According to the State Tax Service of Ukraine (STS), the average salary among licensees (a licensee is a company holding a retail licence to sell excise goods) as of 1 October 2026 was 36 593 UAH, which is 26.7% higher than in October 2025.
The number of business entities failing to meet pay requirements has fallen sharply over the year. The number of enterprises that do not provide the minimum wage level fell by 93.3%: as of 1 October 2026 there were 702 such licensees left, or 9 908 fewer than in October 2025.
The number of licensees with fewer officially employed staff than trading places also decreased by 95%. There are currently 148 such business entities, which is 2 616 fewer than a year ago.
Since 1 October 2025 the STS has been informing licensees about the minimum pay requirements via the Taxpayer’s Electronic Cabinet, official information resources, individual tax consultations and explanatory work by its territorial bodies.
The territorial bodies of the STS carry out on-site inspections to identify violations. As a result of these inspections the action of 4 775 licences was suspended for failing to meet minimum pay requirements for three consecutive months.
Inspections also uncover other violations in the circulation of excise goods: sales without excise tax stamps or with forged stamps, violations of established prices, failure to issue fiscal receipts and failure to use cash registers (RRO) / software cash registers (PRRO). Financial penalties of 51.7 million UAH have been applied for such breaches.
From 1 October 2025 Article 42 of Law No. 3817-IX establishes requirements for the minimum level of pay for business entities that sell at retail alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, e-liquids for electronic cigarettes and fuel.
The level of the average monthly salary depends on the enterprise’s location and the size of the retail floor area.
If a licensee does not comply with the established requirements for three consecutive months, Article 46 of Law No. 3817-IX provides for suspension of the licence. “The purpose of these provisions is to counter the payment of wages ‘in envelopes’, to ensure official employment and equal conditions for doing business,” the STS said.
