The Ukrainian Agri Council welcomes the signing by the President of Ukraine of the Law “On Amendments to the Section ‘Final and Transitional Provisions’ of the Civil Code of Ukraine Regarding the Specifics of Lending and Financial Leasing During the Period of Martial Law” and sincerely thanks the President for supporting the agricultural sector during this critically difficult period.

This decision is the result of a three-year struggle by the agrarian community for justice.

Since the beginning of the war, the UAC has insisted on the need for legislative regulation of credit pressure on farmers who have suffered as a result of the war, in particular due to the occupation or destruction of farms.

Before the law was signed, farmers had remained without legal protection. Banks had been continuing to impose fines, collected debts in full, and initiated court cases. Often, these lawsuits had extended not only to businesses but also to individual guarantors, leading to the seizure of accounts, loss of housing, transportation, and other assets. In many cases, this had become a death sentence for agribusinesses.

The UAC has repeatedly raised this issue at conferences and in dialogue with government officials and parliament. We called on the President to sign the law as soon as possible. And finally, we have a result — the law has been signed.

The document provides for:

• A prohibition on the imposition of fines and penalties for late payment during martial law and for one year after its end.
• Deferral of the principal amount of the loan while hostilities and their consequences continue.
• A moratorium on the forced seizure of property if the farm is located in a combat zone or temporarily occupied territory.

These provisions will save hundreds of farms from bankruptcy and allow farming families to keep their homes, land, equipment, and the opportunity to resume work.

"We have been waiting for this decision for three long years. We are sincerely grateful to President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi for hearing our voice. We thank Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture of Ukraine Taras Vysotskyi, for his assistance and support of farmers. I thank the UAC team, which has worked tirelessly on the bill. Farmers who have lost everything will no longer be left alone to face the courts, enforcement agencies, and banks. This law will save hundreds of lives," said the UAC Chairman Andrii Dykun.

The Ukrainian Agri Council will continue to support its members in legal and organizational issues related to the implementation of the law, as well as protect the interests of agribusiness during and after the war.