Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has signed the law introducing amendments to certain legislative acts of Ukraine on ensuring border security of the state, according to a report posted on the official website of the head of state on Thursday, April 26.

"The implementation of the legislative act will help effectively counteract administrative violations on the state border of Ukraine, in government-controlled border areas, as well as at government-controlled checkpoints on entry to and exit from the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine," the report says.

The law improves the measures applied by the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine to counter illegal migration on the state border and other offenses in the border sphere.

In particular, a number of changes are made to the Code of Administrative Offenses, and two new types of administrative responsibility are introduced. In addition, amendments are made to the laws on ensuring the rights and freedoms of citizens and legal regime in the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine, on the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, on the legal status of foreigners and stateless persons, on the creation of a free economic zone "Crimea" and on the peculiarities of the implementation of economic activity in the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine.

As reported, the Verkhovna Rada supported bill No. 5442 on amendments to the Code of Administrative Offences and other laws on securing the state's border security at second reading and as a whole on February 27, 2018.

According to amendments in Article 185, the penalty for malicious disobedience to a lawful order of a serviceman or employee of the State Border Guard Service, who are responsible for protecting the state border, will range from 50 to 100 non-taxable minimum incomes of citizens (now the penalty is from five to ten minimum incomes). Such actions committed by a group of persons will be punished with fines from 100 to 300 (from 10-20 now).

Penalties for violation by foreigners of the rules of staying in Ukraine and transit passage through its territory will amount to 100-300 non-taxable minimum incomes of citizens (now from 30 to 50 minimum incomes). The same increase in fines is provided for non-compliance by foreigners with the established procedure for registration or residence in Ukraine under invalid or expired documents, as well as for violation of the established period of stay in Ukraine.

In addition, a new Article 203 appeared in the Code of Administrative Offenses, according to which the deliberate non-compliance by a foreigner or stateless person with a decision of an authorized state body regarding a ban on entry to Ukraine entails a fine of 100-300 non-taxable minimum incomes of citizens.

Crossing or attempting to cross the state border outside a checkpoint or through a checkpoint without documents or forged documents entails a fine of 200 to 500 minimum incomes (now it is 100-200).

The code was also supplemented with Article 204, which concerns the violation of the order of entry into or exit from the area of the anti-terrorist operation. Crossing or attempting to cross the contact line in the ATO zone or non-government controlled section of the state border in this area outside the checkpoints, but without documents, or without permission of the authorities, will be fined from 30 to 50 non-taxable minimum incomes. If such an offense is committed by a group of persons or an offender against whom an administrative penalty was imposed the fine will be 50-70 minimum incomes.

The bodies of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine will be authorized to consider cases of administrative violations related to violation of the ban on entry into the country, violation of the rules for crossing the border, as well as entry to the ATO area and departure from there.

The law, with the exception of certain clauses, comes into force on the day following the day of its publication.

The non-taxable minimum income of citizens is UAH 17. The official exchange rate of the NBU as of April 26 was UAH 26.2705 per U.S. dollar.