Policy

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry discloses salary data for Zaluzhnyi, Markarova and other ambassadors

From UAH 54 thousand per month and additional expenses. At the request of Komersant ukrainskyi, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has published data on the salaries of Ambassadors Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary in leading countries of the world for October 2024. The information includes calculations of salaries, allowances and deductions.

The salary of the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine in 2024 is set at UAH 54,380 in accordance with the classification of civil service positions and the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 1409.

The monthly salary of Ambassadors Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary includes several components: base salary, allowances for rank, length of service, secrecy, and taxes.

For example, Ambassador to the United Kingdom Valeriy Zaluzhnyi received UAH 66,468 in October, while his colleagues in Germany (Oleksiy Makeev) and China (Pavlo Riabikin) received UAH 66,476 and UAH 57,919, respectively. Ambassador to France Vadym Omelchenko received UAH 57,801, and to the United States Oksana Markarova received UAH 60,428.

However, there are additional expenses for housing, health insurance, children’s education, etc., which are also financed from the state budget:

• Housing: According to the budget program passport, renting housing for heads of diplomatic missions costs the budget an average of UAH 2.15 million per year (over UAH 179,000 per month).
• Medical insurance: The average annual cost per diplomatic employee and their family members is UAH 73.3 thousand.
• Children’s education: If diplomats’ children study in local schools or kindergartens abroad, the cost of their education reaches 154.7 thousand UAH per year.

Another aspect is geographical differences. Living costs vary significantly from country to country. For example, renting a house in London or New York is much more expensive than in Beijing, but all ambassadors receive the same salary.

Education for children of employees on long-term business trips is financed separately:

• uAH 86.2 thousand for preschool education;

• uAH 154.7 thousand for general secondary education.

Allowances and bonuses

Allowances for civil service rank, length of service and other allowances are regulated by the applicable laws. In particular, the longevity allowance is 2% for each year of service, but not more than 30% of the official salary.

The MFA emphasized that all funding data, including budget program passports and reports on their implementation, are available on the official website of the Ministry.

This information is part of the efforts to ensure transparency in the management of public funds and meets international standards of openness.

Author – Anastasia Fedor