Cancellation of the fine under Article 164 Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses

Recently, we began to receive more and more reports that the police began to draw up unsubstantiated reports of administrative offenses against drivers who work through the UKLON, Bolt, and OnTAXI applications, allegedly for conducting business without a license.

We remind you that the fine for such a violation is set by the court and can reach 34,000.00 hryvnias.

Unfortunately, many drivers get tickets without actually breaking the law. This became the cause of disputes and conflicts between drivers and law enforcement agencies.

The fact is that Article 164 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses provides for responsibility for conducting economic activity without obtaining a license to conduct a type of economic activity that is subject to licensing in accordance with the law.

According to the current legislation, one of the types of economic activity that is subject to licensing is the activity of transporting passengers.

However, when drawing up a report on an administrative offense, the police do not take into account several requirements that do not allow the driver to be held administratively liable under Art. 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, in particular, there must be several important conditions for drawing up such a protocol and applying a sanction to the driver:

• First, the driver must be in a company-branded car, if the transportation is carried out in one’s car – this cannot be considered charging.
• Secondly, according to the public offer of such companies as UKLON, Bolt, and OnTAXI – the latter provides information services that allow communication between the driver and the passenger. Such activity does not legally fall under the concept of “taxation”.
• Thirdly, there must be appropriate grounds for stopping the driver to draw up a protocol under Art. 164 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses. In the case of an unjustified stop, all subsequent demands of the policeman to the driver are illegal, and therefore the driver is not obliged to comply with such demands, and all procedural documents drawn up about him cannot be proper and admissible evidence of his guilt in committing an administrative offense.
• Fourthly, the record of the body camera must be submitted to the protocol, which must record the fact that the driver is driving the vehicle. The lack of evidence of a person driving a car, as well as the lack of evidence that he does not have a license, are grounds for closing the proceedings in the case.
• Fifth, an integral component of the administrative offense provided for in Art. 164 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses is the systematicity of activity. Clause 4 of the Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of Ukraine No. 3 dated April 25, 2003, provides that for the activity to be systematic, a person must carry it out at least three times during one calendar year. Usually, the police do not add such evidence to the report and are unable to prove the fact that the driver’s activity is systematic.

Thus, as we can see, to prosecute the driver under Art. 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code and impose a fine of UAH 34,000 on him. there must be quite a lot of prerequisites and reasons for this.

Unfortunately, judicial practice shows that the courts are superficial in their approach to such categories of cases and make decisions not in favor of drivers. At the same time, in the case of engaging the legal assistance of a lawyer, the probability of success and closing such a case is 90%.

If a protocol was drawn up against you under Article 164 Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses – contact we will analyze your case in detail, write legally competent explanations and motions to close the case proceedings, and present you at the court hearing.