“Difficult decision”: Hetmantsev proposes raising bank tax to 50%

Danylo Hetmantsev, head of the Verkhovna Rada’s Tax Committee, has for the third time proposed raising the corporate income tax rate for banks from the current 25% to 50%. He announced this on Telegram.

Unlike previous initiatives, the proposed increase would not apply retroactively.

“This year, as promised, we did not raise taxes, and banks are paying corporate income tax at the standard rate of 25%. But the war continues, and every year the security and defense sector requires more and more funding. Even now, as we prepare the state budget for 2026, we are forced to make difficult decisions. To ensure predictability in tax policy, I believe it is appropriate to raise the issue of a temporary increase in the corporate income tax rate for banks in 2026 in advance,” the MP wrote.

The draft law he submitted sets a 50% tax rate for banks, while also prohibiting them from offsetting previous years’ losses.

According to Hetmantsev, this measure could bring an additional UAH 30 billion to the state budget.

• The Verkhovna Rada first introduced a 50% tax on bank profits in 2023. It was initially intended as a one-off measure, with the base rate returning to 25% in 2024. However, in October 2024, lawmakers once again raised the rate to 50%.
• At the beginning of 2025, Hetmantsev said there were no plans to increase the income tax for banks that year, citing a Constitutional Court ruling on tax stability that prohibits retroactive increases.