How to sell a car during martial law

Despite the fact that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine began back in 2014, martial law throughout the country was introduced only after a full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022. The introduction of martial law had an impact on all spheres of life of Ukrainians, it could not but affect the rules for selling a car.

Recall that on February 24, 2022, at 5 am, Russian President V. Putin announced that the Russian army had entered the territory of the sovereign state of Ukraine in order to conduct a “military special operation”. A full-scale invasion began with massive shelling of 10 border regions, so the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine immediately announced the introduction of martial law. The corresponding decree was signed by the President of Ukraine V. Zelensky on the same day.

During the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the need for new and used vehicles has increased dramatically. We are talking about cars for volunteers, for military purposes and for ordinary citizens who move to calmer regions or evacuate abroad. The number of cars that are imported into the country has increased, and car sales have become one of the most popular services.

Many car sellers have not yet fully familiarized themselves with the restrictions that wartime imposes on the procedure for buying and selling cars. If you have no desire to deal with legal nuances, but you urgently need a car, car rental in Ukraine is always available. Если вы все же хотите продать или купить машину, эксперты компании Narscars подробно расскажут об изменениях, которые произошли с начала полномасштабной войны в сфере продажи авто.

Decree No. 165 of the Main Service Center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs

During the operation of martial law, especially in the frontline zone and in the areas of combat operations, it became impossible to strictly comply with many legal formalities. In order to avoid any manipulation and distortion of information, the possibility of entering any data into electronic registers has been completely stopped for this period. In addition, due to the constant shelling of the entire territory of the country, in particular, not only military facilities, but also state institutions, which include service centers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, their work was completely stopped. This was dictated by the desire of the leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to reduce the threat to the lives of people working in these centers.

The corresponding resolution number 165 was approved by the Main Service Center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on February 28, 2022. The decree states that any administrative services will be suspended for the duration of martial law. And this means that it is impossible to enter into the electronic register information that the car was received, transferred or sold to another person.

Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers No. 190

Before the war, the purchased car had to be registered no later than 10 days from the date of the transaction or after its customs clearance. Due to hostilities, the work of the electronic registry was suspended and there was an urgent need to resolve the issue with the registration of vehicles. The Cabinet of Ministers, by Resolution No. 190 of 05/04/2022, approved the norm, according to which a purchased or imported car can be registered after martial law is lifted, but no later than 90 days later.

The decree says that the countdown will start 90 days from the moment both the termination and the abolition of martial law, and not necessarily throughout the country, but also in its individual regions, where documents were drawn up for the sale of the car. Data in the register is entered at the location of the trading platform.

This document also assumes that the paid storage of license plates will not be stopped, which means that they will not be destroyed during the period of martial law. After its completion, the numbers can be assigned to any car. In accordance with the accepted norm, driver's licenses and state registration certificates that have expired also continue to be valid throughout the country.

Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers No. 1007

This resolution was adopted before the transition of the war into an acute phase on September 28, 2021, but it greatly simplifies the process of registering ownership of a car. Since then, online car sales have become available. It is important to understand that only an individual who makes the first sale in a year can use this service through the driver’s electronic account. Moreover, drawing up an electronic contract is possible only for a passenger car, moped or motorcycle.

How is the price formed?

Since the beginning of 2022, prices for luxury cars and luxury car brands have dropped slightly. At the same time, the demand for cars with a trailer, a body, trucks and vehicles for transporting a large number of people has grown significantly. The price of a car depends not only on its condition and year of manufacture, but also on registration. Naturally, it is much more expensive to sell a car with Ukrainian license plates. Otherwise, the seller himself determines the cost of his vehicle, based on their average prices on the market for his model and guided by his own considerations. If desired, they can be ordered an independent assessment of the car, but this is not necessary to conclude a deal.