Authorities plan to increase fines for businesses that obstruct inspections
In Ukraine, there is a proposal to significantly increase fines for violations of laws on prices and pricing. Specifically, companies that fail to comply with an order from a regulatory authority or obstruct an inspection could face a fine of up to 102,000 hryvnias, instead of the current 34,000. However, this is still only a bill—it has been registered with the Verkhovna Rada and referred to committees for review.
Ukraine aims to increase business liability for violations of state price regulation rules. The corresponding bill, No. 16098, was registered in the Verkhovna Rada on September 23, 2026. The document provides for amendments to the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses. The bill is currently being reviewed by parliamentary committees. This means the proposed fines have not yet become new rules for businesses.
Penalties for businesses could see the sharpest increase. The fine for providing inaccurate information to a regulatory authority is proposed to rise from 17,000 to 51,000 hryvnias.
The penalty for failing to comply with an order or obstructing an inspection will increase even more. Currently, a business can be fined up to 34,000 hryvnias for such a violation. The bill proposes increasing this to 102,000 hryvnias—effectively tripling the amount.
What fines are being proposed
The changes will not apply only to businesses. Separately, the bill proposes increasing administrative fines for citizens and public officials. For violating the rules governing the setting and application of state-regulated prices, a citizen may face a fine of 2,550 hryvnias, and a public official—3,400 hryvnias.
If such a violation is repeated within a year, the fines may increase to 3,400 and 4,250 hryvnias, respectively. For failure to comply with a lawful requirement of a regulatory authority, the proposed fine is 5,100 hryvnias for a citizen and 5,950 hryvnias for a public official.
Thus, the authors of the bill aim to increase penalties for several different violations at once—ranging from the improper application of regulated prices to attempts to prevent inspectors from conducting an audit.
Why the Decision to Change the Fines
One of the main reasons was the results of inspections in the pharmaceutical market. According to data cited in the bill’s supporting materials, between January and August 2026, the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection conducted 634 unscheduled inspections regarding compliance with state-regulated prices. Violations were found in 412 cases. In 65 of those cases, obstacles were created to hinder the inspections.
The explanatory note to the bill also notes that the proportion of inspections in which violations were detected rose from 29% in 2025 to 65% in 2026. One of the most common violations was the overcharging of maximum wholesale and retail markups on pharmaceuticals.
The State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection separately reported that during the first eight months of 2026, it conducted large-scale inspections of compliance with pricing rules in the pharmaceutical market. According to its data, violations were found in approximately two out of every three inspections.
In other words, the authors of the bill link the increase in fines not only to a formal update of sanctions. The aim is to make price controls more effective and compel businesses to take the requirements of regulatory authorities more seriously.
What Will Happen to Price Gouging
At the same time, not all sanctions are proposed to be changed. The penalty for unjustified overpricing of regulated prices is planned to remain unchanged. As is currently the case, the violator must return the illegally obtained proceeds and pay an additional fine equal to 100% of the unjustifiably obtained funds.
In other words, if a company received money due to an unjustified increase in a regulated price, it will have to not only return that amount but also pay a fine equal to that amount. It is also proposed to retain the current rule for cases where a consumer was charged for a good that, by law, should have been provided free of charge. In such cases, the fine will amount to the full cost of the good in question.
Who Will Be Most Affected by the Changes
In practice, the new rules may be particularly important for companies operating in sectors subject to state price regulation. A significant portion of the inspections that served as the basis for drafting the bill involved pharmacies and other participants in the pharmaceutical market.
Monitoring drug prices remains one of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection’s key areas of focus. In the first half of 2026, the service reported conducting 607 inspections of businesses selling medications and medical devices. Violations of pricing rules were recorded in 406 cases. However, the new bill is not limited to the pharmaceutical market. Its provisions generally address violations of legislation on prices and pricing.
What’s Next
Currently, Bill No. 16098 has not been adopted. It has been referred to the relevant parliamentary committees for review, where the document may still be amended. Therefore, the fine of 102,000 hryvnias is not yet a new mandatory sanction for businesses. This is a proposed amount that will take effect only after the bill passes all necessary stages and the law enters into force.
If Parliament supports the proposed changes, it will become significantly more costly for businesses to attempt to conceal information from regulatory authorities or prevent them from conducting inspections. The maximum fine in such cases could increase from 34,000 to 102,000 hryvnias.
