine and the investor's home state before you choose the holding structure.
5. Write the risk allocation into the investment agreement: who insures, who bears an uninsured loss, and how a forced alienation or a stop in operations affects the parties' obligations.

Where people get stuck

• War risk hidden in a general premium. Without a separate sum insured, tariff and premium for war risk, the state repays nothing.
• A multi-year policy. Policies longer than 365 days fall outside the premium programme.
• Damage before joining. The compensation programme pays only for damage after the business became a participant.
• Budget-limited payments. Damage compensation depends on budget funding, so it works as a backstop, and the commercial cover stays primary.

FAQ

Does the Ukrainian state insure foreign investments?

The Export Credit Agency may insure and reinsure direct investments into Ukraine against war and political risks under Article 6 of Law No. 1792-VIII. The terms and the list of covered risks come from the Cabinet of Ministers with the National Bank.

How much of the war-risk premium does the state repay?

The difference between the war-risk tariff and 1%, multiplied by the war-risk sum insured, capped at UAH 5 million per business per calendar year (Resolution No. 1541, paras. 35–36).

Which policies qualify for premium compensation?

Policies concluded after 1 January 2026, for no more than 365 days, with war risk priced separately and no early termination except the policyholder's statutory withdrawal (para. 33–34).

Is there compensation for property destroyed by a strike?

Yes, for participants of the programme: up to UAH 30 million per business over the programme's life, for property in territories of increased risk damaged from 1 January 2026, and only within budget funding.

Can property be taken by the state during martial law?

Yes. Law No. 4765-VI allows forced alienation of private property for state needs by decision of the military command, with the agreement of the civil administration outside combat areas.