Property Tax During Wartime: What Owners of Destroyed or Damaged Housing Need to Know

Property tax on real estate (excluding land plots) is charged annually to owners of residential and non-residential property. However, during wartime, special rules apply that exempt citizens from paying tax on property that has been damaged or destroyed. 

Who Has to Pay Property Tax? 

Property tax must be paid by: 

• owners of residential property (apartments, houses), including owners of shares in such property; 
• owners of non-residential property, including co-owners of such premises. 

How Does the Tax Authority Calculate the Tax Amount? 

The tax is calculated based on: 

• the total floor area of all real estate owned by the taxpayer, 
• the area-based tax benefits defined by the Tax Code of Ukraine, 
• the tax rate set by the local council. 

How the Tax Is Distributed Across Different Properties 

The tax authority divides the total tax amount proportionally among all properties according to their floor area. 

When Is Property Tax Not Charged? 

For the duration of martial law, property tax is not charged and not payable for residential or non-residential property that has been: 

• destroyed, 
• damaged, 
• ruined as a result of military actions, terrorist acts, or sabotage. 

Which Tax Periods Are Covered by This Exemption? 

The exemption applies: 

• for the 2021 tax year, and 
• for all tax periods after 2021 — if the property belongs to an individual and information about its destruction has been entered into the State Register of Damaged and Destroyed Property. 

What Happens When a Property Is Entered Into the Register? 

If information about the property is entered into the State Register of Damaged and Destroyed Property, then: 

• the property is included in the calculation of your total property area; 
• however, tax is NOT charged and NOT payable for this property. 

In other words, the property still counts toward your total property area, but it is fully exempt from taxation. 

How This Works in Practice 

Imagine you own a 60 m² apartment in Donetsk and a 75 m² apartment in Dnipro. 

Total residential area: 135 m² 

For apartments, the taxable base is reduced by 60 m². 

So, the taxable area after applying the standard exemption is: 

135 m² – 60 m² = 75 m² 

However, the apartment located in the temporarily occupied territory is not taxable. 

Therefore, the property tax will be charged only for the apartment located in the non-occupied territory. 

The Dnipro apartment has an area of 75 m², but taxation is applied proportionally. 

Taxable base is 75 m². Proportional share of the Dnipro apartment: 

75 m² / 135 m² = 55.5% 

Thus: 

75 m² × 55.5% = 41.62 m² — this is the portion of the Dnipro apartment's area that will be taxed. 

This publication has been produced as part of a project implemented by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) with funding from the European Union through its Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the DRC. Neither the European Commission nor the DRC can be held responsible for the content of this material.