Ukraine's budget falls short by 99 billion hryvnias over nine months, says parliamentary budget chief
Roksolana Pidlasa, head of the Verkhovna Rada's budget committee, reported that Ukraine's state budget revenue plan for the first nine months of the year was underfulfilled by 49.5 billion hryvnias, with major taxes missing their targets by a combined 99 billion hryvnias. She described the situation as critical and tied the shortfall to Russian strikes on businesses, while noting that the expected second EU macro-financial assistance tranche of $4.26 billion is urgently needed.
Key points
- General fund revenue (excluding international grants) totalled 1.9 trillion hryvnias in January–September, 49.5 billion short of plan
- Two-thirds of the shortfall — 32 billion hryvnias — fell in August and September
- Major taxes missed the plan by 99 billion hryvnias: import VAT -35.7 billion, domestic VAT -32.9 billion, excise -19.1 billion, state enterprise dividends -10.8 billion
- Defence spending reached 2 trillion hryvnias, or 61.3% of general fund expenditure
- Domestic government bond (OVDP) placements contributed 350.6 billion hryvnias to the general fund
- International aid for budget expenditures totalled about $22 billion over nine months
- Pidlasa called the situation critical pending the second EU macro-financial assistance tranche of $4.26 billion
Why it matters
With defence accounting for over 61% of general fund spending, the 99-billion-hryvnia shortfall in major taxes directly threatens the financing of the war effort. Two-thirds of the underperformance fell in the last two months alone, indicating an accelerating gap rather than a one-off miss. The expected $4.26 billion EU tranche is positioned by the budget committee chair as the critical bridge until that gap can be closed.
What happened
Roksolana Pidlasa, head of the Verkhovna Rada's Committee on Budget, reported that the state budget's general fund received 1.9 trillion hryvnias in the first nine months of the year, excluding international grants. The revenue plan was missed by 49.5 billion hryvnias, 32 billion of which fell in August and September. Major taxes collectively underperformed the plan by 99 billion hryvnias: import VAT by 35.7 billion (6.8%), domestic VAT by 32.9 billion (11.4%), excise by 19.1 billion (16.5%), and dividends from state enterprises by 10.8 billion (16%). Pidlasa attributed the revenue decline to ongoing Russian strikes on Ukrainian businesses. She noted that defence spending reached 2 trillion hryvnias, or 61.3% of all general fund expenditure. She also reported that 350.6 billion hryvnias from OVDP placements flowed into the general fund, and that about $22 billion in international assistance was used for general fund expenditures over the period. Pidlasa described the situation as critical and stated that it would remain so until the second EU macro-financial assistance tranche of $4.26 billion is received.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
The available Ukrainian source presented Pidlasa's briefing as an official parliamentary-level statement from the relevant committee chair, lending it institutional weight. It framed the revenue shortfall explicitly as a consequence of Russian strikes on Ukrainian businesses, foregrounding the security factor as the principal cause of fiscal pressure.
Background
Import VAT remained the single largest source of budget revenue at 491 billion hryvnias, a structure that leaves the budget highly sensitive to fluctuations in import volumes. Domestic borrowing through OVDP placements contributed a further 350.6 billion hryvnias to the general fund, indicating that internal borrowing plays a substantial role alongside tax revenue and external aid.