Today, Ukraine is going through one of the most difficult periods in its history, when war and economic instability are changing the lives of millions of citizens. In these conditions, the gig economy — a labor model based on short-term contracts and temporary assignments — is gaining more and more popularity. It allows people to flexibly adapt to new realities when stable employment has become a problem, and employers are looking for options to quickly attract labor to solve specific tasks. How will the gig economy develop in Ukraine in 2025, what risks and opportunities does it bring, is the state ready to regulate this area, and what awaits the Ukrainian labor market in the near future?
Gig economy of Ukraine in the realities of war
Often, the concept of “gig economy” is associated exclusively with the IT sphere, and this is a mistake. This term refers to any temporary, contract or non-permanent work. That is why the “gig economy” covers a much wider range of professions – from couriers and taxi drivers to freelancers, IT specialists, designers, media, consulting and even teachers. In the English language, the word “gig” is used to refer to short-term performances by musicians, and it is this context that most accurately reflects the essence of the gig economy. This economic model opens up new opportunities for earning, but at the same time it poses challenges: from the lack of social guarantees to unsettled labor relations. The war and the crisis made the situation even more complicated: some workers lost stable jobs, many were forced to adapt to new forms of work that do not always provide reliability and stability.
This type of economy is not just a new form of employment, but a reality that significantly affects the Ukrainian labor market. It changes the rules of the game, opens up new opportunities for self-employed citizens and enables rapid adaptation to conditions of war, economic crisis and global change. However, every year the challenges facing this model become more and more serious. Thus, according to Mastercard forecasts, in 2024 the global market of the gig economy will reach 455 billion dollars, which is more than twice the GDP of Ukraine. At the same time, Statista confirms these forecasts, demonstrating the rapid growth of this sector.
In Ukraine, the gig economy already covers hundreds of thousands of people. For example, more than 300 thousand Ukrainians work through such platforms as Glovo, Bolt, Uber and Uklon. At the same time, another popular platform for freelancers – Kabanchik – increased the number of registered service providers from 194 thousand in 2020 to more than 300 thousand in 2024. This is a vivid example of how the war stimulated Ukrainians to look for new sources of income, even if these part-time jobs are not the main type of employment.
The e-commerce market is also growing. For example, the number of Rozetka stores has doubled compared to the pre-war period, reaching 400. Their monthly turnover ranges from tens of millions to several billion hryvnias. On the OLX platform, in 2024, the number of advertisements for long-term housing rentals increased sixfold compared to 2022, from 645 thousand to more than 3 million. For 70% of landlords, this is a source of additional income, and therefore part of the gig economy, even if they do not realize it.
No less important is the issue of tax burden. Non-resident companies such as Bolt and Uber have been paying the so-called “Google tax” (20% VAT) in Ukraine since 2022. Glovo, part of the German Delivery Hero, operates as a Ukrainian legal entity “Glovo Ukraine”. In turn, Uklon not only expands its activities in Ukraine, but also actively exports its business, in particular to Central Asia, where it makes about 1 million trips to Tashkent every month. It is important to note that the process of taking over Uklon by Kyivstar is currently underway. The head of the Antimonopoly Committee, Pavlo Kyrylenko, confirmed that on February 6, 2025, permission was granted to purchase a controlling stake.
An interesting question is: how many Ukrainians are involved in the gig economy? According to the government, before the full-scale invasion began in February 2022, the informally employed population was 3.5 million, of which 1.7 million were unregistered entrepreneurs. About 1-2 million more are representatives of “platform employment”. There are no data for 2024 yet. It is important that Ukraine has already taken the first steps to regulate this area. For example, in 2022, a special legal regime “Diya.City” was implemented to stimulate the development of the IT sector. In 2024, this regime brought 18 billion hryvnias of tax revenue to the state budget, although it faced challenges, including war and increased tax pressure.
In 2024-2025, the Ministry of Finance is actively working on the implementation of international standards, in particular the requirements of DAC7 of the EU regarding the exchange of tax data. This will promote transparency and allow legalization of a significant part of income in the gig economy. It should be understood that the gig economy is not only an opportunity to get additional income, but also a challenge for the state, which must provide social guarantees for these workers.
Problems and opportunities
The gig economy promises freedom, flexibility and the opportunity to work on your own terms. It changes the perception of work, erases borders and opens access to the international market. However, behind this attractive shell, there are problems that cannot be ignored. The first thing that appears before every freelancer is the instability of income. Even experienced specialists face periods when there are no or critically few orders. Today he has several lucrative contracts, and tomorrow he is unknown. In addition, there are often cases of fraud on the part of service customers who do not want to pay for the work performed. This forces us to constantly look for new clients, update our portfolio, and offer our services. In a world where platform algorithms can change in an instant, no freelancer is immune to a drop in demand.
The second problem is the lack of social guarantees. In the traditional model, the employee receives paid vacations, sick leave, and health insurance. A freelancer has to rely only on himself. Disease? This is a minus in income. Leave? Only at your own expense. Such conditions require a financial cushion, competent planning and the ability to maintain a balance between work and rest. But not everyone is ready for this. Plus, a freelancer has to pay taxes independently, understand legal nuances and build a strategy for personal financial development.
Another problem is professional isolation. The lack of teamwork, live communication, and exchange of experience affects development. In freelancing, there is no corporate culture that can encourage growth or give a sense of belonging. You have to build networking yourself, look for professional communities, participate in webinars, conferences, and trainings. These are additional efforts that do not always give quick results, but without them you can be left behind in the professional environment.
Self-management is an equally difficult problem. To be not only a performer, but also a manager of your own career. Find clients, negotiate, conclude contracts, take care of your own brand. There is no HR to tell, no manager to direct. Everything is on your shoulders. This requires a high level of self-discipline, strategic thinking and the ability to quickly adapt.
Administrative burden is also an important problem. Trying to force all platform workers to become entrepreneurs raises a number of questions. Who will administer over a million FOPs? How many accountants will be needed and how will this affect the cost of services to the end user? Will the requirement to make every scooter courier an entrepreneur destroy the industry? Logic suggests that the fopization of the gig economy will only complicate its functioning, creating additional pressure for both platforms and self-employed individuals.
Digitization can be the solution to this problem. Many platforms already have tools to automate accounting, data sharing and transparency. At the same time, the state, for its part, owns the Diya platforms and the taxpayer’s electronic cabinet. These solutions can form the basis for a modern regulatory system that will not be cumbersome and confusing, and it can have a quick effect. According to experts’ estimates, the state budget will receive an additional 2-10 billion hryvnias in taxes in the first year of the implementation of the new system. However, the question arises: who will become the tax agent for millions of self-employed? The self-employed must pay 18% personal income tax. But reality shows that not everyone willingly submits declarations and keeps records of part-time jobs.
The state is inclined to make the platforms themselves the tax agents, which will automatically withhold taxes, but this scheme is also imperfect. Platforms find themselves in a risky situation: technical failures, order cancellations, reporting errors can lead to fines. Administration of a large number of self-employed requires additional costs and resources, which can make services more expensive for the end user. If large platforms leave the market, the country will be pushed back to the shadow economy, where the state will lose the ability to control and collect taxes.
The diversity of business models in the gig economy adds to the complexity. There are online stores, ridehailing, courier services that work with FOPs and legal entities, there are advertising platforms that receive a commission for each order. Can an online store that buys goods from a FOP be a tax agent for a natural person who sold the goods once? The question remains open.
One alternative is to make banks tax agents. According to the concept of draft law No. 10166, banks will automatically withhold tax from the income of the self-employed and transfer these funds to the budget. However, this idea is currently blocked. The Ministry of Finance and the NBU note that this contradicts the essence of banking. Who will be responsible for reporting errors? Who will look for the missing self-employed person? In addition, the introduction of this scheme will require the consent of all banks in the country, which is not currently available.
Therefore, the most important problem is the legal uncertainty of the regulation of the gig economy in Ukraine, because this sphere is not only developing rapidly, but also creates serious challenges for the state tax system. An increasing number of taxi drivers, couriers and other self-employed persons work through digital platforms, avoiding the opening of FOP due to the complexity of procedures and small income. According to a study by the Economic Expert Platform, 42% of taxi drivers consider the opening of a FOP inexpedient, and among couriers this figure exceeds 60%. At the same time, many countries still do not have clear legislation regarding the work of freelancers. What taxes to pay? How to protect your rights in case of conflict? How to draw up a contract to avoid problems? The answers to these questions are not always obvious, and legal advice is an additional expense.
As you can see, there are more questions than answers. However, despite these problems, some international and Ukrainian platforms show readiness for cooperation. They are considering taking over responsibility for tax administration if no better solution is found. In particular, the platforms are ready to join the DAC7 directive on the sharing of user revenue data.
Regulation of the gig economy requires a balanced approach. Currently, there is a constructive dialogue between the state, business and the expert environment. It is expected that as early as 2025, there will be clear requirements for digital platforms to share user income data. The question remains open: who will take on the main role of the tax agent and whether the new rules will not become another barrier to the development of the gig economy in Ukraine. Regulation of this area should be reasonable and take into account the specifics of different business models. Otherwise, there is a risk of destroying a young but promising industry that already helps keep the economy afloat today.
However, despite all the difficulties, the gig economy is developing. It has become an integral part of many companies that have implemented a hybrid model: the main staff and a network of freelancers who are involved in specific projects. This allows you to reduce costs while remaining flexible and competitive. But they also do not provide guarantees: a profile or site can be blocked, algorithms can be changed, and competition is growing every day. However, companies try to retain top specialists not only with salary, but also with additional bonuses: access to training platforms, long-term contracts, flexible terms of cooperation. However, will this be enough to guarantee stability and confidence in the future? This question also remains open.
In these conditions, the state must respond to the challenges of the times – modern legislation must adapt to new realities. At the same time, it should be taken into account that the legalization of millions of self-employed persons will contribute to the stabilization of the economy and the growth of budget revenues. That is why we need social protection mechanisms for freelancers, effective legislation, simplified taxation systems, support through educational and professional programs. Otherwise, the gig economy risks remaining chaotic, unstable and vulnerable to crises.
