There aren’t enough funds to pay soldiers’ salaries even for two months: what else will change in the budget-2027

Ukraine has run short of funds to pay monetary allowances to servicemembers even for the next two months. To cover the need, changes to the state budget must be made and cooperation with international partners strengthened, said Member of Parliament Vadym Ivchenko.

According to him, defense financing remains one of the key issues when reviewing the state budget draft for 2027 year.

At the same time, the government built record expenditures into the draft budget – 7,272 trillion hryvnias. Of that, almost 4,9 trillion hryvnias are allocated to the security and defense sector. Ukraine’s need for international support next year is estimated at $52,6 billion.

To find additional revenues, the government is proposing a range of tax changes. In particular, this involves a possible increase of the VAT rate by one percentage point and an increase of the fuel excise by four. More than 131 billion hryvnias of revenues in the draft budget depend on the adoption of the respective tax changes.

Another source of revenue is expected to be taxation of international parcels — according to the government’s calculations, this could provide about 12 billion hryvnias.

At the same time, the budget provides for a partial restoration of the State Road Fund. They plan to allocate 52,8 billion hryvnias to it — that is 25% of the fund’s envisaged mechanism. Of this sum, 34,2 billion hryvnias are to go to maintenance and development of state roads, 8,5 billion hryvnias to local roads, and another 10,1 billion hryvnias to debt repayment.

Separately, funds obtained from the activities of the State Bureau of Economic Security (SBES), the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU), the State Bureau of Investigation (DBR), ARMA, fines, and permits for arms exports are planned to be directed to the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Today the Verkhovna Rada is considering the draft state budget for 2027 year.

Social expenditures in the draft state budget-2027 also remain substantial: 540,3 billion hryvnias are allocated for social payments and measures of the Ministry of Social Policy. Total budget revenues are expected to amount to 5,648 trillion hryvnias, meaning the state plans to spend approximately 1,624 trillion hryvnias more than it will receive in revenues.

Recall that the Verkhovna Rada approved Ukraine’s budget for 2026 year. The largest shares of funding will go to defense, social protection, and economic recovery. Education, healthcare, and assistance to displaced persons are also in focus.