By December 4, 2026, Ukrainian entrepreneurs who want to continue normal operations during a yellow-level air threat must ensure that the legally required conditions for protecting employees and visitors are in place. These may include access to a shelter, a civil protection facility, a dual-purpose structure, or a properly equipped safe space. The law does not require every store, café, beauty salon, or office to build a separate bomb shelter.
Businesses without a shelter may temporarily continue operating during a yellow-level air raid alert with the agreement of their workforce, but only during the three-month transition period ending on December 4, 2026. Businesses must also display information signs indicating whether shelter is available, communicate air raid alerts to employees and visitors, and establish procedures for staff to follow. These rules are established by Resolutions No. 1092 and No. 1128 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.
Yellow and Red Air Raid Alert Levels: What Has Changed for Businesses
Resolution No. 1092 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, dated September 4, 2026, introduced two levels of aerial threat.
|
Level |
Meaning |
Business Operations |
|---|---|---|
|
Yellow |
Drone threat |
Operations are permitted subject to the conditions established by Resolution No. 1092 |
|
Red |
Missile, combined missile-and-drone, or large-scale drone threat |
Normal operations must stop, and people must be directed to shelters; special rules apply to certain activities |
The yellow level allows businesses to continue operating without necessarily stopping service to all customers, provided that the established protective requirements are met.
Visitors may decide at their own discretion whether to remain inside the premises during a yellow-level alert. This provision is expressly set out in Subparagraph 2 of Paragraph 1 of Resolution No. 1092.
Which Businesses Need a Shelter or Safe Space?
The requirements of Resolution No. 1092 apply to business entities regardless of their form of ownership.
These include stores, shopping centers, restaurants, cafés, beauty salons, offices, workshops, warehouses, manufacturing facilities, and other business premises.
The resolution does not provide a general exemption for small businesses based on floor area, turnover, or number of employees.
At the same time, these requirements concern the conditions for continuing operations specifically during a yellow-level threat. They do not mean that a business without a shelter must automatically cease all operations at other times.
Article 20 of the Civil Protection Code of Ukraine also establishes obligations for businesses to provide collective protection for employees and, in facilities and locations where large numbers of people gather, for visitors.
What Types of Shelters Allow Businesses to Continue Operating?
Subparagraph 2 of Paragraph 1 of Resolution No. 1092 allows businesses to continue operating if one of the following protective options is available:
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a civil protection shelter;
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a temporary or permanent shelter for employees and visitors;
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a dual-purpose structure;
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a safe space within a building or structure.
Therefore, a business does not necessarily need to build a separate protective structure. Legislation permits the use of other approved options.
It is important that the chosen option meets the established requirements and provides a genuine possibility of protecting people.
The mere presence of an ordinary basement or an interior room without windows does not, in itself, prove compliance with the requirements for a shelter or safe space.
Safe Spaces in Stores, Cafés, and Offices: Requirements of Resolution No. 1128
Resolution No. 1128 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, dated September 15, 2026, introduced the concept of a safe space into the regulations.
Under Resolution No. 1092, as amended by Resolution No. 1128, a safe space consists of the most protected areas of premises, buildings, or structures, designated by the entity responsible for the property and equipped within the existing architectural layout.
These areas must protect employees and visitors from the indirect effects of conventional weapons and take into account the established maximum blast overpressure value.
This value is determined by the Ministry of Defence together with the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The relevant government authorities must communicate it to military administrations, design and expert organizations, and business entities.
How to Equip a Safe Space
The entity responsible for the property must identify the most protected area of the building and calculate its protective characteristics, taking into account the established blast overpressure value.
These calculations may require the building's technical documentation and the involvement of appropriately qualified specialists.
The Ministry of Economy has published separate materials on the methodology for determining equivalent static loads, along with calculation examples. They are available in the explanatory materials for Resolution No. 1092 dated October 19, 2026.
The entity responsible for the property or the business entity declares the availability of an equipped safe space by informing employees and visitors.
Resolutions No. 1092 and No. 1128 do not establish a separate universal permit form for safe spaces. However, the need for proper calculations follows directly from the definition of a safe space in the resolution.
Can Businesses Operate Without a Shelter Until December 4, 2026?
Businesses without a temporary or permanent shelter may continue operating during the transition period with the agreement of their workforce.
This period lasts three months from the date Resolution No. 1092 entered into force — from September 4 to December 4, 2026.
The agreement of the workforce does not provide an indefinite substitute for a shelter. Once the transition period ends, a business will no longer be able to rely on this temporary exemption to continue normal operations during a yellow-level alert.
How to Document Employee Agreement
Resolution No. 1092 does not establish a specific standardized form for obtaining agreement.
A business may document the workforce's decision in meeting minutes, specifying the date, participants, the issue of temporarily continuing operations, and the decision adopted.
Preparing meeting minutes helps confirm that agreement was obtained. This is a recommended method of documentation, not a separate mandatory form approved by the resolution.
It is important to note that the transition period applies specifically to the temporary possibility of operating without a shelter. It does not postpone other existing requirements, including the obligation to inform people about air raid alerts.
Shelter Information Signs: Mandatory Wording and Dimensions
Resolution No. 1128 requires entities responsible for properties and business operators to inform employees and visitors about the availability of a shelter or safe space at the premises.
For this purpose, signs measuring 100 × 60 cm are required.
Depending on the actual condition of the premises, one of three messages must be displayed:
|
Premises Status |
Sign Wording |
|---|---|
|
A shelter is available |
«This facility has a shelter» |
|
An equipped safe space is available |
«This facility has a safe space» |
|
No shelter is available |
«This facility does not have a shelter» |
In accordance with the resolution, signs must be placed at entrances to premises, buildings, structures, or sites, as well as on their exterior walls or fences.
The information must reflect the actual condition of the facility. Displaying a sign indicating the availability of a safe space does not replace the required calculations of its protective characteristics.
How Businesses Must Notify Employees and Visitors
Resolution No. 1128 explicitly establishes two organizational obligations:
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Establish procedures for staff to follow when an «Air Raid Alert» signal is issued.
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Ensure that air raid alert signals are communicated to employees and visitors.
Management must establish procedures so that staff know how to respond to the relevant threat level, where the shelter or safe space is located, and how to notify visitors.
The resolution does not establish a single standardized form of internal instructions for all businesses. Therefore, each business may define its procedures in its own organizational document, taking into account the characteristics of its premises and operations.
Special Requirements for Certain Institutions
For educational institutions, Paragraph 1 of Resolution No. 1092 establishes a special requirement: educational activities must be suspended during a yellow-level threat, except at institutions equipped with civil protection shelters.
A special procedure approved by Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1158 of September 21, 2026, applies to healthcare institutions, Sole Proprietorships engaged in medical practice, and entities operating within the blood system. It takes into account the need to provide certain types of medical care without interruption.
Fines and Liability for the Absence of a Shelter
Resolutions No. 1092 and No. 1128 do not establish a separate fixed fine for a store or office that has not equipped a safe space by December 4, 2026.
However, Article 175-3 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses establishes liability for violations of requirements concerning facilities belonging to the civil protection shelter system.
In particular, failure to provide legally required access to such facilities is punishable by a fine of UAH 1,700 to UAH 3,400. Violations of maintenance and operating requirements that render a facility unfit for its intended purpose are punishable by a fine of UAH 2,550 to UAH 5,100. A repeated relevant violation within one year carries a fine of UAH 5,100 to UAH 8,500.
These penalties apply to specific offenses defined in Article 175-3 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses. They are not imposed automatically merely because a business lacks a safe space.
Staff Notifications and Recording Non-Working Days in Torgsoft During Air Raid Alerts
Torgsoft includes an additional feature called «Staff Notifications», which allows text messages to be sent to employees. Managers can create messages containing instructions about working arrangements, procedures during air raid alerts, or shelter locations, select recipients, and monitor whether employees have read the messages. The software records the time a message is delivered and the time an employee confirms reading it.
This feature operates under certain technical conditions: computers must be connected to a local area network or use a terminal server. Messages may not appear immediately, so Torgsoft does not replace the official air raid warning system. It is suitable for internal organizational communications rather than as the sole channel for urgent danger alerts.
To record days when a retail outlet was closed, Torgsoft also provides a «Non-Working Day» feature. It allows users to select the accounting location, date, and reason, and add a comment. This information is taken into account when viewing the «Daily Product Profit for a Selected Period» report, helping businesses analyze store performance while accounting for non-working days.
What Entrepreneurs Need to Do by December 4, 2026
Business Readiness Checklist
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The main requirement for continuing operations during a yellow-level threat is compliance with the established conditions for protecting employees and visitors. Before the transition period ends, entrepreneurs must determine which shelter or safe space option is suitable for their premises and ensure that it can actually be used.
Official Sources
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Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 1092 of September 4, 2026, «Certain Issues Concerning the Optimization of Civilian Protection and Response to Aerial Attack Threats» — Paragraph 1, Subparagraphs 1–3; Paragraph 7; Annex.
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Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 1128 of September 15, 2026 — Paragraph 1 of the approved amendments concerning safe spaces, information signs, and notifications.
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Civil Protection Code of Ukraine No. 5403-VI of October 2, 2012 — Articles 20, 30, and 32.
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Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 1158 of September 21, 2026 — special procedures for businesses operating in the healthcare sector.
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Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses No. 8073-X — Article 175-3.
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