By September 1, 2026, all businesses with critical status will be re-inspected, and those that do not meet the new criteria may lose the right to book workers. The government also increased salary requirements and strengthened control over the number of reserved employees, which will make the system much tougher.

This is stated in the relevant government decree. In recent years, mission-critical status has become one of the key tools for preserving business talent.. However, over time, the need arose to reconsider approaches to determining criticality. The government believes that the system should operate as transparently as possible and provide benefits only to those companies that actually perform functions that are important to the state.. That is why the Cabinet of Ministers decided to conduct a complete audit of the statuses already issued and check whether the enterprises meet modern wartime requirements.

One of the main innovations was the establishment of a deadline for the validity of all existing decisions on recognizing enterprises as critically important.. Even if the company has previously received the corresponding status, it will remain in force only until the end of the period for which it was granted, but no longer than until September 1, 2026.

After this date, enterprises that do not pass the re-inspection or do not meet the new criteria may lose their status and, accordingly, the ability to book workers. The government has established a clear schedule for recertification:.

Thus, the business received approximately three months to prepare for new inspections. The greatest risk arises for companies that have received status based on criteria that can be canceled or changed.

If the basis on which the enterprise was once recognized as critical disappears from the updated list of criteria, the status may be canceled automatically. In this case, the company:.

Particular attention will be paid to enterprises that do not have a direct connection with the defense sector, critical infrastructure, or providing the basic needs of the population.. At the same time, the government also revised the financial criteria for booking. For most enterprises, the minimum wage of workers who are planning to be booked is increased to three times the minimum wage. Today it is 25,941 hryvnia. An exception is provided for companies operating in combat areas or temporarily occupied territories. A lower threshold was left for them - 21,618 hryvnia, which corresponds to 2.5 times the minimum wage.

Another important change concerns the number of workers with reservations. If an enterprise exceeds the established limit, it must submit an application for cancellation of excess bookings through the Diya service within ten working days. Ignoring this requirement can have serious consequences. Exceeding the permitted number of booked workers may now be grounds for loss of critical business status. To strengthen control, the government is also involving the Ministry of Digital Transformation. After approval of the new criteria, all government bodies and military administrations must transmit the relevant information to the Ministry of Digital Development no later than ten days. Thanks to this, the state will be able to quickly monitor the status of enterprises, the number of reserved workers and the relevance of all decisions through digital registers. It is expected that such a system will help minimize possible abuses, speed up inspections and provide uniform rules for business..