The State Tourism Agency has identified irregularities amounting to nearly one million hryvnias
This has been reported by the Audit Office following the results of its financial audit of the agency.
The auditors found that the duties of vacant managerial and specialist posts were assigned to civil servants working in other departments of the agency. This practice did not comply with the requirements of the Law ‘On the Civil Service’.
Employees were paid compensation for additional workload, holiday pay, financial assistance prior to annual leave, financial assistance to address social and domestic issues, and compensation for unused leave. The total amount of payments amounted to 853.97 thousand hryvnias, of which 153.99 thousand hryvnias was accounted for by the single social contribution.
Why the breach occurred
The Accounting Chamber attributed the breach to an incorrect interpretation of the legislation by the agency’s officials. The management allocated additional duties to cover vacant posts that had remained unfilled for a long time.
The auditors did not find that these payments had affected the key indicators in the agency’s financial statements for 2025. However, the procedure for awarding these additional payments did not comply with legal requirements.
The Audit Office recommended that the agency provide training for officials on the remuneration of civil servants. This recommendation must be implemented by the end of 2026.
Payments to dismissed staff not disclosed in the accounts
The audit also revealed that the State Tourism Agency had failed to disclose, in the notes to the financial statements, information regarding payments made to 22 employees who were made redundant in 2025. The total amount of these payments was 347.48 thousand hryvnias.
As a result, the agency’s expenses and liabilities relating to staff redundancies were not fully reflected in the accounts.
What else the auditors found
At the time the audit was completed, errors totalling 287.08 thousand hryvnias remained uncorrected. The largest of these related to the Unified Tourism Register, for which no depreciation had been charged since it was put into operation.
As a result, the value of the agency’s intangible assets as at the start of 2026 was overstated by 236.89 thousand hryvnias, and the financial result for 2025 was distorted.
Following the audit, the agency recognised depreciation on the register and introduced additional control procedures for the accounting of intangible assets. As of July, two of the four recommendations from the Accounting Chamber had been implemented, with the other two currently being implemented.
Follow us on Telegram.
