Starting October 1, Ukraine will introduce limits on P2P transfers of up to UAH 150,000 per month, with exceptions for volunteers

As of today, the NBU is imposing restrictions on card-to-card money transfers by individuals, with certain exceptions.

How will the restriction work?

• The limit reaches UAH 150,000 per month and applies exclusively to outgoing card-to-card transfers (P2P, C2C).
• The restriction will take into account transactions on all accounts opened with the same bank.
• The restriction is temporary and will be in effect for six months.
• There is no limit on the number of transactions.

What are the exceptions?

• If the client confirm If the income exceeds UAH 150,000 per month, this limit will not apply to him.
• Transfers of funds between the client’s own accounts opened in the same bank, transfers of legal entities and transactions using IBAN — details will not be limited.
• The limits will not apply to accounts of volunteers who have identified themselves as such — there are five criteria for this (at least two must be met).

What criteria should volunteers meet to avoid restrictions?

• The individual is officially registered as a volunteer.
• Holding a volunteer meeting is a typical activity on an individual’s accounts.
• An individual has submitted a letter from a government agency/military unit/charitable foundation regarding cooperation in organizing a fundraiser.
• The individual provided information on the planned amount and timing of fundraising, indicating the purpose of such fundraising and the further use of the funds raised.
• The available information from open sources, social media and the Internet confirms that the individual is engaged in volunteer activities and the purpose of the volunteer meeting.

How to note the National Bank, transfers to the accounts of 98% of Ukrainian bank customers do not exceed the limit, so the changes will not affect their financial activity «. Instead, the limit should help combat the so-called drop schemes — when fraudsters conduct financial transactions through third-party cards (the total amount realized through such transactions reaches UAH 200 billion per year).

The NBU plans to develop alternative solutions to fight fraudsters during the time the restriction is in effect: in particular, it is planning to adopt draft law No. 11043, which provides for an increase in the number of fines for violators of payment legislation; and to create a relevant register of violators for banks.