Ukraine will consider the possibility of opening a quota for the export of 100,000 tons of coal to Poland in September, Prime Minister Denys Shmygal said.
“On behalf of the President of Ukraine, at the request of the Polish side, Ukraine is ready to consider the possibility of opening quotas for coal exports to Poland. We are talking about 100,000 tons in September, which are now critically needed by our Polish partners,” he wrote on his Telegram channel.
Shmyhal specified that coal reserves in the warehouses of Ukrainian power plants amount to almost 2 million tons, which is 2.5 times more than a year ago. “Therefore, we are ready to lend a shoulder of support to our Polish friends,” he stressed.
The Prime Minister of Ukraine added that during the visit of his Polish counterpart Mateusz Morawiecki to Kyiv, the parties also discussed the restoration and commissioning of the Khmelnytsky NPP-Rzeszow power line.
“We planned to finish before December 14, but thanks to the acceleration of work, we can complete a week earlier. This will allow us to export an additional 1,000 MW to Poland. For our part, we ask Poland to assist in expanding export quotas within the framework of ENTSO-E,” Shmyhal said.
According to him, Ukraine expects that by the end of 2022 the amount of available transmission capacity in the direction of Slovakia, Romania and Hungary will increase from 300 MW by another 200-300 MW, and in the direction of Poland – over 1000 MW.
As reported, since mid-June 2022, Ukraine has set zero quotas for the export of all types of coal, except for coking coal, and on September 7, it completely banned the export of Ukrainian coal.
According to the State Customs Service, Ukraine’s coal exports for seven months of 2022 amounted to 450.6 thousand tons for $145.917 million, incl. to Slovakia – by $93.349 million, Poland – by $34.084 million, Hungary – by $15.919 million, other countries – by $2.565 million.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine will look for opportunities to help Poland in the energy sector and find a way out of their future energy risks in the near future.
“Today we raised important energy issues. We discussed energy challenges. We are interested that Ukraine can help Poland. We are doing everything to find a way out of their future energy risks in the near future,” Zelensky said at a press conference with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Moravetsky and Latvian President Egils Levits in Kyiv on Friday.
He also called this issue a priority in relations with Poland.
“For us, this is a priority in our relations. Despite the fact that we have a ban on the export of coal during this difficult period, we will look for an opportunity to help Poland. Because Poland, in spite of everything, found certain steps to help us, when it was not easy for her. We understand this responsibility,” the President added.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has left for Kyiv, where he will hold several meetings to discuss topics such as the geopolitical situation, the energy market and security, government spokesman Piotr Muller told private TV channel Polsat on Friday.
At the same time, he noted that no significant or sudden changes would be announced during the visit, but this visit is a political signal to the Kremlin, reminiscent of Poland’s position in connection with the Russian aggression against Ukraine.
“We will support Ukraine in this very difficult situation, because we believe that Russia is violating all possible international standards. In addition, protecting Ukraine is also protecting our security,” Muller said.
The agreement between the National Bank of Poland and the National Bank of Ukraine, under which Ukrainian refugees could exchange cash hryvnia for zlotys from the end of March, is terminated on September 10.
According to the press service of the NBU on Tuesday, over more than five months of the program, Ukrainians in Poland exchanged about UAH 680 million for zlotys, including UAH 383 million in April and UAH 30 million in August.
Ukrainians in Poland will be able to maintain Ukrainian tax residency without paying taxes in the host country from income received in Ukraine, the Better Regulation Delivery Office (BRDO) reported, citing an official letter from the Ministry of Finance of Poland in response to a request from BRDO and the IT Association of Ukraine.
“In May, BRDO and the IT Association of Ukraine appealed to the government of our state and the Ministries of Finance of Bulgaria, Germany, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia with a request not to change the tax residency of refugee entrepreneurs who ended up in these countries. The success of our advocacy is evidenced by clarification that we received the other day from the central executive authority of Poland,” the office said.
According to the letter of the Polish Ministry of Finance, Ukrainians will be able to retain tax residence in Ukraine and not pay taxes in the host country, if it is not about income from sources in Poland.
As reported, the European Business Association called on the government to resolve the issue of tax residence of Ukrainian citizens abroad, since staying outside the country for more than 183 days, they can be recognized as residents of the host country and there will be a risk of double taxation of income received in Ukraine.
Citizens of Ukraine who were forced to move to Poland, fleeing Russian military aggression, received access to medical care on an equal basis with Polish citizens, the Ministry of Health of Ukraine reports.
“To do this, you need to have a passport of a citizen of Ukraine, which has a mark on crossing the border after February 24, 2022. If you crossed the border without a passport – a document confirming the date of crossing the Polish border by Polish services. The provision of medical care for Ukrainians is free of charge,” the statement reads. message.
In addition, Ukrainians must have refugee status or temporary protection status, as well as an analogue of the Ukrainian identification number – PESEL, which will provide access to healthcare services.
To date, Poland has provided Ukrainians with free access to medical care at all levels: basic medical care – visits to family doctors, calling an ambulance; specialized outpatient care; diagnostic studies (as directed by a doctor); hospital treatment; psychiatric treatment; rehabilitation (except resorts); dental services.
Also, citizens of Ukraine, children and youth under 19 years of age have the right to receive free preventive vaccinations, according to the Polish Preventive Immunization Program. To do this, you should contact your family doctor and get the appropriate referral. In addition, every adult Ukrainian, as well as a child from 5 years old who are in Poland, can also be vaccinated against COVID-19.
