Agri land market reopens in Ukraine after 20 years

Ukraine’s agricultural land market formally reopened
on July 1. Ukrainian citizens may now freely buy and sell agriculturally zoned
land totaling up to 100 ha. Related persons, such as spouses, may also hold
agricultural land, but the source of purchase funds can be questioned,
epravda.com.ua reported on the same day. The reopening of the market, which was
voted upon in the Verkhovna Rada in March 2020
ended a moratorium on such sales that had been in place since 2001.

State Geocadastre stated that 6.9 million private
owners have a total of 27.6 million hectares of agriculturally zoned land, and
that the average plot size is 4.5ha.

Currently, foreigners and corporations are not allowed
to purchase land zoned for agriculture. Changes to the law will come in force
in 2024 to allow Ukrainian corporations to own up to 10,000 ha. However,
granting the right for foreigners to own agri land will be decided upon after a
referendum, which has not had a date assigned to it yet.

James Hydzik: The move is a step toward ending the farce of long-term leases as
substitutes for owning and the eventual opening of a large-scale land market.
Moreover, it also improves liquidity for a source of wealth for millions of
Ukrainians.