Increase in Parliamentary Payments in the 2026 Budget: What You Need to Know

The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has approved the draft state budget for 2026, which foresees a substantial increase in payments for Members of Parliament. According to the conclusions of the budget committee, the compensation for expenses incurred by lawmakers in connection with the performance of their duties will rise from one to three monthly salaries.

At present, the salary of a Member of Parliament before tax deductions is about 60-65 thousand hryvnias. Thus, in 2026, MPs will receive about 200 thousand hryvnias for parliamentary activities, which includes expenses for maintaining public offices and working with bills.

Finally, the deputies decided to suspend the action of part four of Article 32 of the law "On the Status of a Member of Parliament," which regulates payments. This decision is confirmed by the MPs themselves during unofficial conversations.

Funding for the 2026 Budget

According to information from the Ministry of Finance, expenditures on the security and defense sector in 2026 will amount to 2.8 trillion hryvnias, which constitutes 27% of GDP. The head of the budget committee, Roksolana Pidlasa, noted that this budget is not final and will likely be revised next year. Finance Minister Serhii Marchenko stated that state expenditures depend on negotiations with international partners regarding external financing.

The EU proposes to cover two-thirds of Ukraine's financial needs for the next two years — that is, 90 billion euros. The rest of the funding is to be provided by international partners.

Prospects for Changes in 2026

The volume of Ukraine's budget revenues after revising the draft has increased to 2 trillion 918 billion hryvnias, while expenditures have increased to 4 trillion 835 billion hryvnias. Deputy Oleksandr Korniienko emphasized that the payment system in the army also requires reform and that the issue of increasing military salaries will be addressed in 2026 after securing financing for the state budget deficit.

Thus, the new budget has a significant impact on financing not only parliamentary expenses but also social needs, particularly in the area of security and defense of Ukraine.