How a Foreign Manufacturer Can Supply Equipment for Ukraine’s Reconstruction

Your company has just won a tender to supply equipment for the reconstruction of a Ukrainian community. Then it turns out that the tender proposal did not clearly identify who would act as the equipment importer. The contracting authority assumed this was your responsibility as the successful bidder. You calculated the price on the assumption that customs clearance would be handled by the Ukrainian partner. The equipment has already been manufactured, some of it is already on its way to the border, and the parties are still arguing over who must file the customs declaration and pay the applicable charges.

This is not a hypothetical situation—it is one of the most common ways a “won tender” turns into a stalled shipment, a frozen payment, and a damaged relationship with the contracting authority. The reason is always the same: the roles described in the tender proposal, the contract, and the actual logistics do not match. Someone must be the importer, declarant, installer, and beneficiary of any guarantee payment—and if those roles are agreed only verbally or treated as implicit, the equipment may physically arrive in Ukraine while the contracting authority is technically unable to accept or pay for it.

So what should have been done instead, and how can a foreign equipment manufacturer safely supply products for projects in Ukraine?

Short answer: before submitting a bid, a foreign manufacturer must determine more than the price and equipment model. The parties should agree who will be the bidder, importer, and installer; which rules of the specific donor or contracting authority apply; who will confirm product conformity; and how importation, acceptance, payment, warranty service, and spare-parts supply will work. If these roles do not match across the tender proposal, contract, and actual supply arrangement, the equipment may arrive in Ukraine but the contracting authority may be unable to properly accept or pay for it.

The least expensive and easiest time to close this gap is before submitting the price proposal, not after winning the tender, when some terms have already been fixed and changing them may be difficult or impossible without putting the entire transaction at risk.

In this article, we explain how to build the entire supply chain correctly from the outset—from defining the manufacturer’s role to determining who will actually receive payment and when.

Start With the Manufacturer’s Role, Not Platform Registration

A manufacturer can participate in a reconstruction project in different ways. It may submit a bid directly as a nonresident, work through a Ukrainian distributor or importer, join a consortium with a contractor, or remain a subcontracted equipment supplier. The chosen model determines who signs the contract with the contracting authority, provides the bid or bank guarantee, declares the goods, performs installation, and assumes warranty obligations.

Under the current Law of Ukraine “On Public Procurement,” Ukrainian and foreign bidders participate in procurement procedures on equal terms. However, this does not mean that every nonresident automatically meets the requirements of a specific procurement. The contracting authority may require proven experience, personnel, service infrastructure, bid security, documents confirming the origin of the goods, or the ability to perform installation and training.

Before preparing the document package, the manufacturer should therefore answer one practical question: will it only sell the equipment, or will it also take responsibility for design, delivery, installation, commissioning, personnel training, and service? In the second case, the legal route is significantly broader than an ordinary sale of goods.

Which Rules Govern a Specific Procurement?

Reconstruction projects are financed from different sources. Procurement may be conducted under Ukrainian rules through Prozorro, under the procedures of an international financial institution, or under special donor conditions. The same community may purchase similar equipment under different procedures depending on the source of funding.

As of August 26, 2026, Ukrainian public procurement is governed by Law No. 922-VIII and the wartime special procurement rules approved by Resolution No. 1178 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, as amended. New Law No. 4888-IX has already been adopted but will take effect on March 24, 2027. Therefore, relying only on the new law when participating in a 2026 procurement would be incorrect.

Procurements financed under the Ukraine Facility are subject to additional requirements concerning eligible countries of registration for bidders and subcontractors, the origin of goods, and the sanctions status of participants and beneficial owners. Other donors may establish their own eligibility systems.

The manufacturer should therefore review the documents for the specific procurement rather than relying on the general name of a program. The five questions below help determine which procedure applies, whether the manufacturer may participate directly or through a Ukrainian partner, which requirements apply to bidders and the origin of the goods, and which declarations must be submitted:

• Who is the contracting authority, and what funding source is identified in the procurement documents?
• Can a nonresident participate directly, and is a Ukrainian partner required?
• Which countries of registration for the bidder and subcontractors, and which countries of origin for the goods, are eligible?
• Do localization requirements apply, or are there exemptions under an international agreement or donor rules?
• Which sanctions, environmental, social, and integrity declarations must be submitted?

Who Will Import the Equipment and Be Responsible for Its Compliance?

Winning the tender does not resolve the import issue. The contract and logistics model must identify the party that will actually act as importer, declarant, consignee, and payer of customs charges. If the tender price is calculated on the assumption that the manufacturer bears all import costs while the contract assigns customs clearance to the Ukrainian buyer, the parties will face a dispute before the first shipment even arrives.

The requirements applicable to the product itself must be determined separately. Law of Ukraine No. 124-VIII provides for conformity assessment in the cases and under the procedures established by the relevant technical regulation. Different types of equipment may be subject to different regulations, and the obligations of the manufacturer, importer, and distributor are not always the same. EU marking or a European certificate should not automatically be treated as sufficient for placing a product on the Ukrainian market—the specific technical regulation and procurement documents must be reviewed.

Before submitting the bid, it is advisable to prepare a list of the product documents that will be required: the technical file, declaration of conformity, certificates, Ukrainian-language instructions and labeling, software documentation, metrology documents, and safety and service materials—but only those that actually apply to the equipment in question.

Related: Importing Equipment into Ukraine: How to Organize Shipments of Equipment?

Supply of Goods or a Package Including Installation and Training

In reconstruction projects, equipment often does not operate as a stand-alone product. The contracting authority may need delivery in several shipments, installation, integration with existing infrastructure, commissioning, testing, personnel training, and warranty service. If all of this is described in the documents simply as “equipment,” the parties may have different understandings of when the contract has actually been performed.

For a supply arrangement that includes installation, the following should be reviewed separately:

• Who prepares the site, foundations, connections, technical specifications, and design documentation?
• Are Ukrainian permits, licenses, certified specialists, or work authorizations required?
• Who arranges the entry and work of foreign engineers, and who is responsible for occupational safety?
• Which document confirms delivery, completion of installation, testing, and final acceptance?
• When does the warranty begin: upon shipment, customs clearance, installation, or signing of the acceptance certificate?
• Who stores spare parts, performs repairs, and provides software updates?

This structure may also create a tax risk of a nonresident permanent establishment in Ukraine. That risk is not determined solely by the duration of a single visit: the contract, the actual functions performed by personnel, the place where the work is carried out, and the role of the Ukrainian partner must all be analyzed. This issue should be reviewed before installation and service costs are included in the commercial proposal.

What the Supply Contract Must Specify

For a manufacturer, the most dangerous contract is one that describes penalties in detail but defines the actual supply result vaguely. Before submitting the final price, the tender documents, technical specification, and draft contract should be cross-checked against the following points:

• Exact configuration, model, performance, compatibility, software, and permitted equivalents.
• Number of shipments, production schedule, packaging, delivery, transfer of risk, and applicable Incoterms rules.
• List of customs, transport, and technical documents to accompany each shipment.
• Terms for installation, testing, commissioning, training, and signing interim and final acceptance certificates.
• Acceptance criteria, the period for submitting comments, and the procedure for correcting defects.
• Warranty period, warranty exclusions, remote diagnostics, repairs, and spare parts.
• Rights to software, technical documentation, remote access, and updates.
• Changes to the price or timeline due to changes in taxes, exchange rates, logistics, or the scope of work—only to the extent permitted by the procurement rules.
• Sanctions clauses, end user, end use, prohibition of unauthorized re-export, and the obligation to provide supporting documents.
• Governing law, contract language, notice procedure, and dispute resolution mechanism.

How to Avoid Structuring a Payment You Cannot Receive

A procurement may require bid security, a performance guarantee, an advance payment guarantee, retention of part of the price until final acceptance, or payment only after installation. The manufacturer should verify the form of the guarantee, the bank, currency, validity period, and conditions for making a claim before the commercial proposal becomes binding.

The payment flow must also comply with Ukrainian foreign exchange rules and bank compliance controls in effect on the transaction date. If the payer is a Ukrainian contracting authority and the recipient is a nonresident, the bank will review the contract, invoices, shipping documents, and acceptance documents. A mismatch between the actual stage of delivery and the wording of the acceptance certificate may delay payment even when the equipment is already operating.

Taxes and customs charges included in the price must also be identified, together with the party that bears additional costs if the delivery route or customs classification of the goods changes. Legal analysis does not replace customs and tax calculations, but it should establish who provides those calculations and how the results affect the contract.

How This Works in Practice: A Modular Water Treatment System

Suppose a European manufacturer plans to supply a community with a modular water treatment system. The equipment takes six months to manufacture, is imported in three shipments, and the manufacturer’s engineers are expected to perform installation and train personnel.

If the manufacturer submits only a certificate for the completed system and a price for delivery to the border, that may be insufficient. The bid should determine:

• whether the country of origin is eligible under the funding rules;
• who will clear the three shipments as components of a single equipment system;
• which documents are required to demonstrate conformity;
• who will prepare the site and connections;
• which acceptance document triggers payment and the warranty;
• whether the foreign engineering team may perform the work without an additional local structure.

These are not three separate legal issues but one chain. The decision about the tender participant affects importation; importation affects installation; installation affects acceptance; and acceptance affects payment and the warranty. This chain must be reviewed before the price is submitted, not after the tender has been won.

Documents to Review Before Submitting a Bid

• Procurement notice, tender documents, technical specification, and draft contract.
• Funding terms and donor rules, if applicable.
• Documents confirming the registration, beneficial owners, authority, and sanctions status of the manufacturer and its partners.
• Evidence of experience, references, dealer or partner authorization, and consortium documents.
• Equipment description, product codes, country of origin, technical file, declarations, certificates, labeling, and instructions.
• Supply scheme: shipments, routes, Incoterms, importer, declarant, and customs broker.
• Installation plan, personnel, subcontractors, permits, testing certificates, and acceptance documents.
• Warranty model, service, spare parts, software, and remote access.
• Bank guarantees, payment schedule, and tax and customs calculations.
• End-user and end-use documents if the goods or technology are subject to export restrictions.

How We Help Foreign Manufacturers

We review the Ukrainian side of the supply model before a bid is submitted: procurement requirements, the roles of the nonresident and the Ukrainian partner, equipment documentation, the import and contractual structure, and the terms for installation, acceptance, payment, warranty, and service. Where necessary, we prepare a list of questions for the contracting authority and proposed contract changes that should be initiated within the procedural deadline.

Instead of a general consultation on Prozorro or customs, the client receives a delivery implementation matrix showing who performs each action, which document confirms it, when payment becomes due, and which risk must be resolved before the price is submitted. This allows the client to order separate support for the procurement, contract, import, or installation, or a comprehensive route—depending on the manufacturer’s actual role.

If you are planning a project in Ukraine and need a reliable partner who understands the current requirements and market rules, contact us.