PJSC “Philip Morris Ukraine” and LLC “Philip Morris Sales and Distribution” paid a total of 31.7 billion UAH in taxes for January–June 2026, which is 10% higher than the figures for the same period last year, according to a company press release.
The bulk of the payments consisted of excise tax—24 billion UAH—and value-added tax (VAT)—7.1 billion UAH.
“In the first half of the year, we managed to increase the amount of taxes paid by 10%. This was made possible by an increase in excise tax rates on tobacco products, despite a decline in market volumes and the consequences of the missile attack on our factory and warehouses,” the press service quoted Serhiy Kalnoochenko, CFO of Philip Morris Ukraine, as saying.
According to Kalnoochenko, since the start of the full-scale invasion, the company has paid more than 212 billion hryvnias to the budget, which is one of the highest figures among businesses in Ukraine.
“This is a real contribution by our business to funding defense, social programs, and economic recovery. However, this amount could have been at least 25–28 billion hryvnias higher if the country had been able to overcome the problem of the illegal tobacco trade. Instead, the market for illegal cigarettes continues to grow every quarter,” Kalnoochenko emphasized.
According to estimates by Kantar Ukraine in April 2026, the volume of the illicit tobacco market has grown again and now stands at 19.8%. With such market volumes, annual losses to the state budget due to unpaid taxes are estimated at a record 33.3 billion hryvnias, the statement noted.
Philip Morris Ukraine PJSC has been operating in the Ukrainian market since 1994 and is one of the largest taxpayers. In 2024, the company opened a new factory in the Lviv region, investing $30 million and creating 250 jobs. Last year, the company invested $5 million in promoting its “ZYN” nicotine pouch brand in Ukraine; this year, it plans to invest another $10 million in developing the nicotine pouch category and launching a new product line under the brand.
In late January 2026, part of the company’s Kharkiv factory was damaged in a nighttime missile strike; operations at the facility have been suspended since February 24, 2022. The company’s preliminary estimate of the damages is $16 million.
On the night of July 8, the company lost its finished goods warehouse in Kyiv due to Russian shelling.
The company also provides humanitarian aid to communities in the Kharkiv, Lviv, and Kyiv regions, and collaborates with the rehabilitation funds Superhumans, U+System, and UNBROKEN. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, projects totaling 431 million hryvnias have been implemented.
