Up to six years for drop schemes: Zelenskyy signs law

The law provides for criminal liability for illegal operations involving bank cards and accounts. It was signed yesterday, November 13, by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Those involved in drop schemes may face up to six years in prison.

The bill’s record on the Verkhovna Rada website confirms it was signed — itd.rada.gov.ua. The document is available at: https://itd.rada.gov.ua/billinfo/Bills/Card/70664.

Liability will apply not only to the organizers of fraud schemes. The law also covers “drops”—people who receive payment for handing over their bank cards or accounts to others for illegal transactions. Handing over, receiving, acquiring, or keeping cards, account credentials, or access to accounts becomes a criminal offense when done with the intent to commit fraud or other crimes.

The document sets out the following penalties for specific offenses:

• For forging payment cards, payment instructions, and other means of accessing bank accounts, as well as acquiring, possessing, transporting, or selling forged payment documents: a fine of 3,000 to 7,000 non-taxable minimum incomes, or restriction or deprivation of liberty for 2–4 years.
• For unlawfully obtaining bank cards, payment instruments, or account access data: a fine of 4,000 to 8,000 non-taxable minimum incomes, or restriction or deprivation of liberty for 3–5 years.
• For repeating these acts or committing them as a group acting in prior collusion: deprivation of liberty for 4–6 years, or a fine of 5,000 to 10,000 non-taxable minimum incomes.

The document also allows criminal-law measures to be applied to legal entities. This applies when crimes are committed by authorized company representatives on the company’s behalf and in its interests.

The law aims to bring Ukrainian legislation into line with EU Directive 2019/713, which addresses combating fraud and the counterfeiting of non-cash payment instruments. Bill No. 16013 passed its first reading in the Verkhovna Rada in September 2026.

We previously reported:

• A sole proprietor’s account used in a fraud scheme: Mykolaiv resident loses around 200,000
• Hand over a card for fraud and you could go to prison: Parliament backs new penalties
• Fraudsters steal nearly 1.5 million from bank accounts of fallen Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers
• Money stolen from the accounts of over 10,000 citizens: National Police dismantle a large-scale fraud scheme
• Dangerous ATMs: using skimming devices, two thieves stole over UAH 600,000 from cards, including those belonging to Mykolaiv residents