How to avoid fines when transporting agricultural products

Transportation of grain, oilseeds, sugar beets and other agricultural products is traditionally accompanied by a large number of violations, and fines in this area are already measured not in hundreds but in tens of thousands of hryvnias. Most sanctions are calculated in tax-exempt minimum incomes of citizens (1 TMIC = UAH 17), and when several violations are committed simultaneously, the fine, according to Art. 60 of the Law of Ukraine "On Road Transport," is imposed for each of them separately. Therefore, it is worth knowing the main "risk zones." This is reported by Olha Brus, a lawyer at EvrikaLaw.

Overloading remains the most expensive violation. The maximum parameters are established by clause 22.5 of the Road Traffic Rules as amended by Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 427 of 01.04.2026. For a road train or a semi-trailer tractor with a semi-trailer, the permissible actual mass on state-owned roads depends on the number of axles: for 4-axle combinations it is 36 tonnes, for combinations with 5 or more axles – 40 tonnes (for container carriers – 44 tonnes), and on local roads – only 24 tonnes. The load on a single axle cannot exceed 11.5 tonnes on state-owned roads and 7 tonnes on local roads.

Farmers often ignore this difference, although the route from the field to the elevator usually runs specifically along local roads. It is important that grain belongs to divisible cargo, and for divisible cargo movement with exceeding weight norms is prohibited, and it is impossible to obtain a permit for such passage. Fines under Art. 60 of the Law of Ukraine "On Road Transport" and Art. 132-1 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses are: for exceeding from 5% to 10% inclusive – 500 TMIC (UAH 8,500), over 10% to 20% – 1,000 TMIC (UAH 17,000), over 20% to 30% – 2,000 TMIC (UAH 34,000), and over 30% – 3,000 TMIC (UAH 51,000).

Such violations can be recorded automatically by weigh-in-motion (WIM) systems. Note: under WIM resolutions, the fine is automatically issued to the owner of the vehicle according to the technical passport. If an agricultural enterprise leases equipment or engages hired transport, be sure to enter information about the proper user in the Unified State Register of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in advance (through the Driver's Electronic Cabinet) so that liability does not fall on the lessor. Evading dimensional-weight control or violating traffic rules in the zone of such control will cost even more, namely 3,000 TMIC (UAH 51,000). To avoid this, weigh each vehicle before departure, distribute the load evenly across the axles, and plan the route in advance taking into account the type of roads and temporary traffic restrictions that road owners introduce in hot weather.

Liability for overloading applies not only to the carrier. Art. 132-2 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses provides for a separate fine for the shipper, i.e., the agricultural enterprise, farmer or elevator that indicated in the consignment note a mass that does not correspond to the actual one and conceals the excess of norms. The amount of sanctions is similar: from 500 to 3,000 TMIC. Therefore, the mass data in the consignment note must correspond to actual weighing.

The second common group of violations is the absence of documents. Transportation of cargo without the documents provided for by Art. 48 of the Law of Ukraine "On Road Transport" (driver's license, registration documents, document on lawful use of the vehicle, consignment note) is punishable by a fine of 1,000 TMIC (UAH 17,000). Separately, under Art. 128 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses, an official or sole proprietor who released onto the line a technically faulty vehicle, transport without mandatory technical control or without the necessary documents, pays a fine of 40 TMIC (UAH 680), and in the case of a repeated violation within a year – 50 TMIC (UAH 850).

The third area concerns the work and rest regime of drivers. By Order of the Ministry of Development No. 1727 of 12.12.2025, which entered into force in July 2026, the Regulation on working time and rest time of drivers of wheeled vehicles was updated in accordance with European rules on tachographs and working time accounting. For violation of this regime, the carrier faces a fine of 20 TMIC (UAH 340) for each case. However, there is an important exception for agribusiness: during martial law and for three months after its termination, the Regulation does not apply to internal transportation that an enterprise carries out at its own expense to ensure its economic activity, if the duration of such transportation does not exceed 4 hours 30 minutes and is confirmed by primary documents recording the time of its start. So if a farm transports its own grain to the elevator with its own transport, be sure to indicate the departure time in the consignment note or waybill.

It is equally important to properly secure and cover the cargo. According to clauses 22.2 and 22.3 of the Road Traffic Rules, the driver is obliged to check the reliability of cargo securing before starting movement, and the cargo itself must not raise dust or contaminate the roadway. An open body from which grain spills out is grounds for a fine under Art. 122 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses in the amount of UAH 340, and if this results in a traffic accident, the owner will also have to compensate for the damage caused. Therefore, the body must always be covered with a tarpaulin.

If a fine has already been imposed, the resolution can be appealed. Resolutions of Ukrtransbezpeka regarding administrative-economic fines are appealed in court, and resolutions in cases of administrative offenses, as a general rule of Art. 289 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses, within 10 days from the moment of their issuance, and resolutions in cases of administrative offenses in the field of road safety and motor transport (in particular those recorded automatically by WIM) according to Art. 289 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses are appealed within 10 days not from the moment of issuance, but from the day of delivery of such a resolution. However, prevention remains the most reliable protection: own scales or elevator weighing acts, a properly executed consignment note and a complete set of documents in the driver's cabin.