On 8 October, the Parliament of Ukraine supported in the first reading the draft law No. 5837 “On the basic principles of state supervision (control)”.
The document, developed by the Ministry of Economy jointly with the State Regulatory Service and BRDO experts, is aimed at creating a favourable business environment and developing small and medium-sized enterprises. The adoption of these amendments was recommended at a meeting of The Interagency Working Group on the Accelerated Review of Instruments of State Regulation (IWG).
What is changing for business?
- Fewer inspections for insured entrepreneurs. If the entrepreneur is insured and has a medium or low risk level, the number of scheduled inspections will be reduced.
- Audit as a preventive measure. Entrepreneurs will be able to engage specialists to conduct an audit to identify and eliminate violations without imposing fines. A positive audit conclusion will reduce the number of scheduled inspections by one and a half times.
- Public councils in control bodies. Business representatives will be involved in the work of public councils, which will increase the transparency of the complaints process and reduce the burden on the courts through pre-trial settlement.
- Electronicisation of processes. The updated Inspection Portal will provide an opportunity to file complaints, waive comprehensive inspections and exchange documents online. This will significantly reduce time and resources for entrepreneurs and government agencies.
- Responsibility of control bodies. The heads of the controlling bodies will be responsible for violations of procedures by their subordinates, and if the court confirms the illegality of the decision, the officials will be subject to disciplinary action.
The draft law also strengthens the protection of citizens’ rights and encourages business to be held accountable by eliminating unfair schemes for evading legitimate inspections.
Why is this important?
This draft law is part of a large-scale deregulation that is part of one of the four strategic goals of the SME Strategy adopted by the Government – to restore and facilitate business.
The deregulatory approach of the Strategy is in line with the EU’s goal of simplifying the regulatory environment and will help small and medium-sized businesses grow. The priority is to take into account the needs of SMEs according to the “Think small first” principle.
The adoption of this draft law is also a fulfilment of one of the points of the Ukraine Plan.
Ukraine Facility is a program of financial support for Ukraine from the EU in the amount of 50 billion euros, which will be directed to the Ukrainian economy during 2024-2027. Funds from European partners will not be able to fully cover the country’s budget deficit, but they will definitely make a significant contribution to the stability of our economy.
The plan for the Ukraine Facility is a technical document necessary for the launch of the program. The implementation of the Plan will contribute to the European integration of Ukraine and the further sustainable development of the economy.
As a reminder, the IWG on Deregulation has already reviewed more than 1,300 regulatory instruments, a significant part of which was recommended for cancellation or simplification.
Better Regulation Delivery Office (BRDO) joined the work of the IWG within the EU4Business: SME Policies and Institutions Support (SMEPIS) project, implemented by Ecorys in a consortium with GIZ, BRDO and Civitta with the financial support of the European Union. The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of SMEPIS and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Union.