Salaries, reservations and grants: Ukraine enters September with new rules for business and education

With the beginning of September, a number of changes for citizens and businesses come into force in Ukraine. The new school year starts, teachers' salaries, student scholarships and salaries of "Ukrzaliznytsia" employees increase, and salary requirements for reservation are tightened. At the same time, the rules for grant support of business, connection to power grids and use of electronic signatures are changing. And already on September 4, a 2000 hryvnia banknote will appear in circulation.

The new school year will last until the end of June

The 2026/2027 school year in schools officially starts on September 1 and will last until June 30, 2027. At the same time, this does not mean that in all schools classes will end exactly on June 30: the date of the last bell and the structure of the school year will be determined by the educational institutions themselves.

The format of education - full-time, distance or mixed - will depend on the security situation. Relevant decisions are made by regional and Kyiv city military administrations together with the founders of educational institutions.

Free meals expanded to all grades

From September 1, all pupils of grades 1-11 (12) of communal schools who study full-time or in a mixed format will receive free hot meals. The program should cover about 3 million children.

For September-November, the state directed more than UAH 7.4 billion to local budgets. Funding is calculated at UAH 50 per day for a primary school pupil and UAH 60 for pupils of basic and specialized secondary education.

English becomes compulsory in older groups of kindergartens

Another change concerns preschool education. From September, English becomes a compulsory part of the educational program for older preschool children - 5-6 years old - in all preschool institutions.

Simultaneously, 150 academic lyceums across Ukraine are moving to the second stage of piloting the specialized senior school reform. The full-scale launch of the new senior school model is planned for September 2027.

Student scholarships double

From September 1, academic scholarships for students of vocational, professional pre-higher and higher education double.

The usual academic scholarship in higher education institutions increases from UAH 2000 to UAH 4000 per month, in professional pre-higher education institutions - from UAH 1510 to UAH 3020, and in vocational institutions - from UAH 1250 to UAH 2500.

For university students of specialties for which an increased scholarship is provided, the payment will be UAH 5100. Named and academic scholarships of the Cabinet of Ministers for higher education students increase to UAH 8000.

Teachers' salaries raise

From September, official salaries of pedagogical and scientific-pedagogical workers increase by another 20%. In January they were already increased by 30%, so the total increase in 2026 is 50% compared to 2025.

It is important that this is not a separate allowance, but an increase in the official salary itself, from which other additional payments and allowances are calculated.

Schools are also switching to a new wage mechanism instead of the Unified tariff schedule. According to the Ministry of Education and Science, the total salary of school employees including allowances and additional payments will range from UAH 16.6 thousand to UAH 37 thousand accrued, or approximately from UAH 12.8 thousand to UAH 28.5 thousand after taxes.

For preschool and out-of-school education financed from local budgets, the transition to the new mechanism will depend on the decision of the respective community.

"Ukrzaliznytsia" raises salaries

From September 1, the salaries of more than 150 thousand workers of "Ukrzaliznytsia" increase by 10-15%. First of all, additional funds should be directed to representatives of scarce professions - workers who repair rolling stock, maintain tracks and restore damaged infrastructure.

The company connects the next stage of salary review with further financial capabilities of the railway.

For reservation, the salary criterion increases

From September 1, the rules for reserving employees of critically important enterprises change. The general salary criterion increases from 2.5 to three minimum wages.

Since the minimum wage in 2026 is UAH 8647, the new threshold is UAH 25,941 per month.

At the same time, the legislation provides exceptions for certain categories of enterprises and employees. In particular, special conditions remain for critically important enterprises that actually operate in areas of possible or active hostilities.

In addition, by September 1, state bodies had to review previously issued decisions on the status of critically important enterprises. For companies that submitted documents for confirmation on time, a mechanism for preserving such status is provided.

For entrepreneurs, the grant program changes

One of the important changes for business, which was not in the initial list, - from September 1, the updated procedure for state grant support "Own Business" comes into effect.

The new model divides support into two main areas. For starting a business, grants from UAH 100 thousand to UAH 300 thousand are provided, and taking into account the allowances provided by the program, the amount can reach UAH 500 thousand.

For scaling an already operating business, you can apply for UAH 500 thousand - UAH 1.5 million, and with allowances - up to UAH 2.5 million. For this direction, a requirement to create at least one new job is provided.

Additional coefficients are provided, in particular, for priority sectors of the economy, entrepreneurs from front-line territories, veteran business, IDPs and certain other categories. Applications will be submitted through the "Diia" portal.

Rules for connecting business to power grids change

From September 1, the National Energy and Utilities Regulatory Commission introduces new mechanisms for connecting electrical installations to networks. In particular, a mechanism for flexible connection based on the actual throughput capacity of the network appears.

Also, the permitted capacity for consumption and supply of electricity will be determined separately. The regulator expects that the new rules will simplify the development of distributed generation and energy storage systems - areas that are particularly important for the energy autonomy of enterprises.

New electronic signatures transition to "Kupyna"

From September 1, the full transition of the electronic signature infrastructure to the new Ukrainian cryptographic protection standard "Kupyna" is completed.

For ordinary users, there is no need to urgently change the current qualified electronic signature: old certificates will work until their validity expires, and previously signed documents will remain valid. At the same time, all new qualified electronic signature certificates will be created according to the new algorithm.

The Ministry of Digital Transformation separately recommended that businesses and information system developers check whether their software supports the new standard.

For agrarians, a new soy export mechanism is launched

From September 1, an open soy export program starts. Producers - legal entities and individual entrepreneurs - can submit applications through the State Agrarian Register to confirm the right to duty-free export of self-grown products.

The maximum export volume is up to 3.5 tons of soy per hectare of agricultural land. The State Agrarian Register system will automatically compare data on areas and calculate the available limit, so there is no longer a need to obtain separate paper conclusions from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

New requirements for medical practice

From the beginning of September, updated licensing conditions for medical practice come into effect. They change approaches to licensing, personnel requirements, the list of medical worker specialties, rules for forming staff schedules, and work through the licensee's electronic cabinet.

These changes directly concern both communal and private healthcare institutions, which must take into account the new requirements in organizing work and licensing documentation.

From September 4, a 2000 hryvnia banknote will appear

Another noticeable change will happen not on the 1st, but on September 4. The National Bank introduces into cash circulation a new highest denomination - a 2000 hryvnia banknote with the portrait of Vasyl Stus.

The National Bank explains the decision by the growth of incomes, prices and the volume of cash in circulation. On the front side of the banknote, Vasyl Stus is depicted, and on the reverse - the building of the philological faculty of Donetsk National University, where he studied.

The date of introduction of the banknote is chosen symbolically: on September 4, 1965, Stus took part in a protest against political repressions during the premiere of the film "Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors", and on September 4, 1985, he died in a Soviet camp.