On January 16, 2021, Article 30 (“The state language in the sphere of customer service”) of the Law “On Ensuring the Functioning of the Ukrainian Language as the State Language” came into force.
It regulates relations in the sphere of customer service.
Article 1 of the Law “On Consumer Rights Protection” defines a consumer as an individual who purchases, orders, uses (or intends to use) products for personal needs not related to business activities or the performance of an employee’s duties.
So the new requirements apply to those businesses where the client is the end consumer.
Article 30, in particular, states the following:
- The language of customer service in Ukraine is the state language.
- Business entities shall serve and provide customers with information about goods (works, services), including through online stores and online catalogs, in the state language. Information in the state language may be duplicated in other languages.
- At the client’s request, the personal service can also be provided in the other language acceptable for the parties.
- Information about goods and services on the territory of Ukraine is provided in the state language.
- If, in addition to the state language, information about goods and services is also provided in other languages, the amount of information in the state language may not be less than the mandatory amount of information following the requirements of the Law “On Consumer Rights Protection.”
Article 57 of the Law provides a fine for violation of such requirements, but only for the repeated violation within a year. As of today, the amount of the fine is 5100 – 6800 UAH.
