Imprisonment for false statements in the declaration has not been provided for – the respective law has been signed

On December 23, a law was signed that aims to restore criminal liabilities for declaring false data and intentional failure to file a declaration.  This law was voted for by all parliamentary factions and groups. The National Agency on Corruption Prevention (the NACP) would like to remind that this law does not provide for imprisonment in the event that a top official intentionally fails to declare his/her property, or intentionally fails to file a declaration. “While society expects adequate punishment for corruptionists, the NACP has been deprived of any possibility to demonstrate that officials are truly held liable for false data in declarations.  We hope that such a situation will not remain unresolved, and Parliament will make relevant amendments to the law”, — the NACP Head, Oleksandr Novikov, stated. The law provides that even in the event that a person fails to declare assets for more than 4000 non-taxable minimums (~UAH 8 million), he/ she may be punished with a fine for up to UAH 85 thousand, community service or imprisonment for up to 2 years. Hence, even if the official failed to declare his/ her own Bertram yacht, Bugatti automobile or Rolex watch, he/ she may be punished by a fine of a little over 1% of the value of the undeclared assets. However, the work of the NACP remains blocked.  The Law restoring the Agency’s functions has not yet entered into force. The NACP’s position remains unchanged: deliberate indication of false data for more than UAH 1 million should be punishable by imprisonment.