The current subsistence minimum in Ukraine does not reflect the actual needs of citizens. Authorities are preparing to revise the indicator to align it with the real cost of living.

15.09.2025

Danylo Hetmantsev, head of the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy, outlined the initiative in an interview with RBC-Ukraine.

“We need to tell people the amount they can realistically live on. And that is not 2,000 hryvnias, nor even 8,000, as we currently assume,” he said.

According to Hetmantsev, Ukraine’s market basket must be modernised.

“We need to state clearly: in Ukraine, it is possible to live on a fairly calculated amount of 10,000–12,000 hryvnias,” he added.

Minimum Wage and Pensions

 The lawmaker argued that the subsistence minimum should be linked to the non-taxable minimum, as well as to the minimum wage and minimum pension (adjusted for disability).

“The logic is simple: if I pay someone the minimum wage, I cannot tax it – because a person cannot survive on that,” Hetmantsev explained.

He also noted that for people unable to work, the minimum pension will be tied to the subsistence minimum. Disability pensions, he said, would rise according to a schedule funded by reducing the shadow economy.

“If I say the minimum pension should immediately be raised to 4,500 hryvnias, instead of the current 2,300, and that this could be financed solely from the tobacco industry – 20 billion hryvnias – that becomes something tangible,” Hetmantsev stressed.

Tackling the Shadow Economy as a Means of Financial Growth

Raising the subsistence minimum and pensions, he argued, is impossible without shrinking the shadow sector.

Hetmantsev emphasized that reducing tax evasion would free up resources for social support, adding: “When you don’t get a receipt because a seller avoids paying taxes, they are stealing directly from you.”

Legislative Measures Already Underway

 According to Hetmantsev, the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian Parliament) is already reviewing draft laws that would decouple public sector wages from the subsistence minimum.

“I am convinced this must be done now. A law has already been submitted to unlink the subsistence minimum from salaries. In total, there are four bills in the package. They are already on the floor and being voted on. We will definitely delink wages from the subsistence minimum, which will ease pressure on the budget,” he said.

What Is the Subsistence Minimum?

The subsistence minimum is a basic state social standard used to define government guarantees and benchmarks across income, housing, utilities, social protection, culture, healthcare, and education. The Ministry of Social Policy has proposed abolishing the indicator altogether.

The last increase took effect on 1^st January 2024, setting the subsistence minimum at 2,920 hryvnias.

The Finance Ministry has proposed raising it in 2026, in line with expected inflation, to the following levels:

• Per capita: 3,209 hryvnias
• Children under 6: 2,817 hryvnias
• Children aged 6–18: 3,512 hryvnias
• Working-age adults: 3,328 hryvnias
• People unable to work (minimum pension): 2,595 hryvnias (currently 2,361).

Source: https://www.rbc.ua/rus/news/realniy-prozhitkoviy-minimum-perevishchue-1757925037.html