September 29, 2025
On 25 September, a discussion panel entitled ‘Government and Development: Cooperation and International Experience for Urban Development’ took place in Lviv as part of Lviv Build Forum 2025.
During his speech, Rostyslav Melnyk, CEO of RIEL, highlighted one of the most pressing issues in the market: share contributions, which, despite being officially abolished, remain the subject of numerous lawsuits. He reminded attendees that this tax was repealed in 2021, yet prosecutors and local authorities are now filing claims against developers en masse, citing a Supreme Court clarification.
‘The prosecutor’s office and local authorities have declared war on us. They are taking virtually all developers in various cities to court. The law abolished share contributions for infrastructure development in populated areas back in 2021. However, the Supreme Court has effectively replaced the Verkhovna Rada by issuing its own clarification on how this tax should be calculated. It is based on this clarification that the mass lawsuits have begun,’ Melnyk stated.
‘The city is saying one simple thing: the State Audit Service conducted an audit and ruled that developers were not charged billions in Lviv. The Supreme Court clarified in its decision that we are not the owners of this money. Yet now, based on this ruling, lawsuits are being filed for each property, demanding funds. This is a complex problem,’ Melnyk explained.
He emphasised that such actions pose a significant threat to the development of the market: ‘The law says we should not pay, but authorities are demanding it from us. I would like to ask: what are we going to do about this? I do not understand how such a substitution of concepts can occur in a state governed by the rule of law.’
At the same time, Olena Shuliak, Chair of the relevant Verkhovna Rada committee, stated: ‘There is no such tax in the world — only a property tax exists. In my view, share contributions created corruption risks. Local authorities could selectively decide who received a discount and who had to pay the full 10%. In some cases, developers were credited for infrastructure, such as fountains or outdated communications, that they did not even install. This is corruption. We are preparing a bill to finally eliminate this practice.’
Shuliak also noted that proposals to reinstate the 10% share of construction costs are already being submitted for the 2026 draft budget, with the idea put forward by the Association of Ukrainian Cities.
For context: Lviv Build Forum is an event in Western Ukraine that brings together construction industry leaders, developers, investors, and architects. It serves as a platform for open dialogue of top market players, the search for new partnerships, and the development of innovative solutions in residential, commercial, and infrastructure construction.
This year’s panel participants included:
- – Olena Shuliak, Chair of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Organisation of State Power, Local Self-Government, Regional Development and Urban Planning
- – Yevhen Favorov, Chair of the Ukrainian Association of Developers (online)
- – Rostyslav Melnyk, CEO of RIEL
- – Roman Davymuka, CEO of Avalon
- – Roman Korzhak, Managing Partner and CEO of Blago
The panel was moderated by Ukrainian journalist and TV presenter Tetiana Honcharova.
