Legal news in Ukraine: State Bureau of Investigation’s work will be overloaded, Verkhovna Rada adoptes new anti-raider law, law on combating money laundering and changes date when law on criminal misconducts comes into force

Verkhovna Rada adopted law on complete reloading of State Bureau of Investigation’s work

On December 3, 2019, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted the Law «On Amending the Law of Ukraine «On the State Bureau of Investigation» to improve the activities of the State Bureau of Investigation».

The law improved the legal foundations of the organization and activities of the State Bureau of Investigation, eliminated the problematic aspects of a legal, structural, organizational, procedural and personnel nature that were identified during the activities of the Bureau.

The law, in particular, overrides the legal status of the State Bureau of Investigation from the central executive authority conducting law enforcement activities, to the state law enforcement agency, which is tasked with the prevention, detection, suppression, disclosure and investigation of crimes within its competence.

The system of the Bureau, the procedure for approving the organizational structure of the Bureau, the procedure for the formation of territorial departments and the choice of location of Bureau’s regional units are also specified.

The procedure for appointing the director of the Bureau and his powers has been clarified, as well as the principle of unity of command in exercising the powers of the Bureau.

The Director of the State Bureau of Investigation is appointed and dismissed by the President of Ukraine on the proposal of the tender committee. Term of office – 5 years.

The grounds for bringing the employees of the State Bureau of Investigation to disciplinary responsibility were standardized.

The Director of the Bureau will report to the Verkhovna Rada. According to the results of the report, the Verkhovna Rada may declare his work unsatisfactory, which may become the basis for his dismissal from this position.

On the day when the law enters into force, the powers of the Director of the Bureau and his deputies will cease ahead of schedule and the process of reloading the department will take effect.

The Verkhovna Rada adopted a new anti-raider law

On December 5, 2019, the Verkhovna Rada adopted the Law of Ukraine «On Amendments to the Land Code of Ukraine and some other legislative acts to combat raiding».

The law is aimed at ensuring the protection of property rights of owners and users of land plots, preventing the unlawful absorption and seizure of enterprises in the agricultural sector of the economy, solving other issues in the regulation of land relations, improving the procedure for state registration of land plots, rights to them, interaction between the State Land Cadastre and the state register of rights to real estate.

The law amended a number of legislative acts that make it impossible:

misappropriation of land, including through double registration of land lease agreements used by agricultural enterprises;

seizure of agricultural’s property enterprises (buildings and structures, agricultural machinery, crops, other tangible assets);

stopping the activities of agricultural enterprises due to unreasonable seizure of property and assets of enterprises, violent opposition to their production activities, takeover of enterprises through the misappropriation of corporate rights (shares).

Deputies changed the date when the law on criminal misconducts comes into force

On December 3, 2019, the Verkhovna Rada approved the Law of Ukraine «On Amendments to Section II «Transitional Provisions» of the Law of Ukraine «On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on Simplifying Pre-trial Investigation of Certain Categories of Criminal Offenses» of November 22, 2018 № 2617-VIII (regarding the delay in taking effect)».

It should be noted that the Law on the simplification of pre-trial investigation, which introduces the institution of criminal misconduct, was to enter into force on January 1, 2020.

In the text of the aforementioned draft it was proposed to postpone this date for a year – until January 1, 2021.

However, the deputies approved that the institution of criminal misconducts would enter into force on July 1, 2020.

Criminal misconduct is an act (action or inaction), the commission of which is punishable by a fine of not more than three thousand non-taxable minimum incomes of citizens (51 000 UAH) or other punishment not related to deprivation of liberty.

At the same time, crimes are divided according to the term of imprisonment and a fine of: grave and especially grave.

It is proposed that criminal offenses include such common crimes as unskilled theft, fraud, illegal actions with narcotic drugs without the purpose of sale, hooliganism and the like.

In addition, driving in a state of intoxication will now be punished as a criminal misdemeanor (punishment - a fine of 17-34 thousand UAH and a ban on driving for up to three years; and for repeated violation – a fine up to 51 thousand UAH with a ban on driving for 2 to 3 years).

Parliament adopted a law on combating money laundering

On December 6, 2019, the Verkhovna Rada adopted the Law of Ukraine «On the Prevention and Counteraction of the Legalization (Laundering) of Criminally Obtained Incomes, the Financing of Terrorism and the Financing of the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction».

The law improves and clarifies certain legislative norms on the prevention and counteraction of the legalization (laundering) of incomes, as well as harmonizes and improves the provisions of legislative acts by changing the implementation of the provisions of new international standards in the field of combating money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism.

The law has improved the procedure for business entities to disclose their ultimate beneficial owners (controllers).

A transition has been established to tracking money transfers as a tool to prevent, detect and investigate cases of money laundering and terrorist financing, as well as to implement restrictive measures.

The law introduces a duty for payment systems:

accompany money transfers with information about the payer and recipient of the transfer;

ensure the availability and completeness of information about the payer and payee;

establish measures aimed at countering the manipulation of money received from crimes related to the legalization (laundering) of proceeds from crime, the financing of terrorism.