Verkhovna Rada Adopts 2027 State Budget in First Reading: Record 5,236 Amendments and Defense Sector at 43.8% of GDP

On October 28, 2026, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine supported in the first reading the draft law "On the State Budget of Ukraine for 2027" (bill No. 16000). 239 MPs voted in favor of the document. This was reported by RBC-Ukraine with reference to the parliamentary session broadcast. The adoption of the budget in the first reading opens the stage of finalizing the text by the government, taking into account parliamentary amendments before the second reading.

Record Number of Amendments

An unprecedented number of amendments was submitted to the draft budget — 5,236, which, according to Roksolana Pidlasa, Head of the Verkhovna Rada Budget Committee, is a 24-year record. Meanwhile, the committee accepted only 90 MPs' proposals. Among the approved changes are increased payments to the military and the expansion of state guarantees for defense enterprises. Recall that on October 21, the Budget Committee recommended that Parliament adopt the 2027 state budget draft in the first reading, inviting the government to incorporate a series of changes during preparation for the second reading.

Key Decisions on Amendments

Before adopting the budget in the first reading, Parliament rejected several proposals but approved two significant amendments. Amendment No. 1279 on increasing military salaries (by 20% of the minimum wage, according to MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak) gathered 304 votes. The Rada also supported an amendment banning the financing of the "National Cashback" program from the 2027 state budget — 284 MPs voted for this decision.

Main Budget Parameters

The 2027 state budget draft projects expenditures at 7 trillion 272 billion hryvnias and revenues at 5 trillion 648 billion hryvnias. The largest expenditure item remains the security and defense sector: 4 trillion 885 billion hryvnias, or 43.8% of the country's GDP. Regarding social indicators, the living wage per person will be 3,559 hryvnias, the minimum wage will be 9,546 hryvnias per month (57.5 hryvnias per hour), and the average nominal salary is projected at 34,409 hryvnias. The annual average forecast for the official US dollar exchange rate is set at 47.1 hryvnias, with the rate expected to reach 48.3 hryvnias by the end of the year.

Financing Deficit and International Support

Ukraine's need for international support in 2027 is estimated at $52.6 billion, of which over $20 billion is already confirmed, while about $32.6 billion remains uncovered. At the same time, according to European Commission and Ukrainian Presidential estimates, the total financing deficit amounts to €70 billion, and total defense and budget needs reach up to €115 billion. Context of pressure on budget revenues: according to Slovo i Dilo, in August and September the state budget under-collected 32 billion hryvnias in tax revenues due to constant strikes on Ukrainian business.

Further Procedure

Now the government must review the parliament's conclusions and amendments, make appropriate changes, and return the revised budget text to the Verkhovna Rada for consideration in the second reading. Thus, the document adopted in the first reading will serve as the basis for the final alignment of state finance parameters for 2027.