Cabinet of Ministers abolishes full conscription exemption for defence industry and energy sector, introducing new criteria

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has completed the development of amendments to the current mechanism for exempting conscripts from mobilisation. The key innovation is that the maximum level of exemption for enterprises in the defence industrial complex (DIC) and the energy sector will no longer reach 100%. Instead, the authorities are preparing an alternative instrument: full exemption of personnel will only be possible for companies that voluntarily recruit a portion of their employees for military service.

Goals of the reform: transparency and rotation

Ukrainian Prime Minister Koretsky provided details on the upcoming changes. According to him, the main goal of the innovations is to make exemption rules as transparent as possible, eliminate cases of abuse, and ensure the possibility of rotating military personnel who have been defending the state for the fifth consecutive year.

Main changes in the system

The government plans to implement several key measures that will change the approach to determining the criticality of enterprises and their level of exemption:

Updating criticality criteria
From now on, the criticality of an enterprise will be separated from its economic indicators. Priority will be given to sectors directly important for defence and the functioning of the state: the defence industrial complex, energy, communications, logistics, housing and communal services, and other strategic industries. Basic exemption conditions will be preserved for such facilities, but sectoral and regional criteria will be updated and checked for abuse.

Abolition of full exemption for all employees
The maximum level of exemption, particularly in the energy sector and the defence industrial complex, will not amount to 100%. As the Prime Minister noted, previously some companies specifically created structures to obtain exemption. Meanwhile, enterprises that ensure defence production or the operation of critical infrastructure will be able to apply to the Coordination Centre with justification for the need to exempt a larger number of employees.

Strengthening liability for evasion
The Ministry of Defence is working on strengthening liability for evading military service. The government emphasises that the rules must be the same for all citizens.

New mechanism for 100% exemption conditional on fulfilling duty
A system is being prepared under which an enterprise will be able to fully exempt its personnel if it regularly and voluntarily recruits a portion of its employees for military service. According to the head of the government, every person must know in advance exactly where they will serve and for how long. Their job and salary will be preserved.

The mechanism will be jointly developed by the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Economy with the participation of business representatives. The government plans to approve it by 1 December.

Does this mean a strengthening of mobilisation?

The Prime Minister emphasised that the new decisions do not provide for an automatic strengthening of mobilisation the very next day. Their goal is to bring order to the exemption sphere, eliminate abuses, and create clear rules for employees and employers.

According to the government's concept, the new system must ensure the possibility of rotating military personnel and give people who join the service a clear understanding of the conditions and terms. At the same time, the authorities call for taking into account the possibility of further strengthening of mobilisation in Russia and the need to prepare for various scenarios of conducting the war.