Utilities during the war: No more paying for destroyed housing — President signs law

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law that radically changes the rules for charging housing and communal services for destroyed and damaged housing. The document is designed to eliminate one of the most painful problems of wartime – payment for real estate that is actually uninhabitable.

What is changing

From now on, the law clearly defines:

in the event of complete destruction of housing, the charging of communal services is completely stopped;

if the object is damaged and uninhabitable, payment is suspended for the appropriate period;
the basis for such decisions is an official inspection of the condition of the real estate.

Data on the extent of damage will be transmitted to authorities and service providers for correct recalculation.

Debts and occupation

The law pays special attention to debts that arose after February 24, 2022, in particular:

during periods of active hostilities;

during temporary occupation.

It is envisaged that such debts will be settled taking into account the real circumstances in which the homeowners find themselves.

New rules for managers

The document also establishes additional requirements for managers of apartment buildings. They are obliged to:

ensure transparent reporting on the services provided;
take into account the actual condition of the facilities when calculating payments.
When will it come into effect

The provisions of the law will be in effect during martial law and after its end. At the same time, practical implementation depends on the by-laws that the government is to develop in the near future.

Experts note that the adoption of this law is an important step towards social justice and protection of the rights of citizens who lost their homes due to the war.